Six Star Magazine Six Star Magazine Fall/Winter 2019 | Page 16

COVER STORY
We don’t own a lakefront cottage in Muskoka, sadly, but
our annual visits to the JW Marriott The Rosseau Muskoka
Resort & Spa feel like a return home. The children run around
like they own the place, returning to their favourite spots time
and again—the best pool lounger, the preferred beach cabana,
the best seat on the terrace to watch the sunset. Just outside the
main entrance, we roast marshmallows in the fire pit, using
the heat to shake off the autumn cold while we trade stories of
the day’s adventures.
On the clearest of nights, the smoke trails from the
campfire dance seductively before dispersing in the wind.
The night sky in Muskoka is a beautiful sight and each time
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PHOTO: TOURISM MUSKOKA
we visit, we take the time to fully appreciate the spectacle. At
the Torrance Barrens Conservation Area in nearby Torrance,
for example, visitors have the chance to enjoy 4,700 acres
of protected Crown land and to experience the world’s first
permanent Dark-Sky Preserve.
These preserves allow stargazers to view the night sky
without the interference of light pollution and Torrance
Barrens provides unvarnished views of those glorious balls of
fire awaiting our attention. It’s the perfect place to appreciate
the natural beauty of Muskoka—and to understand that the
celestial views we find so mesmerizing are the same ones that
dazzled those who came and dreamed before us.