For more than a century, Muskoka, the lakeside district just two hours north of Toronto, was the Mecca for tourism in Ontario.
From small farm towns grew a vacation haven for folks from Toronto, Hamilton, Detroit, and even further afield … a destination where they could escape the smoggy summer city air and enjoy nature, breathe the fresh air, swim in the freshwater lakes, and feel the cool breeze.
Muskoka’s landscape of lakes, rocks, and trees has been an iconic image of Ontario’s vacation regions for over a hundred years.
Photo by Erin Morawetz
But the Muskoka of today is very different. True enough, the lakes are still there; and the trees, too, though perhaps fewer. But cottages crowd every shoreline, blighting the once pristine vistas and damaging the water quality, while the hotels and resorts that were once the most prevalent industry in the area are struggling to attract vacationers. Despite its image of opulence, wealth, and a vibrant tourism industry, the Muskoka region is struggling economically, its future far from assured.
So how did Muskoka grow to become at one time such a vibrant tourist destination, how did it decline, and can anything be done to reverse what appears to be a trajectory to oblivion? Just like their setting, the problems the region faces are complicated, and they have left permanent residents and cottagers alike grappling with them. For without tourism, they wonder, what will become of their beloved Muskoka? And in struggling to find ways to preserve the Muskoka they love so dearly, are they inadvertently destroying its one true draw—its heritage?
Motor Boat Guide of Muskoka Lakes by Gerald R. Leeder, 1948