On Saturday May 21, Muskoka Heritage Place—Museum, Village and Train—officially opens for its twenty-second season.
Take a scenic train trip along the Muskoka River or discover the pioneer village and museums—Muskoka Heritage Place is a great way to spend the day. Whether you come for a few hours or plan an experience for the whole day, there is something for everyone to enjoy this spring and summer.
Ever wonder what life was like in Muskoka in the 1800s? The 31-acre pioneer village has everything you would ever need as an early settler in 1880s Muskoka. Equipped with several family homes, working blacksmith, general store, schoolhouse, church, woodworking shop, and barn, the village portrays a rich history of family and work life at the turn of the 20th century.
The newest exhibit at the Muskoka Museum A Tough Go – The Earliest Years of Settlement, further depicts what it was like to settle the area and highlights how settlers cleared land, built their homes, and how they would prepare for winter.
While exploring the village, meet friendly costumed narrators and learn from a variety of pioneer demonstration and activities. Try your hand at candle dipping, card some wool, bend some iron, sample a freshly baked scone, take a lesson in the schoolhouse, dress like a pioneer, meet the farm animals, or play pioneer games.
A visit to Muskoka Heritage Place isn’t complete without a ride on the open-air train that travels one kilometre along the Muskoka River to the shores of Fairy Lake, where guests can enjoy the scenic views from the Fairy Lake Station or speak to the conductor for a peek inside the train cab. While you are there, don’t forget to explore the Steam Museum, depicting early locomotive history in the area.
Guests are encouraged to view the train schedule for both spring and summer prior to planning their visit, as train times and operation days change throughout the season. In spring, the diesel locomotive operates until Canada Day on select days, and the Portage Flyer Steam Train operates in the summer from Canada Day, on select days through until Labour day.
When planning for your family’s spring and summer day trips, consider Muskoka Heritage Place just minutes from beautiful downtown Huntsville. For more details, visit muskokaheritageplace.ca or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
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Allen Markle says
Speaking of greenspace folks, here is some of the best in town. You can wander the mainstreet without having to heed stoplights or crosswalks. Nobody building town-houses or condos, and no huge trucks powdering your sense of solitude with dust and diesel.
Lots of birds if you look, and groundhogs if you’re into rodents. Some lucky days you may startle a deer, which might just wander off, or realize it had an appointment somewhere else. They can disappear in a hurry.
On sunny days, if there is a log floating in the reeds, it can be where turtles congregate to enjoy each others company and catch a few rays.
On some days, Heritage Place can have quite an international flavor, with patrons from far and wide.
Stop at the trappers cabin and be sure to see the dugout canoe in the workshop next door. Think about taking a t(r)ip in that!
The train runs along the river to the old ‘camp kitchen’ and back.
What surrounds you here resulted from years of labour. Just for pleasure now, after all those decades of serious, hard work.
To top it all off, you’ll meet some really nice people who will try their best to help make your day enjoyable.