muskoka

Sep

2022

Kayaking Kahshe Lake Area Muskoka

Muskoka Life - Cottage Life

Spent a few days at the cottage last week. Lots of rainy weather but also lots of sunshine in-between. Two rivers coming off the small lake we are on. Well, three if you count the one attached to Kahshe Lake.

There were and are lots of trees down crossing the one. I cleared a path through earlier this summer. Only one spot where you now still have to exit the kayak to get over a couple of trees. Pretty easy though. We’ve been up to the falls at the end of this river three times this year which is the first time we’ve been able to get all the way in about three years or more. It is a little over two kilometres from cottage to the falls this way. We’ve seen deer, blue heron, foxes, beaver and some kind of cat along here at different times. More wilderness than the other river.

The other river also end in a waterfall. It goes under bridges of about 3 road. Farms and cottages alongside. Two beaver dams that you have to climb over. Not that difficult. The video below is the falls at this end. About six kilometres total there and back depending on how direct one goes. I'm trying out the 'cinematic' feature on my iPhone camera.

Oct

2021

Trumpeter Swans in Muskoka

Trumpeter Swans

Three of these beautiful creatures have been hanging around the lake near the cottage for the last week or two. I was able to sit on the dock and take a few photos as they meandered around the lake early one morning. They seemed to be very patient with me and waited for me to be properly set up and sitting quietly before coming closer for their moment of photos. I was unaware that one could report sightings. One of the swans had a tag attached with a number. I was informed that sightings like this could be reported.

Sightings

If you do see [read more]Trumpeter Swans, here is a great website to report them. The Tumpeter Swan Society

These swans were almost completely wiped off the face of the earth due to uncontrolled hunting by the Hudson’s Bay Company up to the 1800s. In the early 1900s, Trumpeter Swans were surveyed to be less than 200. By 1959, the numbers were up to around 2000. Very cool. They roam Ontario through Western Canada, north central United States … and Alaska. In 2015 the count was in the neighbourhood of 63,000. Not bad.

The Trumpeter Swan Society has tons of information and a section for reporting sightings. These reports help them keep track and ensure the birds’ survival.

If you are not sure what type of swan you are looking at, there is a pretty good description of the three types found in Canada and the USA on the website above. The Trumpeter Swan and Tundra Swan are native to North America. The Mute Swan, is originally from Eurasia and is not as numerous in Canada.

We normally see the Trumpeter Swans in the Autumn, sometimes cruising the lakes for a couple of days to a couple of weeks. They very likely could be making a way stop on their way from Alaska to North Carolina. Makes for perfect timing for photos with the trees in colour.[/read]