Happy (Stress-free, Relaxing) Holidays

Enjoy the holiday season without the holiday mayhem

For many people, the holiday season is a whirlwind of commitments and responsibilities... shopping, decorating, wrapping; parties, crowded stores, full parking lots; gift exchanges, high expectations, cooking and baking enough to feed a small nation, an over-packed schedule of things to do and places to go... It's exhausting just thinking about it!
For some, this hectic pace defines the holidays. Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without high blood pressure and a tension headache! I used to get sick with a cold or flu every Christmas, likely due to too much stress and not enough sleep.
I've since wised up and simplified my version of what the holidays should be—and it's not about glitz and gifts! The only glitter here comes from the moonlight shining on crystalline snowflakes. We leave the tree-decorating up to Jack Frost and Mother Nature, who generously dress every bough and branch in the forest. Festivities are in the form of old-fashioned fun (think tobogganing, snowshoeing, and sleigh rides) or low-key relaxing (think cuddles by the fire). And oh boy, are our nights silent!
Holidays now are about unplugging, slowing down, and enjoying the turn of the calendar as one year winds down and a new one begins. If that sounds like your idea of the perfect holidays, then there's room at the inn for you!

We're open and welcoming guests every day throughout the Christmas and New Year's holidays. Holiday rates are in effect from December 24th through January 2nd. Dinners are available with advance notice, or we can tell you which restaurants are open in town.

We can also recommend places to go tubing, skiing, winter hiking and skating. Snowshoes are complimentary for guests to use on our private 10km trail system.

Call us at 1-866-311-8519 or visit Fern Glen Inn to reserve your holiday season getaway.

Screaming Heads

The Almaguin Highlands is rich with artists and artisans—potters, sculptors, wood-crafters, glass-workers, and painters of every medium and style. All are interesting individuals, but one in particular stands out when it comes to sheer scale of size.

Artist Peter Camani has created an immense, surreal artscape of huge cast-concrete sculptures throughout his 310-acre property. Locally referred to as Screaming Heads, the property serves as the artist's home as well as his canvas.
Visitors are welcome to wander the trails that wind through meadows, past woods and ponds, to get up close to—or even walk through—his artwork.

When there, don't forget to take a closer look at Mr. Camani's house, surrounded by thick walls and adorned by a two-headed dragon and a warrior princess. The giant head on the back of the building houses the artist's studio. At least one of the wall towers is a shelter for the many resident peacocks.

Some people find a visit to Screaming Heads eerie, others find it intriguing. I, for one, relish the chance to put myself inside another's artistic vision and step away from the everyday. If nothing else, everyone can agree that it's a unique and impressive piece of work

If you go: You'll find Screaming Heads on Midlothian Road, near the town of Burk's Falls. It's an easy outing from here at Fern Glen Inn, and popular with many of our guests. There is a parking lot beside the house, and a donation box in case you feel the art is worth supporting. Since it is a private home as well as an art exhibit, if the gate to the parking lot is closed, please just enjoy the view from the road.

Click here to see more photos of the Screaming Heads at the peak of the fall colours.

Self-Indulgent Season

Some call it the slow season. Others refer to the low season, shoulder season, or quiet season. But I like to think of it as the Self-Indulgent Season. And I mean that in a good way.

The season I'm talking about is this un-season between fall and winter. At first glance there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of "indulgence" going on. The colourful leaves have fallen from the trees but the snow hasn't come yet (at least not enough to play in) and—thank goodness—it's too soon for the "happy holidays" mayhem to start. It's too late for swimming and paddling but too early for dog sledding and snowshoeing. The crowds that converge on Muskoka in the summer and fall have emptied out of the restaurants, shops and parks.

A getaway now is a getaway "just because". It's a chance to indulge yourself in a slower pace away from the hectic demands of your daily routine. For some, that means indulging in a few days of much-needed solitude with a solo retreat; for others it means nurturing important friendships and relationships overdue for attention (think romantic hideaway or girlfriends' getaway).

Many of us are sooo used to a go-go-go pace—always doing something, always trying to cross something off our list—that we don't know what to do with ourselves when we actually stop moving. Sure, there are plenty of activities to fill your time during a November/December visit to the inn... trail hiking, horseback riding, sightseeing, exploring Algonquin Park among others. But if you let it, it can be as simple as lying low and not planning to do anything at all.

So how might you pass your time on a quiet getaway, whether you're on your own or with a companion? Lose yourself in a book (bring your own, peruse our eclectic collection, or ask us about our favourite lazy-day bookstore). Treat yourself to an afternoon nap and recover from the sleep deficit most of us carry. Take a long, slow amble through the woods or sit by a waterfall with a sketch pad or journal.

If you feel like splurging on some extra indulgences, we can book a massage for you with a registered massage therapist, or even arrange for a tarot card reading.

We certainly hope to see you here at the inn this un-season for our special blend of R&R, but whereever you are, don't forget to slow down and indulge in whatever it is that replenishes your self.

:: :: ::

There is a privacy about it which no other season gives you.... In spring, summer and fall people sort of have an open season on each other; only in the winter, in the country, can you have longer, quiet stretches when you can savor belonging to yourself. ~Ruth Stout

Pumpkin Cookies

At this time of year, as we revel in the Golden Encore, the world around us echoes the colours of autumn gourds—think deep-hued orange pumpkins, tawny butternut and bright yellow spaghetti squash.

These delicious seasonal vegetables frequently star at our dinner table, but they are also wonderfully suited to baked treats.

This recipe for Pumpkin Cookies is one of my childhood favourites, copied from the well-worn card in my mom's recipe box. I love them as they are, fresh from the oven and still a little warm, but you can also turn them into Pumpkin Whoopie Pies by sandwiching them with a tangy-sweet cream cheese filling.

Using canned pumpkin puree (NOT pumkin pie filling!), these are quick and easy to whip together. You can make them at any time of year, but with Halloween around the corner, is there a better time than now?

Pumpkin Cookies

These cookies have a fine crumb and moist, cake-like texture. I like them best on the same day they are baked, but they will keep at room temperature in an air-tight container for a few days.

Makes about 30 cookies

2 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 eggs

1 3/4 cups pure pumpkin puree

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup pecans, walnuts, raisins, crystallized ginger, or chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, spices and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl using handheld electric beater) cream together the butter and brown sugar until fluffy and pale in colour, about 3-5 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then the pumpkin puree and vanilla extract.

Add about half the dry ingredients, mixing on low speed until almost combined. Switch to a wooden spoon or rubber spatula and gently stir in the remaining dry ingredients. Stir in nuts, fruit or chocolate chips if using. For the cookies pictured here, I divided the dough into two bowls and added pecans & raisins to one and chocolate chips to the other. Crystallized ginger and white chocolate chips would've been a great combination, too.

Drop the batter by heaping tablespoon onto the prepared cookie sheets, spacing about 1 1/2" apart. Bake until the top looks dry and springy to the touch. A toothpick inserted in the top should come out clean or with moist crumbs attached. About 12-14 minutes.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Make the pumpkin cookies as above, but use the back of the spoon to smooth out and slightly flatten the dough mounds after dropping onto the cookie sheet. Bake and cool.

Make filling: With an electric mixer, beat together 16 oz (450g or two bricks) of cream cheese, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and 1 cup of icing sugar until smooth. Taste and add more sugar if you like it sweeter or to thicken. If the consistency is too thick for spreading, beat in a bit of cream.

Slather a thick layer of filling on the bottom of a cookie, then sandwich with another cookie. Repeat until you use up all the filling or all the cookies. Take a bite and say "whoopie!".

Country Roads

Nothing beckons quite like a country road in Autumn.

Some of our guests on the recent Thanksgiving weekend brought their bicycles and rode 'around the block'—which, here, is a good 32 km trip. They had a great time and came back raving about the colours, the road, the route. So much so that Jim and I took a little break and took a drive up our road for a little eye candy.


We were treated to some sunny spells and patches of blue sky, which always sets off the fall foliage so nicely, but even under clouds, the view was spellbounding.

Round Lake is just a few clicks up from us on Fern Glen Road. The auburn hills with their green conifer skirts cut a colourful swathe between the water and sky. There are not a lot of houses and not much activity on this lake, which makes it a great choice for a short paddle if you bring your canoe or kayak.


These winding country roads, though, offer a wonderful way to see the season. Whether on a bike, in a car, or strolling on foot, the colour surrounds you. The curves and surface of the road make you take your time, take it all in. In places, the crowns of the trees overhead stitch together to form a canopy of colour and light. And every now and then, where the road widens a bit, you just have to pull over, get out, and say Wow.

Fall Colours!

It's that time of year again! The time when I can barely drive down a country road or walk along a forest trail because I'm too busy looking up and around, trying to take in this stunning visual art show known as the Fall Colours.

The season started with a string of bright, sunny days and cool, frosty nights... the perfect combination for bringing out the most brilliant colours in the maple leaves.

Right now the forest is a great bouquet, a patchwork quilt, a mosaic. The colours range from soft pastels to deep hues, from peach to persimmon to paprika. The reds are deep and cool in burgundy and oxblood; or bright and sassy like a harlot's dime-store lipstick.

Words just don't do it justice. Unfortunately, nor do photographs. At least, not the ones I take with my camera and skill set. The pictures here were taken on our trails and along the Seguin Trail up to the little lake. They show what I saw, but they don't capture the essence of the season.

They don't let you hear the rustle of the fallen leaves underfoot, or smell the aroma of earth and autumn that kicks up as you walk. They don't make your cheeks rosy in a nippy breeze, or shower you with a confetti of leaves when a gust blows through the trees. You really do have to experience it first hand. And I hope you do!

Happy Autumn!

Dyer Memorial

Autumn is perhaps the favourite season for visiting Muskoka and the Almaguin Highlands. When the air is crisp and the leaves are glorious, countless visitors flock to the area to hike the trails, drive the country roads and marvel at nature's fiery colour palette.

At this time of year, some of the most popular parks and attractions of the area can be busy and crowded, which is why we have a few out-of-the-way places to share with our guests. These are the hidden gems and under-hyped scenic spots that don't draw quite as many tourists but are well worth a visit.

One of these spots is the Dyer Memorial. Located deep in the woods on the outskirts of Huntsville, the Dyer Memorial was once a beautifully maintained botanical garden requiring the services of a full-time seasonal gardener. It has long since lost the funding needed for such maintenance, but it is still a public park and, to my mind anyway, quite lovely in its naturalized state.

The memorial itself is a large stone monument "erected in fond memory", as the plaque explains, "of Betsy Browne Dyer, 1884 - 1956, by her husband Clifton G. Dyer, 1885 - 1959". The rest of the plaque is a sweet sentiment of appreciation for what must have been a fulfilling marriage.

The monument stands on a hill and overlooks gentle slopes of grass and overgrown flower beds spilling over stone paths. A few wooden bridges span the Big East River which winds through the park. Willows, birches, maples and pines create the backdrop.

It's an idyllic picnic spot, especially at this time of year. You might expect it to be a busy stop for sight-seers, but it's a little off the beaten path, and down a road that doesn't quite live up to the term 'road'.

The pictures here were taken late one October, after the maples and birches shed their leaves and the forest was getting ready for its winter sleep. A visit at the peak of the fall colours is sure to reward you with a stunning sight—and very likely few people to share it with.