60th Anniversary

Five of the six kids in the Hartwell family spent summers at the cottage with our Mom, and our Dad would come up on the weekends. He would take the boat down on Sunday and we would be without a boat all week until he returned Friday night. But one day, someone came rowing the MacPhail’s (Lot 8) rowboat into our bay screaming for help, They needed a boat to… Read more “The Hartwells – Lot 4”

I can remember when I was 8 years old 56 years ago going to Bolyea’s store at the haunted narrows. They sold the best penny candies and you would get a small bag… Read more “The Bessermans – Lot 252”

My dad Lawrence Camp bid on Crown Land in a poker game lot 171 sight unseen in 1958. His offer was accepted along with out neighbors John and Lynn Schroder lot 172. The cottage was built in 1959 by Joe Bolyea. My brothers Jim , Larry and I Ron along with numerous Aunts, Uncles, Cousins , friends and Family have truly loved .GHL. It is still in the Camp family… Read more “Larry and Doris Camp lot 171”

I remember no electricity on the lake in the early years. My father explored old logging sites in the area and loved snorkeling. He and Alec Douglas were interested in the environmental issues on the lake. My father was involved in countering the Orillia Hydro expansion. We still have a copy of the report. I remember smelt fishing and the Bolyea’s marina. Our original cabin was built by Joe Bolyea.… Read more “The Grasshoffs – Lot 315”

… Read more “The Smarts – Lot 24”

The Rehak’s built 2 cottages on Go Home Lake: Lot 341 Sunrise Island built by Miro and Meluska Rehak and Lot 283 Flag Island built by George and Eleanor Rehak. Both cottages have remained in the family since the original purchase in 1960 enjoyed by generations. The original families who built on the lake relied on their neighbours to lend a hand when it was needed. That spirit remains on… Read more “The Rehaks”

I was always told by my mother that our cottage was the first cottage to be built on the lake after the original marina was built at Haunted Narrows. I was also told that my grandfather, Gerald Pendock, helped barge in building materials for many of the other first cottagers on the lake and he also helped to create the snowmobile trail system but for some reason he was left… Read more “The Pendocks – Lot 77”

William (Bill) purchased a one bedroom Panabode in September 1963. In 1970 he married Carol and when their first child James was born in 1973 they decided to expand the cottage to become a 3 bedroom cottage with a very large deck. Their second child, Robert was born in 1976, and various improvements continued to happen over the years. Now with Bill and Carol retired the family has grown adding… Read more “THE MACDONALDS – LOT 29”

My name is Ken Cripps and my wife Susan and I now own lot 358. My family built one of the many “A” frame cottages on the lake in 1960. There was no plywood available back then, so the flooring and roofing material was all 5″ tongue and groove spruce boards. The truck that delivered wood for the entire cottage had a crane system to lift the load off the… Read more “The Cripps – Lot 358”

Building a cottage on Go Home Lake was the hardest thing I ever did at the age of 14. My Dad and I slaved away for years … and we are still building. It was great fun for you knew everyone and we all pitched to help each other. Overall a great experience with many fond… Read more “The Tudors – Lot 394”

Hello, everyone. My name is John Allt This is totally amazing!! As a three year old, I fondly remember coming to Go Home Lake via ” Go Home Lake Road” for a two month summer stay and boating from Potter’s Marina ( Later known as Potter’s Landing). Our lot was the first lot you came to on the left across from what is now, Go Home Lake Marina. My father… Read more “Our cottage was at lot 101 on Go Home Lake.”

In 1958, my summer job was delivering milk for Briars Dairy out of Gravenhurst. I was always looking for new accounts and a customer mentioned that there was a Hydro camp set up on the road into Go Home Lake (next to the existing water pump) and they might be interested in milk delivery. The Hydro gang suggested that a small marina had opened beside the new government dock at… Read more “The Kerwsells – Lot 200”

My Dad & Mum purchased their home away from home on Paradise Bay in 1970. Later in years, what a pain the neck it was transporting everything by boat – Dad said he purposely selected this cottage on an island so his unwelcomed relatives could not pop over for a visit. Enjoying the regatta every summer, Dad decided to buy a sailboat and it had to be a “big one”… Read more “THE ECKARTS – ZACCHIGNAS”

My father John Nieweglowski was original owner of lot 12 (currently owned by Gary Jones). I was born in 1960 and was told that I spent the majority of the summer in a playpen on the property while my father built the cottage. I have grown up on the lake and consider it as well as the residents of the lake as Home and family. I learned to kite fly… Read more “The Nieweglowskis– Lot 6”

GHL was and still is a gathering place for family and friends. It is our “heaven on earth”. My parents cleared the land and built our cottage with the help of neighbours. That is what the community was about, helping out your neighbours and I am proud to say it is still happening. Back in the late 50’s my dad allowed the trappers to use the path beside our cottage… Read more “The Joneses – Lot 13”

The photo is our whole family. My mother, and father who built the cottage in the summer of 1961 with the help of my oldest brother – 14 at the time. My middle brother went to camp that summer, and me (the kid in the batman shirt, and present owner) – I was one year old, and stayed at home with Mrs. Green, the baby sitter (who I have zero… Read more “The Campbells – Lot 284”

Going back to the early days of our cottage experience, starting in 1960, we were fortunate to be able to spend our whole summer at the lake. My two older brothers and I, along with our mom, would stay at the cottage for two months straight. Our dad would come up on weekends, as well as enjoying two weeks of holidays at some point during the summer. The early years… Read more “The Hallfords – Lot 344”

With both our parents being in the education system, we were very blessed to have all our summers spent there growing up. When we grew up and had our own children, our careers allowed us to continue to spend our summers there and so our kids got to experience the same magic, with all their cousins around. No TV, no computers, just plain FUN and creativity and the great outdoors.… Read more “The MacPhails – Lot 8”

Our cottage is nicknamed Hodge Podge Lodge, our gathering place for 55… Read more “The Hodgsons – Lot 311”

Basil (Baz) Cross was an original Association member who I believe helped set it up with legal advice, etc. His original tour of the lake, with my father, John Cross, was by Native guided canoe trip down the Musquash River from the road to the north end of the lake – pre-marinas, new cut and dam. He put in 3 bids and was awarded lot 9. The lake community, especially… Read more “The Crosses – Lot 9”

My dad, Roy (Farmer) Saint was a volunteer fireman in Bradford, just north of the Holland Marsh. After emergency calls or training session, he and 4 friends talked about how they each wanted to get a cottage. During the winter, my dad built a flat bottom boat. Then during the summer of 1957, we all went camping at places where building lots were coming up for sale. This included Haliburton,… Read more “The Saints – Lot 165/33”

Here’s oldie of my brothers John, Ken & myself playing golf at the cottage. Our dad sunk a can down at the beach and another up by the cottage and we hit that darn ball up & down the hill, many went into the lake! ~Audrey… Read more “The Koopstras lot 35”

Although my father passed away in 2002 he came up to the cottage almost every weekend since the early 1960s and my family and kids now do the same. It’s been a piece of paradise and we still occupy the same original… Read more “The Sehnkes – Lot 339”

My Father (David Vass) started the original Road Association which eventually led to the GHLCOA. He and a few others in Four Seasons Bay, (Galway’s, Boag’s, Henry’s to name a few) kept getting $5 parking tickets at the highway, so they got together; Dad approached the township to get the road plowed just enough to get a few cars parked far enough off the highway that they didn’t get tickets.… Read more “The Vasses – Lot 74”

1960 we visited Go Home to see my Uncle’s cottage being built. My Dad walked to the lot next door and no building was in place. The property was purchased at the auction with the condition a cottage had to be erected in 2 years. Dad wrote the owner who had changed his plans and was going to let the lot revert to the Crown. Dad offered to put up… Read more “The Hearns – Lot 38”

Irwin Tallan bought land on Go Home Lake in 1958. He is still visiting the lake! Here is a picture of Irv on July 1, 2018 at the… Read more “The Tallans/Forbes – Lot 67”

The family loves and appreciates Go Home… Read more “The Hunnisetts – Lot 318”

There are many stories and memories of GHL which I can recall over the last 58 years since we first purchased Crown land in 1960 and erected the cottage in 1962: driving up every Friday night from the city on a 2 lane Highway 69, past the Oaks restaurant to country road 32 and then loading the boat and setting off with a full load plus kids and dogs towards… Read more “The Bruces – Lot 349”

50 years ago this month, my family sold their cottage on Key Hole Bay. My memories (aged 4 to 14) of the cottage and the lake are still vivid as if they happened yesterday. We first kept our boat docked at Potter’s then moved to the ‘New Marina’ after we bought a new larger boat. Remember the boat up on the rocks at the ‘new’ marina with the ad- “Don’t… Read more “The Walkden’s (1961 – 1971)”

The winter after being notified of the successful bid, we saw our garage converted to a workshop, where my father, and many helping hands, built a 16’ Wooden “spaceship” from a kit. Launched in Spring ‘59, it’s first job was to transport a tent trailer to our site. This would be “home” for my parents and 5 1/2 kids for the next two summers till the cottage was built and… Read more “The Hannigans – Lot 215”

My name is Nina Sosnowsky. My maternal grandmother Irina Garnowski and her husband Alexander were the original owners of waterfront lot 288. They built their cottage on cinder blocks. It was very rustic – no indoor plumbing and no winter insulation. I went there every summer with my grandma, mom, and dad. It was the most beautiful property, with a private waterfront, surrounding wooded area, wildlife and peace. I absolutely… Read more “Garnowski – original owners of Lot 288”

60 Years ago My Grandfather Horst Purchased his Lot #182 located in Heart Bay Go Home lake for $280.00 That’r right Two Hundred and Eighty Dollars! My Grandfather worked hard every weekend and still does to this day to keep his property in impeccable condition. What was once Swap is now a Beautiful Muskoka Getaway. Horst can often be found on his deck early afternoon enjoying a couple of beverages!… Read more “The Dietrich Lot 182”

The best memories are smelt fishing early spring opening weekend at the cottage and living with… Read more “The Wolfs – Lot 214”

How the Lake has changed. In 1961 or 1962 I brought my boat from Georgian Bay to the Lake with a 50hp. engine. People remarked on the foolishness of a boat that powerful on the Lake. It would be classed as a fishing boat… Read more “The Suttons – Lot 304”

Five of the six kids in the Hartwell family spent summers at the cottage with our Mom, and our Dad would come up on the weekends. He would take the boat down on Sunday and we would be without a boat all week until he returned Friday night. But one day, someone came rowing the MacPhail’s (Lot 8) rowboat into our bay screaming for help, They needed a boat to… Read more “The Hartwells – Lot 4”

The Wortons – Lot 159 As second generation, GHL was a wonderful place to grow up and we have developed long standing friendships with many cottagers Al Campbell and Ben… Read more “The Wortons – Lot 159”

I am flooded with memories of Go Home Lake, My father Wayne Bright & mother Marie bought the land in 1960 (1 acre) on the Musquash river,. Dad was given 2 years to put up a 10 x 20 cottage. My brother Steve and I were 2 & 5 years old, and then came along little brother Lorne , who now is back on the Lake at the North End.… Read more “The Bright’s LOT 310”