Guest Comments and Stories

Cheers from Doris

In the late summer we drove through the Madawaska Valley (www.madawaskavalley.on.ca) en route from Ottawa to our home in the 400/11 area.

We had enjoyed Ottawa but were ready to leave the hustle of its superhighways and heavy traffic and happily watched it all slip away behind us as we drove along the Queensway/417 out into the countryside, onto the single-lane #17 and then onto #60. On #17 between Ottawa and Renfrew one can still see old log houses and barns in good repair, and there are wonderful broad vistas of farmland.

We stopped in Renfrew for lunch at The Old Towne Hall Restaurant and Tea Room (www.theoldtownehalltearoom.com) where we had lovely fresh salads. The proprietor was born in "The Valley" - "I come from Killaloe", she said, and smiled approvingly as we told her we were headed to Wilno and Barry's Bay.

We enjoyed dinner at the Wilno Tavern (613-756-2029), which advertises itself as an "historic Polish pub" and was built in 1894 when the railway went through. The traditional Polish foods are especially good there, although I've never seen a plate of food at Wilno Tavern that didn't look delicious. We were fortunate this year to be there on Tuesday night for their weekly Blues Jam. It's a wonderful way to wind down a day in the Valley. Wilno is Canada's oldest Polish settlement.

A new park opened in Barry's Bay this summer commemorating an important piece of Canadian history and legend - the Zurakowski Park (www.madawaskavalley.on.ca and follow link). The park has a scale model of the CF-105 Avro Arrow whose test pilot was Janusz "Zura" Zurakowski, a citizen of Barry's Bay for over 40 years. The park is located on a small triangle of land in the centre of Barry's Bay, across from the old Railway Station, but its soaring Arrow and plaques describing the accomplishments of Zurakowski are most impressive - another good reason to visit this region. Eventually there will be a museum on the site as well.

Our final evening with our friends at Chippawa Resort provided a spectacular sunset over the lake, making us reluctant, as always, to leave this beautiful, distinct region of Ontario.

Doris Grant is a Freelance Travel Writer living in Barrie, Ontario.