I treasure David and John so much.  Any time I have opportunity to spend time with them, it is magic!  David has been a lifelong friend and I am so blessed by the years that we have journeyed together and apart.

North Bay Sing Along Days

On my recent trip east, John and David treated me to a brilliant blue afternoon filled with good food, conversation, art and magic.  To begin with, we lunched at the Lake on the Mountain Resort.

From Wikipedia…

The freshwater lake around which the park is based is located nearly 62 metres (203 ft) above the Bay of Quinte from which it is separated by a narrow strip of land ending in a cliff. Often thought to have no visible source of water, it is actually fed by at least two small streams from the surrounding higher land, predominantly from the west but another enters near the southeast corner. The southeast supply is more of a seasonal spring runoff and by summer is sometimes completely dry. There is also a significant area of swamp to the southwest which would act as a reservoir for water that would eventually flow into the lake. Drainage of the lake occurs on the east side where a small stream flows down the cliff into Lake Ontario‘s Bay of Quinte. It is believed to be a collapsed doline (a type of sinkhole). It was believed to be bottomless by early settlers. The depth of the lake is still not fully known, although previous attempts have established the depth over 34 metres (112 ft) deep.

I had visited this wonderful place a couple of times before, once with my parents and the other time, with my daughter while exploring the Loyalist route.

Dining with the guys, I had the chance to relax and take a breath.  We enjoyed a pleasant lunch, chilled white wine, a newsy and supportive conversation  and then we began a bit of a wander, heading next to Huff Estates.  Along the way, John pulled the car over and saved a Painted Turtle that we spotted crossing on our winding road…this little experience says a lot to me about the sort of man John is.  It also puts a smile on my face as I type.  From the Quinte Conservation website, this…

Quinte Conservation’s featured Species of the Month for June is the Painted Turtle. This easily-spotted turtle can be seen at several local Conservation Areas. Conservation Education Coordinator at Quinte Conservation, Maya Navrot says, “The Painted Turtle has a distinctive head and face with olive green and yellow stripes. Its shell is 10-25 cm long and ranges in colour from olive green to black.”

Navrot adds, “The Painted Turtle is the only Ontario turtle not listed as a Species at Risk. Many turtles are killed on the road each year. Most turtles killed on the road are females on their way to or from nesting sites. If you see a turtle on the road, and it is safe to do so, you may move it across the road, in the direction it is going. Large turtles are not safe to pick up, however using a stick is the safest method to move them. Waving a stick in front of the turtle’s mouth will usually cause the turtle to snap onto it and it can then be safely dragged off the road.”