Nestled somewhere deep in the woods is a spot where a dude can really get his Zen on. Well worth the (slightly steep) price of a parking permit. The province will soon be shutting down that spot for the winter, so I decided to squeeze in one last visit.



Behind the fancy outhouse is a yellow brick road. Except it’s a more of a drab grey colour, and the bricks are wooden. Didn’t see any lions or tigers, but at one point I thought I heard a bear. Which turned out to be just a very loud squirrel. Oh my!



There’s no Emerald City at the end of that yellow brick road. Instead, one finds something arguably even better. Another lake.


That feeling of sand between one’s toes is regrettably nowhere near as blissful as it was but a few weeks ago. I spent very little time at the beach, save a quick polar bear plunge to wash off the sweat accrued from a four-kilometre hike. One I didn’t have to apply two coats of DEET all over every inch of my body for. The mosquitoes (which are the size of small dogs around these parts) have been thankfully reclaimed by the spirits.
