Fall In Love With Muskoka

Silence. That’s the sound of Muskoka in fall. After Thanksgiving, most people pack up their cottages for winter. Looking back at summer memories longingly, but the raw beauty of nature remains. In fall, life gets busy, with students back to school and work weeks without vacation time and long-weekends.

The changing seasons reminds us to let go in our lives, like leaves falling from the trees, we let go of the old and embrace the new. Accepting change in our lives is embracing the inevitable. It’s important to take the time to reflect on where we are and where we are going. Go outside and immerse your senses in a natural environment. Meditate! Escape from the city and it’s noise. Listening to nothing, absolute silence, makes it feel like the world is standing still.

Photos by, Ruby Wray

Looking out on the lake is picturesque; the water ripples calm and smooths out their wrinkles, the trees begin to turn from green to gold, to fiery red and the clouds reflection on the water makes it feel like you can swim in the sky.

The air is fresh and crisp—the aroma of pine and firewood floats in the breeze.

Simple pleasures pass the time, like building an outdoor fire and releasing lanterns off the dock at night.

It’s my first time visiting a cottage in the cooler weather and though I didn’t swim, it was surprisingly warm. The wind was gentle and the lake seemed to seal the heat in, rather than blow it away. My dogs loved it too, not too hot or too cold, so they could swim and run around.

Baby Bwoy cooling off in the lake

Getting away from it all is the idea of the cottage, but why isn’t it something we allow in our everyday lives? The constant stimulation of living in the city makes it nearly impossible to really relax. To rejuvenate, people must seek out nature and let the trees heal them.

We have attempted to distance ourselves from the natural world, but no matter how hard we try it will always be around us. Embracing your connection to nature is the best thing you can do for your mind, your body and especially, your soul.