My Cottage Vacation in the Kawarthas: Last Minute Cancellation

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View of lake from cottage rental at Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.
View of lake from cottage rental at Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.

I just returned from a lovely vacation with my family in the Kawartha Lakes of Ontario. It was wonderful to get away after the year-and-a-half we’ve had! Our vacation almost didn’t happen. We had originally booked a cottage in January, but the owner sold the cottage in May so we were up the creek without a paddle! I contacted a cottage rental agency in mid-May and was advised about a few available properties, but they either were not large enough for our family or they were four hours away!

We decided to ask my stepmother if we could rent her cottage, but she advised us that she was having a water/mould problem repaired and she didn’t know when the repairs would be completed. Luckily, at the beginning of July, the cottage rental agency phoned and advised me about a last minute cancellation for a cottage in the Kawarthas: the cottage had four bedrooms, a sandy lake bottom, two bathrooms, a/c and the most important, we were allowed to bring one dog! Yayyy! Sometimes the universe comes through and provides you with what you need.

View of lake from cottage rental at Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.
View of lake from cottage rental at Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.




I am the type that likes to be organized before I go on vacation so I made a list of what to bring to the cottage. You might find my list helpful if you are planning a cottage vacation. Despite making my list, I still forgot to bring a pair of long pants for the evenings. As a result, I have about eight mosquito bites on my legs!

The weather during our week away was pretty good – 28C-30C – although we did have two days of rain. On those days, we went into nearby Fenelon Falls for shopping and also stopped at an Amish farm to buy organic fruits and veggies.

Enjoying dinner in dining room at cottage rental on Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.
Enjoying dinner in dining room at cottage rental on Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.

The cottage turned out to be gorgeous – fully equipped with everything we needed including a dishwasher, washer and dryer!

We enjoyed having our morning coffee on the dock and listening to the calls of the loons. We saw three of them swimming nearby one morning and heard them late at night too!

We ate our lunch and some of our dinners on the patio near the cottage, which gave us a panoramic view of the lake. We also barbecued several of our meals and had one dinner on the picnic table down by the water. On the days with rain, we had our dinner at a large antique dining table in the dining room. It was so great to have so many places to have our meals!

The water was shallow at the dock so it was easy to climb down the ladder to go for a swim. My sister’s dog Riley loves the water so she bought him a lifejacket and he was able to go swimming too!

My sister and I out for a ride on the kayas at our cottage rental on Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.
My sister and I out for a ride on the kayas at our cottage rental on Balsam Lake in the Kawarthas.




The cottage was equipped with two kayaks, which my sister and I took out for a morning ride on our second day and then later on in the week. Kayaking on that lake was lovely as you could see several birds on the lake up close!

The living room had a large sectional couch and a 50″ Smart TV so we were able to watch the first week of the Tokyo Olympics in the evenings.

We loved our cottage rental on Balsam Lake! I now think that it was a good thing that our first cottage rental was cancelled as that cottage had many stairs to get down to the lake and I don’t think I or my family members would have enjoyed that. Have you gone on vacation this summer? Please let me know where you went in the comment section below.

24 COMMENTS

  1. My goodness, it looks like you had a lovely time on vacation. It’s such a beautiful place and that water would be refreshing right about now as it’s super hot out.

  2. I’m happy to hear that it all worked out for your family, this looks like such an amazing experience.

  3. Thanks to the last minute cancellation, you would have missed this great deal if it wasn’t. Great place!

  4. How fun, it’s amazing how things aligned at the right time. Sounds like a cozy getaway and much needed after the year and half. Wonderful to read about your experience.

  5. Sounds like you had an amazing time! I’ve been looking for a way to get out there myself. The kayaking sounds so fun, and the scenery is unbelievable. You must have really pushed through your fear of heights in order to enjoy such a breathtaking experience- congratulations on taking that leap with this vacation and all it has given you!

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