Kennebec Lake

Meet host Erin McCoy

Cottaging is in Erin McCoy’s blood. Since childhood she has spent countless hours at the cottage with family, creating memories and traditions that continue to this day. It was only fitting that she become the host of Cottage Life Television and share in the history, passion, and laughter of her fellow cottagers. Her enthusiasm for cottage country is infectious and after reading our interview with her, you’ll want to pack the car and head north.

CL: Okay, we?re a little bit jealous. You get to explore fabulous places in cottage country and meet wonderful new people as a part of your job. What?s been your favourite part about filming so far?

Erin: I am definitely guilty of living in a cottage bubble. I have played in Muskoka my whole life and know very little about other regions. Each episode reminds me how cottagers share the same passion and pride in their cottage, lake, and region. I have truly loved every minute of it, from getting to know the wonderful families who have graciously allowed us into their cottages to learning about the history and local attractions in various areas of cottage country.

This show has a fantastic track record and I get a real kick when people come up and tell us how much the show meant to them and are thrilled that it is back on air!

CL: Have you come across any towns you would say are hidden gems?

Erin: I am going to be careful not to single out any one place, but what I will recommend to those who have watched our episodes is to travel to the areas we have highlighted because the people, towns, and attractions are wonderful. You will definitely return inspired and likely with a car full of goodies!

CL: You?ve learned a lot about local and Canadian history on the show. Any regional facts you can pass on?

Erin: There are so many! We could do a whole feature on regional facts alone but one that really stuck with me since visiting Don and Marnie Ross in the Thousand Islands is the impending threat of the Asian carp on the Great Lakes and the devastating effect it will have on the whole ecosystem. This is a reality I don’t think is getting enough exposure. In fact, it?s more like a dirty little secret and anyone that has cottages on our beautiful Great Lakes and connecting rivers needs to be aware, become advocates, and fight for preservation.

CL: We hear that you?ve been cottaging since you were knee high to a grasshopper! What?s your earliest memory of being at the cottage?

Erin: I am too old now to remember that far back, but there are some things that stick out. I remember thinking I was the coolest kid when I got my tin boat with a 15hps Johnson motor, which I still have today. Back then I was clueless to the fact that my mother had it painted yellow to serve as a beacon, that way other cottagers on the lake could identify my whereabouts and notify my parents. Meanwhile, I am driving around thinking I have ultimate freedom

CL: What inspiration from the show do you plan to take back to your own cottage?

EM: First Let me say that nobody cottages like us Canadians. In fact, Canada is cottaging as far as I am concerned!

Jeffery Belisle and his paddle boarding skills inspired me?he made it look so easy. I am definitely going to buy one and try to tackle that this summer. The Belisle family also taught me to turn the lights out every once in a while and get back to what cottaging is all about!

I loved how Randy and Rita on Kahshe lake chose to re-use and recycle when they built their beautiful place, instead of going the easy route and building from scratch. I applaud them for maintaining the historical elements of their cottage and finding really unique ways to showcase them.

Then there was the Hogarth family. I thought I was active and they showed me what being busy at the cottage really meant! I have them to lovingly thank for not being able to move for a few days after that visit and my new found feeling of guilt every time I dare to sit back and chill at my cottage.

CL: What?s your cottaging style?are we more likely to find you boating, floating, hiking or lounging on the dock all day?

EM: All of what you listed and more depending on the weather, my mood, and what surprises occur in a day in cottage country. I do have a routine where I can usually be seen on my road bike cycling on Hwy 169. I regularly kayak with my two dogs, Angel a.k.a. ?Pete? and Daisy a.k.a. ?Willis.? (They?re both girl dogs but my daughter changed their names, so now that?s what they respond to.) I also go swimming in the lake with my daughter as much as possible.

CL: When you?re not spending time lakeside, where are we likely to find you?

EM: Motherly duties come first of course but then there is work and travelling. In addition to Cottage Life Television I am the co-host of The Real Estate Talk Show on 1010 CFRB with Simon Giannini, who I am partners with at The Real Estate Centre Team. I work with incredible people across the board, and I am very fortunate to love what I do.

CL: And finally, it?s a hot summers day on the dock. Is it going to be ice cream or watermelon? (The viewing public is dying to know!)

EM: I would love to say watermelon to sound health conscious, which I am, but anyone that knows me will roll their eyes if they read this, because I love my ice cream, so I?ll say both. In fact, lets mix them together. I?ll have to talk to Chefy, I know he will come up with something creative and tasty!

Watch Cottage Life Television Sunday nights at 9pm on Travel + Escape. Or check it out online!

Going Nuts

A squirrel in a standoff with our dog

Canada

Our flag is proudly displayed out front.

Morning Swim

On a morning walk we stumbled upon a duck taking a mornig swim

Beelieve

Was in the garden, hearing birds and the bees, decided to go “macro” and capture some of these, yes please!

Latest government closure will affect lake research

Trust the Federation of Ontario Cottagers? Associations to be at the forefront of breaking news that affects lake stewardship. Here?s an excerpt from FOCA?s May Alert, which arrived in my e-mail today.

?Thursday, May 17, 2012: FOCA has learned that Fisheries and Oceans Canada staff are today being informed of the decision of the Government of Canada to close operations at the Experimental Lakes Area in Kenora, Ontario.

This closure, if it proceeds, will mark a significant setback for scientific research and will impede the ability of scientists to be able to understand the effects of human impacts on aquatic environments, by eliminating one of the only facilities in the world where whole-ecosystem experiments can be conducted.?

Concerns about this decision should be sent directly to Fisheries Minister Keith Ashfield, keith.ashfield@parl.gc.ca.

What happened to the shoe tree?

The shoe trees didn?t just get up and walk away on their own. They were cut down in the fall of 2011, by the City of Kawartha Lakes? Public Works Department. What began as a single tree had morphed over the years into four trees, plus a hydro pole. According to city officials, the trees were dying, and the collection was becoming a safety hazard. Goodbye, shoe trees! May all those old soles rest in peace?

Who should I contact if I want to expand my cottage?

You should contact your municipality?s building and planning department. Ask about setback requirements, zoning bylaws, and other factors that will affect what kinds of upgrades and expansions you?re allowed to do to your cottage. Is it okay to increase the existing footprint? Can you add a second storey? Is the current sewage system going to be adequate? What about building a bunkie on the lot? Are there any flood plain requirements for your property? Is your lake governed by a conservation authority? (And will you need its approval?) And so on, and so forth. You can also check your municipality?s website; info about local building regulations and how to apply for permits for construction and demolition is often posted there. And, of course, if you feel like reading a long legal document, the Ontario Building Code is available through the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

What?s the best way to get rid of bears?

Those are good anti-bear moves, but you may need to amplify your efforts. Bears aren?t just attracted to cooking smells, garbage, compost, and greasy barbecues; they?ll also go after birdseed, dog food, gasoline, dirty diapers, and other items that you wouldn?t eat even if you were absolutely starving. So make sure these things are stored in odour-proof, wildlife-proof containers (that can?t be knocked over or rolled away). And be super-diligent about your garbage. Freeze meat scraps until trash collection and wash your recyclables. If you?re experiencing break-ins of the ursine variety, try some anti-bear cottage upgrades: Instead of lever door handles, use knobs; put heavy frames and thick glass on the windows; and don?t keep a fridge in the porch where the bears can smell it (especially if it?s an old one with a leaky door seal). As for deterrents, one option is to surround your cottage with electric fence?the shock isn?t harmful, but it can scare the heck out of a bear.

Unfortunately, for bear-proofing to work, everyone using the family property?and cottagers at neighbouring properties?must be as attentive as you, or the bears will never learn that the buffet is permanently closed.

Otters on a cruise

I had heard that there were otters in our area, but had yet to see any until these guys came cruising by last fall. They were in no hurry though they did not seem interested in stopping to check out the area.

Sun Rise

We often get up and sit on the front veranda sip coffee and watch the sun slowly peak over the horizon

Great Moon

this is the “Great Moon” when it is closest to earth

Loons

we were out in the canoe and silently got close enough for this great picture

Day lily in the rain

one of our Day lilies in a rain shower

Tranquility

I have taken many pictures of sunsets on Georgian Bay.This is one I particularly like because the water is so calm and peaceful.

Mum is away for the day.

Mum left this little fawn in our lot for the day and returned in the evening.They were gone in the following morning.

New property report and survey released

Guest post by Blair Eveleigh, senior associate editor

Royal LePage released its annual Recreational Property Report this morning, along with the results of a survey it commissioned. The survey polled current cottage owners and those who intend to buy in the next five years. One of the more surprising finds is that more than four-fifths of current owners do not rent their property out to offset carrying costs. How to afford to keep the cottage has been a recurring topic for a while now, and we hear from readers all the time about the rising costs of hydro, property taxes, etc., so I?d thought there would be more cottagers renting. Among prospective owners, the survey found that about half of them intended to rent out their cottages. Other tactics people are considering to get into a cottage: reducing discretionary spending; buying a fixer-upper; buying a vacant lot and building later; and, buying with family or friends. (Many are also probably hoping to win the lottery, but may have been reluctant to admit this to a pollster.)

Anyone in the market for a bargain should head east, way east. According to the report, New Brunswick has the lowest prices for a standard waterfront, road-access, 1,000-sq.-ft. three-bedroom cottage with 100 feet of shoreline: around $110,000. Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland are also affordable, and all three of these Atlantic provinces have inland properties on the market for less than $100,000. (Curiously, the report has no information at all about Nova Scotia.)

As for Ontario, a prime location (the Meaford/Thornbury/Collingwood region) may push the cost of that standard cottage up to about a million dollars. There are still affordable properties to be found, however, especially those without waterfront, with St. Joseph Island and Lake Huron being the most accessible (about $90,000 for a standard property on a backlot).

The least surprising finding? More than half of all respondents (55 per cent) said that their number one priority was peace and quiet. That?s something we already knew.

Board games coming to a theatre near you

Guest post by Jackie Davis, assistant editor. This Friday, the movie Battleship?based on the Hasbro game of the same name?opens in theatres. I don?t remember this board game involving any giant alien robots that emerge from the sea, or Rihanna, but whatever?I haven?t played it in a really long time. The last (and only) movie based on a board game that I watched was 1985?s Clue, which dragged on and became boring?sort of like a real game of Clue. (We keep this game at the cottage and play every once in a while. We?re always losing pieces though?the Rope fell through a gap in the dock, so now we have to use a twist tie. Until someone forgets, and says “What’s this twist tie doing in the box?” and then throws it away.)

I guess turning board games into movies is getting more popular; I’ve heard that movies based on Candy Land and Monopoly are in the works. I have no idea how true to the games these movies will be. For example, Monopoly: Is it really going to be about…buying real estate? Are the movie characters going to be the gameboard pieces?will, say, Jonah Hill play the Shoe? At any point during the film, will somebody collect $10 for winning second prize in a beauty contest?

But actually, when I think about it, there are a bunch of board games rattling around in the cottage games cupboard that, based on the titles alone, sound like obvious choices for movies. For example:

Drama: The Game of Life; Sorry!; Girl Talk

Horror: Operation; Snakes and Ladders; Don?t Wake Daddy

Action: Hungry Hungry Hippos; Kerplunk; Twister (oops?this one is already taken)

Mark my words?watch for these and other board games at a multiplex near you.

autumn sunset

Sorry, what else can I say – a classic sunset.

firewood on porch

I was lying inside on the sofa when I noticed that the sunset was reflected on a pile of wood, setting it on fire.