I was able to sleep in until 7:00 before my stomach commanded me to rise. I had a generous bowl of mini-wheats and that calmed it for the time being. Life started slowly but in a burst of activity, Karen prepared a lunch for us while we went to the Art Centre. Before that, we went to Oxtongue Rapids where Aunt Ruth had her ashes spread. It was a warm, summer morning and soothing to hear the water rushing over the rocks. Dan scoped out possible fishing spots in the eddies. After this, we made our way to the Art Centre but stopped in at the Algonquin Outfitters store which is the Huntsville equivalent of the Mountain Equipment Coop. They had some neat stuff that I was tempted to buy but being halfway through my trip, decided I didn't need it now. Karen and Dan however, I think feel a philanthropic obligation to support the struggling people of Muskoka and purchased several items. Karen was nice enough to gift me two postcards since she'd heard I was sending mom and Megumi a postcard a day.
We made it to the centre and enjoyed our lunch under the shade of a maple tree. The art centre had fantastic pieces all priced in the $2000-$7000 range. Uncle Orv had his eye on several pieces and if I hadn't been on my bike, I'm sure I could have found something nice for the living room of my own abode. My price range was more within the stamp size reprints and postcards. Still, a beautiful exhibit.
The highlight of the trip was the visit to the Kawartha Dairies. When we got there, at least 15 people formed the lineup. They had a thick guide tied to the lineup ropes that defined the various flavours. Like good poker players, Dan and I kept our choices secret until the last minute. I was traditional and went with Tiger Tail which used to be impossible to find in Northern BC but I'm glad to say that the Superstore has started bringing it in within the last year.
We shared a dinner of Lasagna and then went our seperate ways. Dan headed down to the docks to catch fish while Karen and I walked the grounds. It was Karen and Dan's 24th anniversary so with 24 being the fishing rod year, she joined him at the docks. Dan is not unlike the character in Hemmingway's "Old Man and the Sea", always pursuing the big trophy catch. Karen started in fishing and within about 3 minutes, had hooked a sunfish. Dan took over to get the fish and Karen wanted to touch it. Almost before she did it, I sensed it wasn't a good idea and when she did, the fish flopped in Dan's hand and Karen let out a deafening scream. The poor fish free-falled forty times its body length before hitting the dock, flopping again, and fell back into the lake. Quite the scene. Undaunted by that experience, Karen grabbed the pole again and soon had a big strike on the rod. It was a pike. Dan grabbed the net while Karen tried to haul the fish out of the water with just the rod and hook. The pike was subdued and Dan tried to get the scale to measure it. We managed to get Karen holding the fish but again, the flipping and the subsequent screaming set the fish loose but this time on the dock. I would have eyeballed the thing at about 20" and possibly 2.5 lbs. Dan couldn't get the scale to work and sort of kicked the fish gently back into the water. After that, Karen decided that she'd had enough while Dan continued to look for his big fish. Later on, the size and weight of the fish continued to grow with each subsequent re-telling of the story. Tomorrow is strange because it will be the 2nd rest day in a row, something I haven't done for 6 weeks.
We made it to the centre and enjoyed our lunch under the shade of a maple tree. The art centre had fantastic pieces all priced in the $2000-$7000 range. Uncle Orv had his eye on several pieces and if I hadn't been on my bike, I'm sure I could have found something nice for the living room of my own abode. My price range was more within the stamp size reprints and postcards. Still, a beautiful exhibit.
The highlight of the trip was the visit to the Kawartha Dairies. When we got there, at least 15 people formed the lineup. They had a thick guide tied to the lineup ropes that defined the various flavours. Like good poker players, Dan and I kept our choices secret until the last minute. I was traditional and went with Tiger Tail which used to be impossible to find in Northern BC but I'm glad to say that the Superstore has started bringing it in within the last year.
We shared a dinner of Lasagna and then went our seperate ways. Dan headed down to the docks to catch fish while Karen and I walked the grounds. It was Karen and Dan's 24th anniversary so with 24 being the fishing rod year, she joined him at the docks. Dan is not unlike the character in Hemmingway's "Old Man and the Sea", always pursuing the big trophy catch. Karen started in fishing and within about 3 minutes, had hooked a sunfish. Dan took over to get the fish and Karen wanted to touch it. Almost before she did it, I sensed it wasn't a good idea and when she did, the fish flopped in Dan's hand and Karen let out a deafening scream. The poor fish free-falled forty times its body length before hitting the dock, flopping again, and fell back into the lake. Quite the scene. Undaunted by that experience, Karen grabbed the pole again and soon had a big strike on the rod. It was a pike. Dan grabbed the net while Karen tried to haul the fish out of the water with just the rod and hook. The pike was subdued and Dan tried to get the scale to measure it. We managed to get Karen holding the fish but again, the flipping and the subsequent screaming set the fish loose but this time on the dock. I would have eyeballed the thing at about 20" and possibly 2.5 lbs. Dan couldn't get the scale to work and sort of kicked the fish gently back into the water. After that, Karen decided that she'd had enough while Dan continued to look for his big fish. Later on, the size and weight of the fish continued to grow with each subsequent re-telling of the story. Tomorrow is strange because it will be the 2nd rest day in a row, something I haven't done for 6 weeks.