There are numerous villages and towns within a short drive of the cottage. Each town has attractions, activities and events scheduled year round, but especially in the summer. Here is a description of the two we visit most.

Gooderham - population 500

The closest village is Gooderham just 12 km (8 miles) away. We go there to get our drinking water from the municipal well (Please ignore the CYA sign). We also receive our mail at the post office c/o General Delivery, Gooderham, Ontario  K0M 1R0. 

Gooderham also has a beer/liquor store, convenience/grocery store, a Chinese restaurant, an automobile service station with gas pumps, a hardware store/lumber yard, library, community center, tennis courts and a bait shop with a picture of the 23 pound Lake Trout pulled out of Stormy Lake in 2001. 

Gooderham's annual community event is called Horseshoe Days. It is held on the Simcoe Day long weekend, the first weekend in August. The main event is a Demolition Derby on the Sunday. Leading up to that are ATV pulls, horsehoe throwing competitions, a Friday night dance and a Saturday night concert featuring Shania Twin (not a spelling mistake) in 2003. 

Just a couple of kilometers east of Gooderham, near the dump, is the Sherry's 24/7 Truck Stop. They make good breakfasts, lunches and dinners 16 hours a day, 7 days a week!

Haliburton - population 1,500 

We frequently visit Haliburton Village which is 22 km (14 miles) from the cottage. We do our banking, laundry and grocery shopping there. It also has several restaurants and many good stores and shops. We often frequent McKeck's. It has a hospital, museum, two marinas, two lumber yards, several schools, and a branch of Sir Sanford Fleming College. 

Haliburton has live theater all summer. Each summer the high school becomes the Haliburton School of Fine Arts. It hosts the Haliburton Highland Games each July. There are 4 golf courses in the area including the world class Pinestone Inn.