Tag: getaway
My summer of road tripping came to a close at a lovely new property that’s only about two hours from Toronto: Whispering Springs.
Whispering Springs is in Northumberland County near the towns of Grafton and Brighton. It’s located nor far from the Big Apple on the 401, where I somehow have yet to visit even though I’ve driven by it many, many times.
With four glamping tents and more being added for 2018, Whispering Springs is exactly the kind of getaway to nature that does the body good. It’s close enough to Toronto for a quick escape and yet the accommodations are luxurious so it won’t make city slickers feel put out.
For example, you make your own fire and cook your own food on a BBQ, but there’s a fridge for your groceries in your tent (no need to pack a cooler) and firewood is supplied. Plus, you can even purchase a basket of market ingredients from Whispering Springs if you prefer to lie in the hammock rather than go pick up your own supplies. There is a farmers market nearby, however it sadly wasn’t open while we were at Whispering Springs as we visited during the week so we shopped for our groceries at the supermarket in Brighton.
If you’d rather not cook at all, there are restaurants in the nearby towns. We went out for lunch one day and picked up some great fish and chips at Zack’s Diner followed by Kawartha Dairy ice cream cones for dessert at Mrs. B’s Country Candy. I got my last fix of Moose Tracks for summer seventeen!
You won’t need to worry about breakfast at Whispering Springs, though, as a lovely basket will be dropped off at your glamping tent each morning. Homemade granola with yogurt, fresh baked pastries, fruit bowls; exactly what I was craving each day as I woke up to the sound of the trees rustling in the morning breeze.
It’s blissful quiet at Whispering Springs and we spent most of our time just enjoying a breather from our hectic schedule. We took a whirl, well, as much as one can whirl, in the paddle boat. Enjoyed some quality hammock time. Lounged in the hot tub. And, my favourite, we hiked two of the trails. One leads you by the lovely wedding chapel in the woods and follows one lovely little spring.
There are also yoga classes and massage therapy available at this glamping property but we didn’t have a chance to try either this trip; instead carved out our own quiet time by the pond.
The glamping tents each feature a different theme. The comfortable king-size bed will make it hard to get your day going. There’s a very inviting freestanding bathtub as well; if you prefer a shower, there is an outdoor shower by the lounge area which I couldn’t pass up (showering in the fresh air is such a novelty, isn’t it?).
Whispering Springs had only been open a couple of weeks when I visited (and is now closed for the season until spring 2018) but there is much more to come. More tents will be added, and even during our short visit, we saw so much progress: the wedding chapel was coming together, and meditation stations were added along one of the trails.
I can’t wait to see this gem of a destination develop even more in the years to come.
If you’re thinking ahead to 2018 getaways, book now to make sure you get the nights you want at Whispering Springs; or if you’re looking for a great gift idea, Whispering Springs also has gift cards for sale (tuck one into someone’s stocking as an extra special gift this holiday season!).
Is glamping something you’re planning on for 2018? I’d love to hear from you!
November 14, 2017
Early this summer (where has summer gone already?!), I went for an overnight getaway to King City, which is just north of Toronto, to experience an equine therapy session with Jennifer Schramm and I got a chance to stay at Kingbridge Hotel and Conference Centre.
I’m almost reluctant to write about this little gem because I want it to be my little secret, but this property is so quiet and pretty, I really felt like I’d escaped city life even though I hadn’t (I was conveniently near a suburban Walmart when I needed a pair of emergency shorts given the warm weather). I know it’s probably funny to some people that I consider King City a getaway (especially as I know people who live in that area!), but when you live right downtown, and escape to the quiet and greenery of the property, it does feel like you’ve taken a road trip to completely different surroundings.
On the property, there are hiking trails, where you’ll find this darling swing from a tree, and a quiet little river. There’s also one of the coolest indoor tracks I’ve seen here; it circles through the woods, so I got to fit in some speed work when it rained briefly.
My entire stay, I had the pools entirely to myself, and the quiet time in the sunshine helped to calm my frazzled brain. I spent most of my time outside by the pool or hiking, but there’s a cozy library you can lounge around in, too.
A short drive away is where I grabbed a couple of meals. Firstly, a good thin crust pizza at Locale. This place was a popular spot and I’ve heard that a lot of the dishes are great (that’s always the downside of traveling solo — not getting to try more dishes when eating out!).
For a casual lunch, I popped into The Roost Cafe for a fresh chicken wrap and a smoothie; it’s a charming coffee shop set inside of a century home, and there are pretty views from its’ patio.
Before driving back to the city, I went for a hike in Happy Valley Forest (one of the largest intact hardwood forests on the Oak Ridges Moraine, which was pretty but I had to cut my hike short as I hadn’t packed insect repellent and got more than 30 mosquito bites in the half hour I trekked there. Douse yourself in repellent if you go!
I often crave getting outside of the city, and I think a weekend at Kingbridge is a great option because it’s so close to the city and yet offers some light hiking, greenery, an indoor and outdoor pool, and a running track (helpful if you’re a runner in training for a race), all on a beautiful property. The only thing missing is perhaps a spa treatment, but I’m sure there’s a day spa nearby you could book a treatment at.
Have you been to King City? I’d love to hear your faves in the area.
August 16, 2017
I am not one of the lucky people who has a cottage. Nor do I have friends who have cottages. So it was so wonderful to get away last summer to Viamede Resort in the Kawarthas. So much so that early this year I looked into going again, and they kindly hosted me again. I was especially keen on returning there, as it’s a dog-friendly resort. Last year, we borrowed two golden retrievers from the hotel’s GM to go for a hike, but this year, I had my very own dog to bring along, Billie Jean!
One reason I really enjoy Viamede (besides it being a beautiful, quiet property) is that it’s like cottaging lite. As in there is the Boathouse and Mount Julian on the property, so you don’t have to cook at all if you don’t want to, and I’ve stayed at cottages where it’s quite remote (and I think I’d maybe feel a bit wary to stay solo with just Billie Jean), but here you have other guests around, and there’s staff who can help you with questions (like last year, when I was on the hunt to find an air pump to inflate my swan floatie!).
For this, another edition in this summer’s road trip series I’m doing, General Motors Canada set me up with a GMC Acadia Denali to test drive for this road trip (which, with the traffic we got caught in took about three hours, but we did stop for a late lunch), and I felt it is exactly in line with this type of trip. Still luxurious in feel but with a little bit more rugged appeal — think subtle wood-grain touches on the dashboard. And it has phenomenal trunk space — no problem at all packing Billie Jean’s crate, her toys and supplies and all of our bags. The car feels very solid and even for me, the not too frequent driver, felt it was manageable in terms of size. And I thought it did great in terms of fuel economy. And I felt like we fit right in with all of the other more rugged cars and pickup trucks we were surrounded by. Although I bet we still very much seemed like “Toronto people.”
On the drive home from the Kawarthas, we hit some extremely heavy rain. But the Acadia handled well, and we made it through easily even though roads were slick and the visibility was low.
As for what to do once you arrive and stay at Viamede Resort? Here are some of the top things I’ve discovered during my two visits:
Just relax. If you’re like me, and your mind’s always going a mile a minute, this is where you can and should enjoy a breather. I probably missed out on discovering new things to do at the resort and in the area because what I needed most was just sometime to recharge.
Kayak. Canoe. SUP. All of these watercraft are available on the resort’s beach to take out onto Stoney Lake (just grab whatever’s available) and the water is typically pretty calm. If the floating bouncy thing is too far for you to swim (or the water too cold, as it was for me — I’m a wimp with the temp of Ontario lakes!), you can use the SUP to cruise on over to it. If watersports aren’t your thing, there is a tennis court, disc golf, and a few bikes you can borrow to explore the property.
Eat at Mount Julian. Mount Julian is the restaurant on the property where you can enjoy tasting menus and wine pairings, and the focus is on local ingredients — I particularly loved a perch course last summer. It’s a way to add a little bit of a foodie indulgence that’s more on the fine dining to your trip to the country. But the food is solid at the Boathouse as well, it’s just a more casual setting and menu. I enjoyed the burger, and the fish and chips, and I’m sad I didn’t get to try the brisket poutine.
Hike. There are a few hiking trails on the property, and while we found the maps a little bit confusing and the trails not too clearly marked, it’s easy enough to find your way on some sort of hike. We stumbled onto a 100-year-old oak tree that looks straight out of a fairy tale.
Make s’mores by the campfire. The supplies are there so all you need to do is roast that marshmallow perfectly and squish it with chocolate in between two graham crackers. What’s a cottage getaway without s’mores?!
Bring your dog to vacation with you. Billie Jean’s tail wagged the entire time we were there and it made me so happy to see my little rescue so at ease and joyful. She loved roaming the woods and hanging out on the dock. Dogs are to be leashed in the main property area but otherwise they can be off leash, and there’s even a grassy dog park on the property, too. The dog-friendly bookings are for the cottages, whereas the main resort building is just for human guests.
Attend the ice cream social. I believe this is held Saturdays at 1 p.m. Complimentary ice cream, I mean what’s not to like. And if you’re an ice cream fiend like me, make sure to stop for some Kawartha Dairy when in the area (we popped into Country Cone before we drove back to Toronto — and they have a whole variety of different butter tarts, such as bacon and Rolo versions).
Those are just a few of the things you can do; there’s a daily schedule at Viamede, which looks remarkably like the property from the movie Dirty Dancing (that’s the main building behind Billie Jean in the photo above). Last year, we visited the farm, although we didn’t go this year, but other guests told us they saw the pigs being fed the breakfast scraps, which I would’ve loved to have gone to. There’s also the Petroglyphs Provincial Park, that I’ve had on my to-do list both years…and then just relaxing by the lake wins every time!
July 21, 2017
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