Guest Blogger: Melissa Davis
We get a lot of tourists in Melbourne, Australia. That makes sense considering the beautiful weather and all the attractions, but when you live in the same place for 23 years, you don’t appreciate it nearly as much. That’s why my husband and I planned a trip to Ontario for Christmas. We knew this experience would be the polar opposite of what we have in Melbourne. Another reason we chose Ontario was because my husband’s parents live there. In the past, we had met my in-laws in New York City. This time we chose to rent a cabin in Algonquin Park.
The Area
We arrived on Christmas Eve day. On Christmas Eve I’m usually more excited about giving presents the following morning than anything else. However, on this day, the natural beauty of the area swept me away. To be honest, I even forgot it was Christmas time. I felt as though I had been sent to another world where everything was quiet and still and where nature reigned supreme. During our drive to the cabin, I spotted three frozen lakes, five sets of deer tracks, one set of fox tracks and deep forests with towering trees. Even though I was only sitting in a rental car, it was invigorating.
The Cabin
We stayed in a cabin that slept 12, but we only had 4. This made everything comfortable. My husband and I chose this route because we wanted our own privacy while still being able to enjoy family time in one of the living rooms. On Christmas Eve, we sat back, relaxed and told stories while we enjoyed a roaring fire and sipped eggnog. At that moment, I didn’t think anyone in the world could have been enjoying Christmas Eve more than we were. We later ate wild salmon and drank Ontario ice wine, which were both delicious. After we ate, we hung up our stockings and I took advantage of the sauna.
Christmas Day
We began the day with butternut squash soup. My husband and my in-laws ate some fresh baked bread, but I try to stay away from bread as much as possible. Little did I know how much exercise was ahead of me that day. I probably would have burned off the calories without much of a problem. We went dog-sledding and it was incredible. While there was a lot of natural beauty to enjoy, it was the clean and crisp air that stood out most. We saw more wildlife tracks and we stopped for a champagne Christmas brunch in the middle of the forest, which was incredibly unique. When we returned to the cabin we exchanged presents and then enjoyed turkey and Yorkshire pudding.
We only stayed in Ontario for a few days, but this was easily the most memorable and enjoyable holiday of my life. I hope to one day return to that secluded cabin in Algonquin Park.
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It is easy to plan a memorable Algonquin getaway like Melissa’s! Check out our winter getaway packages for dogsledding adventures in Algonquin.
Have you had a memorable Algonquin winter experience? We want to hear about it!