Lakeland
reflections

atching pollywogs, a cool summer plunge, star-gazing or a lone loon’s cry; these lakeside enchantments are embedded in many an adult memory. “Canadian lakes cast a spell. A certain lake will lay a hold upon you. If this happens in childhood, you are imprinted for life,” reflects Allan Casey, author of Lakeland, Ballad of a Freshwater Country. He adds, “Ready access to lakes for pleasure is one of the great perks of citizenship in this country.”

Exploring a lake close to home, immersing yourself into what Casey calls the ‘proximate wilderness’, invites you to understand your connection to nature. To be a lake’s caretaker is to invite it in with all the senses. It takes patience to know a lake’s habitat, its subtle rhythms and response to human interactions, or the environmental changes that forge its evolution. Often her greatest gifts are secrets, as Casey reminisces, “unremarkable to human eyes.”