KAWARTHA LAKES-For much of the nineteenth century, the condition of local roads was deplorable by present-day standards. They were often little more than a strip of land where the stumps were cut low enough that the axle of an ox cart could pass over them. Cedar poles might be placed across wet spots—creating what was called a crossway—but it was common to get stuck in a mud hole and drivers typically took an axe with them in case they had to do roadwork along the way. For many years, the best mode of transportation was the waterway—whether it was by canoe or scow in the summer or on the ice in winter. When the lake froze over it opened a whole world of transportation possibilities. Whether by snowshoes, skates, skis, foot or sleigh, people could go almost anywhere on the lakes—as long as they knew where the ice was thin.
Going places in winter could be so much faster—especially on a journey like Bobcaygeon to Peterborough, where there we so many lakes inhibiting ground transportation in summer. The disadvantage was that, every once in a while, someone would go through the ice. Famously, Bill Dunbar, a Kinmount innkeeper and Mossom Boyd shanty foreman, plunged to his death in a cutter at Gannon’s Narrows in 1894—it was memorialized in a contemporary folk song. Travelling across the ice continued after the advent of automobiles. To allow cars to drive on the lakes, formal roads were ploughed, which had not been necessary, or practical in the age of snowshoes and sleighs. One photograph shows Wilf Jackett and Ted Sims with their snow plow on Cameron Lake.
In the nineteenth century, ice boating was a popular sport, especially for wealthy gentlemen, as sailboats were made, which were the fastest vehicles of their era—reaching speeds in excess of sixty miles per hour on smooth ice. But they were difficult to control or turn at those speeds, and routinely upset when they hit large cracks. Many ice boaters, or their employees, spent more time repairing their boats than they did sailing. Yet for those who had the time and money, it was one of the most exciting sports. In the age of automobiles, skijoring was popular, as enthusiasts had a friend tow them on skis across the lake.
As long as vehicles were driving on the lakes, occasionally one would go through—which always made for much excitement for everyone around. Assuming that the occupants safely escaped, volunteers often devised many clever ways to help retrieve a vehicle from the icy waters. In the second half of the twentieth century, driving on the lakes became unusual, as many of the old ice roads were abandoned, though the trip around many lakes is a much longer drive than cutting directly across. Curve Lake maintained its ice road to Selwyn up until a few years ago. Nowadays, few motorists could imagine taking a shortcut on the ice.
This story is part of our partnership with Maryboro Lodge, The Fenelon Falls Museum and was written by Glenn Walker.
If you want to make a donation to the museum, you can e-transfer to:Â [email protected] or mail a cheque to :
Maryboro Lodge Museum
Box 179
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Fenelon Falls, ON
K0M 1N0
