Length of stay: 3 days
Visited: April 2020
We usually try to incorporate holidays into our travel plans, so for the Easter long weekend we went to the one place we could still travel to: the cabin. Even though we’re encouraged to stay home, it’s hard to avoid other people when living in a big city like Toronto. Instead, we drove up north to spend a quiet weekend at the cabin away from everybody and everything.
Day 1: Exploring the Old Mining Buildings
We drove up to the cabin Thursday after work and arrived at around 9p.m. K’s parents visited the cabin earlier in the day, so when we arrived later in the evening, it was still warm inside. We got the fire going again and settled into bed.
We woke up this morning to a fresh layer of snow on the ground. I actually enjoy the snow, and eagerly put on my coat and boots to go for a short walk while K slept in. I should have actually taken the keys to the car to get the remainder of our things that we weren’t able to carry into the cabin yesterday (the road leading into the cabin is a bit sketchy, so we usually park the car at the top of the road and walk in with all our gear. It’s about a kilometre hike or so. It’s a bit tedious, but it’s all part of the cabin experience).
After returning from my walk, K put on the kettle to boil some water for tea and coffee. We lounged around by the fire for a bit and then headed back out to pick up the cooler and the remainder of our stuff from the car.
We fried up some eggs for breakfast and ate them with the cheddar and jalapeño scones we baked the day before. We’ve been inspired to bake more after watching the Great Canadian Baking Show, which is a good thing since we recently purchased a bag of flour from Costco (it’s the only grocery store that we’ve been able to find flour).
Later in the morning we headed back out to hike to the old mining buildings located near the cabin. From 1903 to 1907, the Star of the East mine was located here, but never had much success. The foundations from some of the buildings can still be found.
We finished up our hike in the midafternoon and returned to the cabin to make some lunch. We wrapped some veggies and veggie burgers in tin foil and baked them on the wood stove, which worked out pretty well.
After lunch we ventured back out to replenish some of the firewood. We also moved the wood that K’s dad cut yesterday into the outhouse.
By the time we finished up, we were pretty exhausted. We spent the remainder of the evening lounging by the fire and reading.
Day 2: McCausland Lake
After eating a late breakfast, we ventured out for a walk to McCausland Lake to take advantage of the nice weather. The sun was shining and most of the snow we received yesterday had melted.
The cabin is located in the township of North Frontenac, which boasts of being part of Ontario’s cottage country due to its abundance of lakes. We’ve explored some of these lakes over the years as there are a number of provincial parks located in the area, such as Bon Echo and Frontenanc. We decided to check another one off the list by walking up to the nearby McCausland Lake.
Most of the roads in the area are not maintained, especially in the winter. So it shouldn’t be that surprising to hear that we didn’t encounter a single person along our walk.
There were some snow patches along the trail and when we arrived at McCausland Lake, it was still covered in a layer of snow.
Along the way back, we walked through the old mining buildings again. It’s surprising how much still exists from when this area was used over a hundred years ago. In addition to remnants of the building foundations, there are other items scattered around the grounds too.
Our walk to and from McCausland Lake took about an hour and a half. By the time we returned to the cabin, we were ready for lunch. We warmed ourselves and our lunch up by the fire. For the remainder of the afternoon we cut up more firewood and went for another walk through the property.
Day 3: Returning home
It was nice to spend an extra day at the cabin as it gave us more of an opportunity to unwind and relax. This morning we took our time cleaning up and leisurely made a couple of trips to the car to pack up our gear. It was overcast outside and we ended up leaving a bit earlier than usual to avoid the rain.
While it would have been nice to travel or spend time with family over the Easter long weekend, visiting the cabin was a good alternative. We’re fortunate that we’re still able to escape the city and spend time outdoors in the midst of all this.
L
Fortunate indeed. It looks like a nice quiet area. I hear the small towns are concerned about people trying to visit their cottages in the lake communities in Cottage Country. We have friends who are lucky enough to live at their lake cabin near Haliburton year round. I will have to be satisfied with my back yard for a while and that is OK. Supposed to be +18 here tomorrow. About time, I say. Stay well. Allan
I’ve heard that too about how smaller towns in cottage country are concerned with an influx of visitors as the region’s hospitals or grocery stores may not be able to support the increased population. When we go to the cabin, we bring all our groceries with us and we usually only stay 2 to 3 days. There is no running water or electricity at the cabin (it really is in the middle of nowhere), so anything longer than that isn’t very appealing. It’s hard to find the right balance. We live in a small apartment in a big city. I feel safer visiting our remote cabin for a weekend rather than go for a walk on a crowded path here in Toronto. Enjoy the warm weather. Take care.
Wow, you had snow at Easter, that’s crazy! I’m glad you had a great time, we weren’t allowed to drive anywhere on a long weekend, there were checkpoints around every corner and we had no choice but to stay at home. We have another long weekend coming up in a few weeks, hopefully we’ll be able to go somewhere. Fingers crossed. P S. That’s one super awesome/cute/adorable cabin ♥️
We’re encouraged to stay home, but so far are still able to drive to most places within the province. It’s becoming a bit crowded on the sidewalks and paths here in Toronto, which makes going for walks a bit stressful. So it’s nice to be able to visit the cabin every few weeks just to get away from the city and spend time outdoors. We usually only stay for a couple of days as there is no running water and electricity at the cabin. Hopefully you’ll be able to spend the upcoming long weekend outdoors to enjoy the Spring weather. Take care.
Sounds and looks like a wonderful place to spend a long weekend. 😊
It’s a lot of work to get to the cabin. It’s about a three hour drive from where we live and we have to walk about a kilometre in with all our food, gear, and water. So it was nice to spend an extra day here to rest and relax.
Sounded like a wonderful Easter getaway. The cabin looks cozy. It’s interesting to read that your country and area are experiencing some of the same “shortages” (flour) as we are here near Yosemite. Thanks for posting. Stay well. 🙂
It feels especially cozy when we have a nice fire going and it’s snowing outside. It’s been interesting to see what people have been stocking up on during the pandemic. Flour and most making supplies have been in short supply. And same with toilet paper. Take care. Thanks for reading and commenting.
In Nova Scotia we are only allowed to roam around by foot in our neighborhood. ..hoping these restrictions will lift. Nice you could escape to the cottage ..and have a change of pace.
I didn’t realize lockdown was that strict in Nova Scotia. Hoping things loosen up here as well, especially since it’s becoming nicer outside. We’re very fortunate that we have the cabin to visit and that we’re still able to drive there. It won’t be very nice to visit later in the spring once all the mosquitoes come out to play though.
Yeah..mosquitoes are always a problem here too as the weather gets warm.
Looks like a truly beautiful place to spend some time.
It is very peaceful and relaxing. It’s a nice way to unplug from what’s happening in the world and just focus on the present. Thanks for reading.
Your cabin looks delightful, and your visit there sounds like Social Distancing done right. After months of sheltering in place, I’m sure that a change of scenery and some hiking was perfect. Today is the first day of summer, and now that campgrounds are open again in our neck of the woods, we’re looking forward to a bit of camping. Take care and be healthy. ~James
We certainly were fortunate that we could spend some time up at the cabin during the pandemic. The sidewalks and trails in Toronto are a bit overcrowded, so it was nice to be able to escape from all of that. I’m so excited that the campgrounds have opened up here as well as we also have a few camping trips planned over the summer. It’s always nice being able to spend some time in the great outdoors. Stay well.