Out of the blue one day in the spring, I got an email about Pull Start Fire. Pull Start Fire is THE must-have for your outdoor fire pit or indoor fireplace! No matches, lighters, kindling, or lighter fluid required! And no more awkwardly trying to light a fire while your
We just spent a few days camping at The Pinery Provincial Park. I say "we", but it was actually just me and my two youngest kids. I invited my entire family of six but received three "no thanks." Tis a shame because it was awesome. Perfect weather, great swimming, great
First things first... is it The Pinery or Pinery? I've been camping at this provincial park on the shores of Lake Huron since I was 17, and I've always referred to it as The Pinery, but apparently it's just Pinery Provincial Park. Regardless, this is where I took the two
Following TMLX8 on Friday and then Blue Rodeo on Saturday night, it was time to escape the city with 75% of my brood. We loaded up a borrowed Hyundai Santa Fe and made our way to Michelle's favourite Provincial Park, The Pinery. Michelle loves The Pinery because of her fantastic
I'm slowly plugging myself back in after an amazing trip to Pinery Provincial Park with three of the kids. I borrowed a Lincoln Aviator for the 500 km round trip and I'm glad we did because the four of us and all our gear takes up a lot of space.
Eight years ago, I shared the story of Camping in Canada, a Sesame Street cassette I thoroughly enjoyed in the early 80s. I knew the words to every song and just loved the story of Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch attending a summer camp in Ontario. Feeling nostalgic back
I enjoyed the 2013 Ford Edge so much when I drove it to my wedding last month, I borrowed it again for our camping trip this week. This time, instead of Tuxedo Black, we went with Ruby Red. It's great for highway driving and roomy as heck. We fit two
Friday evening, that little thunder storm knocked out our power for almost five hours. That was less than two weeks removed from the storm that knocked out our power for almost 24-hours. I'm starting to get the hang of these power outages. Friday, for example, wasn't inconvenient at all. In
For as long as I can remember, the only time I can truly unplug is when I camp. Time ceases to matter, emails can wait and ignorance becomes bliss. All week long I've enjoyed camp fires, hikes, visits to the beautiful beach on Lake Huron and great conversations. A big
So... what did I miss? I unplugged for a few days, went camping with the kids. It was just what I needed. The Ford Fiesta I planned to drive to The Pinery was suddenly unavailable, but the good folks at Ford let me keep the Taurus SHO an extra week.
What an amazing weekend. The weather simply couldn't have been better and we had an absolute blast. I got a lot of sun, a few mosquito bites, enjoyed outdoor movies, three campfires, plenty of sports and activities and great meals. It really was the perfect weekend. Here are some photos
I've got a son and a daughter. My son, who's the oldest of the two, loves playing baseball and hockey and doing "guy things". He likes to do this stuff with his dad, so I spend a lot of time with him at baseball diamonds, at hockey rinks and messing
My personal favourite provincial park for camping is Killarney, but I just realized I've taken the kids to Pinery instead for three summers in a row. The kids prefer Pinery for one reason: the sand. Pinery is all about sand. It's sand dune after sand dune and the sandiest beach
Stuff White People Like has done it again. Just like they did with The Wire, they've nailed camping. If you find yourself trapped in the middle of the woods without electricity, running water, or a car you would likely describe that situation as a “nightmare” or “a worse case scenario
I'm camping this week. Not quite yet, because I want to play a Raging Storm playoff game before leaving town, but the kids and I will be away from it all before you know it. I'm officially in prep mode. I want to thank the very cool people at Canadian
It takes more than a little rain and a couple of cool nights to dampen the spirits of a bunch of Beavers and their bewildered daddies. Even though I arrived at the camp grounds in a torrential downpour, got lost twice on the Scout grounds trying to find Radial Lodge
The first camping trip of 2009 is planned for this weekend. My son and I are heading to the local Beaveree tonight where we'll pitch a tent and spend a couple of nights under the stars and away from the laptop. Typically, I don't schedule camping trips for May, because
I'm raising a couple of awesome hikers. James is just 6 and Michelle is not yet 4 but when we hit the trails we go whole hog. They don't tire, they don't back down and they actually prefer to lead. The official trails at Pinery aren't intense enough, so we
Pinery Provincial Park, where I've been camping the past few days, is right by Grand Bend, Ontario on Lake Huron. To get there, I take the 401 West to about Kitchener and then Highway 8 toward Stratford. I like to stop in on one of the many small towns on
I've just returned from The Pinery Provincial Park where I've been recharging my batteries for the past three days. It was my third visit to Pinery, and my second in row. Last year around this time I was raving about Pinery's sandy beaches. We had a very full first day.
Toronto Mike has unplugged for a few days. This is a good time to visit the archives and catch up on what you've missed these past 5.5 years. If something breaks between now and Saturday, like a big trade involving a Toronto-based franchise, a significant death or World War
Camp Woodland Trails has 19 campsites which are spread out over 275 acres of breathtaking landscaping. This weekend, my son and I stayed at Hickory Hills with his Beavers troop. I remember these trips from when I was a Cub Scout, and it was as fun as I recall. The
I love to camp. When people talk about vacationing and getting away from it all, they speak of resorts and five-star hotels and casinos and I cringe. I far, far prefer the idea of pitching a tent and roughing it in nature as a fun escape from it all. Many
