Worth the drive - Muskoka Life - February/March 2019

‘LAYERED’ GARDENS • SCULPTURAL PAINTER TOM DIETRICH • SMART WINE BUYS

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

BOATING GUIDE 2019

Cosy Cottage

Enjoying life on Bass Lake $5.95

Check out what’s making waves!

HAMER BAY MEMORIES

Getting to know the ‘Ruh Crew’

TABLE OF CONTENTS

WHAT’S

INSIDE 30

20

76

10

EDITOR’S NOTE Curl up by the fire with a good read

76

SCENE & HEARD The Muskoka Wedding Show

14

SECRETS OF MUSKOKA The early days of Glen Orchard

78

18

FOUND IN MUSKOKA ‘Surviving winter’

ALL IN THE DETAILS Tom Dietrich creates abstracted sculptural oil landscapes and thought-provoking paintings

93 54 4

BOATING GUIDE 2019 New models just launched, advice on insuring your investment ... and a review of a versatile fishing boat that doubles as a family runabout

REAL ESTATE IN MUSKOKA Keeping you connected

98

PAST LIFE Candle moulds were essential in lighting up cold Muskoka nights

70 0

LOOKING BACK The history of the Port Carling Bridge spans almost 150 years

86 8 MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

70 LIVE WELL 20

MEET THE ‘RUH CREW’ Fifty-five years of memories – and counting – for the Ruh family was cause for celebration last summer

COTTAGE & GARDEN

54

30

LOG CABIN A PERFECT FIT The Shantzes have built their dream cottage on a private, mixed-forest acre, on the shore of Bass Lake.

44

THE LAYERED GARDEN Often we think of the garden as a one-dimensional form at ground level but a garden is so much more

FOOD & DRINK 84

ON TAP Craft beer for a cause: breweries find innovative ways to give back

86

LOCAL FLAVOUR Dishes you can create to help make holiday entertaining easy and tasty

91

VINTAGE SELECTIONS Treasure hunt: The new year at the LCBO is a chance for some great finds ... at a reasonable price

WHAT’S ON

THE COVER

A Canadian couple who live in Maryland, USA, make the 12-hour drive to spend long weekends at their log cabin on Bass Lake. See story on page 30.

(Photo © True North Log Homes)

91 MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 9

COTTAGE & GARDEN

Worth the drive

A Canadian couple who live in Maryland, USA, make the 12-hour drive each month, between March and November, to spend a long weekend at their log cabin on Bass Lake in Muskoka.

BY KIM GOGGINS | PHOTOS © TRUE NORTH LOG HOMES

30 MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 31

It wasn’t just the quiet lake adjacent to the larger Kahshe Lake, or lush mix of hemlock, oak, maple and pine forest that attracted the couple to the property.

32 MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

A

s the paddles slice through the reflective water, a loon’s call is the only sound interrupting an otherwise still morning. Mist rises in the distance as the sun begins its ascent above the forested horizon.

Ian Shantz loves quiet mornings like this.

He has been coming to his family’s cottage on Lake Muskoka since he was four years old, but now, as grandparents and looking at retirement in the near future, he and his wife Sheila prefer the calm a smaller lake affords them. In the last two-and-a-half years, they built their dream cottage on a private, mixed-forest acre, along 120 feet of Bass Lake shoreline.

“I like to canoe so this lake is perfect for us,” notes Shantz, who also hikes and is an accomplished woodworker. “There isn’t a lot of (traffic) in there and that’s why we decided to build there.”

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The exceptional Great Room boasts a vaulted ceiling with Douglas fir beams coming together at the central kingpost, and windows all around the circular room.

Once inside the cosy bungalow, the intimacy of white pine walls and ceiling, combined with the dark vinyl plank floor, creates a warm ambiance enveloped by nature outside of each window.

36 MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

Once inside the cosy bungalow, the intimacy of white pine walls and ceiling, combined with the dark vinyl plank floor, creates a warm ambiance enveloped by nature outside of each window.

With their daughter’s family (who also live in Maryland) still using the Lake Muskoka cottage, 20 minutes away, seeing their three-year-old and four-and-a-halfyear-old grandchildren is still easy and convenient.

“We would come up to the place on (Lake) Muskoka, but it was my grandfather who bought it and it’s now co-shared by all of the cousins and the family is huge,” he laughs. “I wanted to have a place where I could retire to and stay. So, as nice as the (Lake) Muskoka place is, it wasn’t going to work for us as a retirement option.”

It wasn’t just the quiet lake adjacent to the larger Kahshe Lake, or lush mix of hemlock, oak, maple and pine forest that attracted the couple to the property.

Rugged Canadian Shield topography overlooking the lake offers an exceptional backdrop to the 1,200-square-foot True North Log Homes cottage.

“The cabin, sitting right on the granite the way it does, and then looking down across the water, is fantastic,” notes Shantz.

This picture-perfect scene is evident right from the moment you step onto the timber-covered cedar deck at the main entrance and peer through the windows of the double door. An unfettered line of sight through the substantial windows of the Great Room offers expansive views of Bass Lake and the treed property.

“You get a spectacular view and walking through the front door, your eyes are just pulled over to the Great Room and those windows,” says Shantz. “You walk forward and you can walk right up to the glass and it’s like you’re walking right up to the edge of the lake. Even though we’re 30 metres to the waterline, it just feels like we’re drawn out to the water.”

Once inside the cosy bungalow, the intimacy of white pine walls and ceiling,

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combined with the dark vinyl plank floor, creates a warm ambiance enveloped by nature outside of each window.

“We chose vinyl plank on purpose rather than having real wood floors because we have grandchildren and they’re coming up from the lake and wet swimsuits and towels get tossed on the floor. This flooring is totally resilient to all of that,” says Shantz, adding that a dog will also be in their future once they retire and spend entire summers at the cottage.

The luxurious flooring runs throughout the cottage, including the exceptional Great Room that boasts a vaulted ceiling with Douglas fir beams coming together at the central kingpost, and windows all around the circular room.

A floor-to-ceiling granite fireplace stretches in width about six feet, and is the focal point of the room. A rounded stone hearth that extends forward 18 inches was carved from the same stone that comes out from above the firebox.

“The mantel was made of a log from a hemlock tree that came almost from that exact spot on the property,” says Shantz.

“When they cleared the property, I asked them to save that tree. They took it to a mill and had it milled down for us to use as a mantel. It’s actually kind of cool that we got it from the property, itself.”

This spring, two comfortable chairs will be in front of the fireplace to take in the ambiance, while other furniture will create an additional nook looking out to the lake.

“We designed it so that we’d have comfy chairs that would sit around the fireplace, but the view is so nice we’re also going to have a loveseat, angle and big comfy chair facing out towards the lake, which is not what most people do. When you look at photos, people have the furniture all sitting around the fireplace, but that’s not where the view is,” he says with a chuckle.

Guests who stay at the Shantz cottage can relax in the guest quarters down a hallway on the other side of the foyer, where a bedroom, washroom and den are conveniently situated.

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It’s the master bedroom where the couple seek privacy when the cottage is bustling with company. Purposely situated across the cottage from the guest quarters, this retreat boasts a sliding glass door to a private deck overlooking the lake, a large closet and warm carpet underfoot.

Back at the main foyer, an open dining/ sitting area lays between the main door and the Great Room, and an inviting kitchen is slightly to the right. A two-tiered peninsula with unique, yet comfortable wooden barstools – handcrafted by Shantz – make the space perfect for entertaining. Custom maple cabinetry stained a rich brown, and granite counters with flecks of brown and taupe, bring together the honey-coloured log walls and darker floor. Across from the kitchen, a spacious double pantry creates a short hallway to the master suite and affords extra storage.

It’s the master bedroom where the couple seek privacy when the cottage is bustling with company. Purposely situated across the cottage from the guest quarters, this retreat boasts a sliding glass door to a private deck overlooking the lake, a large closet and warm carpet underfoot. Although the window and sliding doors provide ample sunlight during the day, pocket lights and a central fixture with Muskoka motif on the ceiling give extra light when needed.

To conserve space, a convenient pocket door leads to the master ensuite with seamless glass shower. Porcelain tile in dark grey on the shower walls, brought in from Arizona, contrasts the white pine walls of the room and complements the lighter floor tile. A long custom-made oak vanity with

counter in a neutral tone offers ample space with one sink. Immediately across from the vanity is a niche with counter and custom cabinetry for added function.

Guests who stay at the Shantz cottage can relax in the guest quarters down a hallway on the other side of the foyer, where a bedroom, washroom and den are conveniently situated.

Two twin beds, fashioned by Shantz out of white pine with driftwood embedded into the design, provide a comfortable place to sleep.

“There was a big hunk of driftwood that I pulled out of (Lake) Muskoka. It was kind of a lump,” he explains. “What I did was slice the lump into an inch-and-a-half, to two-inch slices. I cleaned them up and set them into the bed, both in the headboard and the footboard. I wanted it to be both art and furniture at the same time.”

This bedroom also has sliding glass doors that lead out to the main deck overlooking the lake.

The guest washroom boasts a tub/ shower combination with a similar custom vanity made of oak as the master ensuite.

Stained glass, framed in cherry wood fits in the window to allow light through while also protecting privacy.

Finally, a den with pullout couch and mounted television provides extra sleeping

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In the kitchen, custom maple cabinetry stained a rich brown, and granite counters with flecks of brown and taupe, bring together the honey-coloured log walls and darker floor.

To conserve space, a convenient pocket door leads to the master ensuite with seamless glass shower. Porcelain tile in dark grey on the shower walls, brought in from Arizona, contrasts the white pine walls of the room and complements the lighter floor tile.

40 MUSKOKA LIFE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

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Outside the cottage, a terrace made of flagstone pieces is supported by substantial granite stones below the main deck and overlooks the water.

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space or a cosy place to watch movies on a rainy day. Two vertical windows draw in sunlight and will soon have a handcrafted mural hung on a rod that will split to move over each window to provide darkness or sit in between as a piece of art.

Outside the cottage, a terrace made of flagstone pieces is supported by substantial granite stones below the main deck and overlooks the water. Nearby, handcrafted stone stairs meander down to the dock that stretches out from the sandy shoreline.

Every inch of this cottage showcases the craftsmanship of true log home builders, and the unique attributes of this cottage couldn’t be possible without True North Log Homes paying attention to the couple’s needs. Initially, this cottage was a two-level design, but after going over their options and explaining what they wanted, the design reflected exactly that.

“We knew we wanted a log cabin and from a design point of view, their technology is very good. I had gone to some log cabin training seminars down here so I felt pretty comfortable with what I wanted and True North had excellent options for us,” explains Shantz. “They were very easy to work with. I had several ideas on how I wanted this and they were very flexible as to working with me on them.”

To view a virtual tour of the Shantzes’ cottage, go to http://bit.ly/TNLH_cottagelifespecial

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