Camp Tamarack (HUON, PT 3)

LOG: Thursday, June 9th- Monday, the 13th, 2016

Location: Camp Tamarack, Bracebridge, Ontario, Canada

Bike Mileage: 102532

Conditions: Generally cool and rainy. Highs in the 70's, lows near 40.

I have arrived!

Camp Tamarack - located above the lakes, among the lakes, and on a lake-
Muskoka District, Central Ontario

Summer cottages set among large rocks and pristine lakes is for what the Muskoka District of Central Ontario is known. If deep from your memory you can conjure images of Henry Fonda and Katherine Hepburn in the movie "On Golden Pond" or Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze in "Dirty Dancing," you may recall the sense of idyllic remoteness among which Camp Tamarack is situated. It holds the kind of beauty and solitude that inspires great awe and deep loneliness.

The Muskoka District as a whole is comparable in size to the US state of Rhode Island and contains over 1600 lakes. The region is home to approximately 60,000 permanent residents with another 100,000 home owners who are primarily seasonal. Some of the more famous seasonals with homes among the lakes are Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, Martin Short, Cindy Crawford, Goldie Hawn, and Kurt Russell- thank you Wikipedia :)  

Lake Stoneleigh- a set fit for Hollywood

I came to Camp Tamarack to present at and participate in the "local" motorcycle adventurers' gathering, Horizons Unlimited, Ontario. Horizons Unlimited is an online and in-person community that connects travelers and adventurers from across the globe through the organization of small events. These events occur all over the world and are kept relatively small and intimate by design. This year's Ontario gathering attracted approximately 150-200 people.

My camp near the lake's shore

Although comfy and inexpensive cabin rentals were available, many attendees preferred to "rough it."

I was scheduled to make three presentations over the weekend. Two were for my product design and prototyping business, Journeyman Products. 

One was for my partner Jim and I's new upstart Adventure 4 Action which supports adventurers looking to use their journeys as a means to raise awareness for a cause. 

  

Overall, the presentations were successful and well received. Good discussions were had with new opportunities identified and meaningful connections formed. 

While the presentations and classes are always worthwhile at these events, the main attraction is the food- er, I mean people. Wait- not people AS food, although the prolific and insatiable mosquitoes sure had their feasts. What I mean is, that while being catered to with prepared meals is of course fantastic, meeting new adventuresome, like-minded people and sharing perspectives are the reasons we gather. And nothing gathers people at camp quite like a good fire.   

Dave, event organizer, imbibing a tasty cup of Armagnac, a distinctive, oak-aged, French Brandy   

Around these nightly fires, tales of great travels were told, food and drink shared, and bonds of friendship made. Cultural differences both local and abroad were discussed and language barriers often broke. Being in Canada, conversations in French could be commonly heard, but English, Spanish, German, and the "bad French" dialect of Quebecois were used and being translated among the community. There's something wildly entertaining about observing an Englishman with a thick accent conversing with a Frenchman via a Spanish fellow acting as translator. 

It was around such an evening's fire, and while I was relating the tale of my recent deer collision back in New York (if you missed it, read about it here), that I met new friends, Simon and May, from neighboring Quebec. As I concluded my tale with the discovery of my left side Highway Horn being lodged in the side of the dead deer, Simon pointed out that the name "Highway Horns" was no longer fitting. "They should be christened," he said, "The Impalers."  

Of course, HU is primarily a motorcycle event, and what is a motorcycle event without motorcycles? A few notables follow.  

Classic, early 90's airhead GS

The Red Rocketship's lovely brother in blue

S.M.A.R.T. Adventure Programs brought a trials bike

Oops! Nah- this was part of a demonstration on how to handle big adventure bikes. The instructor, Clinton Smout (bright yellow helmet with Garmin Vibe), is as personable, entertaining, and genuinely talented as they come.

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The Horizon's Unlimited event was scheduled to last from Thursday evening's dinner to Sunday's close at noon. Many participants were headed home and back to the daily routine. Others, like my partner Jim, were leaving HU to launch their Next Big Adventure. Needing time to recoop some of the energy spent over the long weekend, I decided to hang around an extra day and just explore the camp in solitude.

All of the campers had gone...

... and I had the loneliness of the lake to myself...

... to skinny dip...

... and explore...

... to walk among the quiet cabins...

... sit on the deserted docks...

... wrangle with my inner self while balancing on ropes and boards...

... bother the local wildlife...

... and be energetically restored to begin travelling once again.

Next up... the fourth and final installment of the HUON 2016 posts includes extended time with HU friends in Montreal, a near miss at being an accidental foreign terrorist, visiting an old friend in Vermont, and a visit to the best Italian eatery in Pennsylvania.