I am a snowbird metamorphosed into a snow angel. And the cherubic giddiness of my son rolling in the soufflé of snow surrounding us has lasted hours. This is the dreamscape of Haliburton Highlands.
Peeling off our snowsuits, we spark up a fire, sit back and sip hot chocolate. Gazing out the window at the shimmering sky and silence of our winter wonderland, we curl up on the couch and gently sink into deep sleep.
Our morning skidoo with Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve through the woods leads us along undulating paths that wind around trees caked in snow, and across lakes where months earlier we’d be swimming. Upon dismount, we’re handed fishing rods. The air is crisp. Our tent is heated. While jigging for brook trout through a hole in the ice we snack on venison jerky and hot cider, and talk about anything. A poetic silence blankets us in calmness. While we don’t catch any fish on this occasion, my son, tempted by the pristine hole in the ice that beckons him, falls right into it! So, I suppose I could say, “I caught a boy.”
Back at The Boshkung Smokehouse, our lunch of succulent beef brisket, slow-smoked over red cherry wood, lacquered in savoury barbecue sauce and heaped onto a toasted-Ace Bakery brioche bun, with a side of Pit Boss Poutine of crunchy fries, St. Albert cheesecurds, pulled pork and brisket lavished in a rich gravy hits all the right notes to keep us warm and satisfied on a cold winter’s day.
Growing up in the city, winter means: shovelling. Here, every snow bank is an Everest waiting to be climbed. At Yours Outdoors we’re fitted for boots, and handed axes. The thrill of ice climbing is matched only by its beauty. It is a workout, but the exhilaration of clipping onto a belay, hacking away at ice, and inching ever higher up a massive frozen rock wall is spectacular. Our mellow interlude is in the form of snowga (yoga in the snow) at Abbey Gardens. Beginning with a leisurely snow shoe trek along a fairy tale path in the forest we reach a Sound Garden. With soft mallets in hand, we bang on gongs for low resonant echoes. Here, our forest bathing-turned-sound bath further relaxes us with waves of low sonorous reverberations. Within the chalet, we sip tea made from spruce tips and stretch out on yoga mats and pillows to focus on our breathing.
Our post-yoga vegetarian lunch follows with locally grown ingredients from The Food Hub and includes a velvety rejuvenating butternut squash soup that even appeals to my son.
The grounds of Abbey Gardens also house a local brewery, bakery, coffee roastery, and a variety of programming to learn about living more sustainably from cooking and gardening to construction.
I don’t recall ever actually seeing a wolf before, let alone up close and in person, but The Wolf Centre at Haliburton Forest offers us the chance to observe a whole wolf pack in their natural habitat. Watching them interact is hypnotic. Did you know that a wolf can eat the equivalent of eighty-five Big Macs in fifteen minutes? Hence the expression, “wolfing it down.” This thought occurs to me as they lick their lips and stare at us through the glass. They can smell us.
Our final adventure is dog-sledding along soft trails through the forest. The constant refrain of sliding through the snow and the soft jingling from the dogs pulling us feels like the embodiment of a Christmas carol. For my son, mushing his own team of Siberian Huskies gives new meaning to Paw Patrol. In all its serenity, this one experience might just be the highlight of our winter. As the dogs frolic with each other at the finish line, we build a snow fort, laugh and laze away together in the glistening powder.
Dinner at Rhubarb Restaurant is the talk of the town, and here we indulge in local rainbow trout with tomato caper jam, and a hearty sampling of tender and crisp chicken and duck legs lacquered in a savoury beer and onion gravy. Totally contented we return to Ogopogo Resort for our quiet and relaxing fireside-Jacuzzi and house selection of board games and movies.
Tobogganing underneath the stillness of a starry night, down a smooth slope to our cozy cottage, the only sound is our laughter.
