Conference kaosws::canada

104.0. "North of Toronto: Huronia, Orillia, T-S waterway" by VAXUUM::DEVRIES (MD: VAX DOCUMENT Device Doctor) Fri Aug 26 1988 13:44

    I'd like to recommend to fellow Ontario tourists that they check out
    Huronia, a region 100 km or so north of Toronto that includes Barrie,
    Orillia, Midland, Wasaga Beach, and many other towns.
    
    My family and I just returned to New Hampshire from a trip that
    included part of this region, and we want to spend at least a week
    there next year.  There are dozens of lakes, as well as Georgian
    Bay (Lake Huron), so summer activities revolve around watersports,
    etc.  But there are also lots of cultural things to do, and it's
    a great place to just sit in the sparkling sunshine, if that's what
    you'd like to do.
    
    We were especially taken by Orillia -- a town of 24,000 that sits
    on a peninsula between lakes Couchiching and Simcoe.  It's a growing
    community with a nice waterside park, lots of boat rides and cruises,
    golfing, an Opera House with frequent dramatic productions, and
    lots more.  We were only there one night, so I can't speak first-hand
    about many of these things, but we will be back.
    
    Orillia is a key location on the Trent-Severn waterway, a series
    of lakes, rivers and canals that stretch from Lake Huron to the
    St. Lawrence River (at Trenton).  We stopped at the Kirkfield Hydraulic
    Lift Lock, where boats move into a "box", and the box gets lifted
    (or lowered) 21 m to the adjoining stream.  It's quite a sight!
    The travel info says there's even a higher one (30 m) at Peterborough
    to the east.
    
    We went through a lot of little towns in that region, and they all
    seemed to be growing -- lots of new or recent construction blending
    with some historic structures as well.  None of the communities
    looked run down or neglected.  We look forward to seeing more of
    this in the future.
    
    Mark