Echoes

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  Friends of
  Bon Echo Park
  16151 Hwy 41 RR 1
  Cloyne, ON K0H 1K0

  Derek Maggs
  Executive Director
  (613) 336-0830
  Fax - (613) 336-2712
  e-mail:  fobecho@mazinaw.on.ca

  E. Helen Yanch
  Operations Manager
  Greystones Gift &
  Book Shop
  (613) 336-9863
  (May to Thanksgiving)
  (613) 336-0830   (October to April)
  Fax - (613) 336-2712
  e-mail: greystones
@mazinaw.on.ca

     DIRECTORS
  President -
  Betty Pearce 
  Vice President -
  Dave Deacon
  Secretary -
  Mary Jane Turner
  Treasurer -
  Ernest Lapchinski
  Red Emond
  Mary Kelly
  Harold Kaufman
  Pat Nobbs
  Jane Potyok

The Wanderer Too'r, a 26 passenger cruise vessel, provides a relaxing tour of Upper Mazinaw Lake. The tour is interpretive, as passengers are accompanied by a marine captain and an interpreter who explains points of interest along the way. Learn about interesting features of the majestic Mazinaw Rock: the native pictographs which mark its face,the rare ancient cedar trees that have survived harsh environmental conditions for hundreds of years, and the history

Top of your trip with a copy of the Friends publication: The Rock: Bon Echo Provincial Park’s Silent Sentinel. The Rock provides a wonderful introduction to the geology, fauna, wildlife and native pictographs on Mazinaw Rock and a history of white settlement including the establishment of the Bon Echo Inn by Dr. Weston Price, the exciting Denison era and the painting of the Rock by most of the Group of Seven. Pick up a copy at the Greystones Gift and Book Shop.

Fares: $6.00 adults; $3.50 children under 12 (plus GST).

Park visitors who wish to go "Wumping" can catch the Mugwump Ferry Boat at the Lagoon Dock. This 12 passenger pontoon boat operates from mid-May until Labour Day.  Passengers are taken across Mazinaw Lake to Mazinaw Rock where they can hike the 1.5 km trail to the top. Once atop the "Canadian Gibraltar", visitors can use an optical view finder which offers a panoramic view of Mazinaw country. Trail guides are available from the on-board interpreter. The Mugwump runs on demand each day

throughout the summer months and on weekends in the spring and fall.

Fares: $3.25 adults; $2.25 children under 12 (GST included)

The Friends of Bon Echo also operate a retail store and art gallery in the historic Greystones cottage. Store manager Helen Yanch has brought together a unique collection of  products offering a wide selection of wildlife books, field guides, children’s activity books, T-shirts and fleeces. The store offers great gadgets and toys for kids. The ambience is further enhanced by the selected works of a variety of artists whose works are displayed and for sale throughout the summer.

The annual Bon Echo Art Exhibition and Sale is held on the last weekend in July. A food tent,

musical entertainment,reptile show and ceramic painting are some of the activities the family can enjoy. The Exhibition features fifty juried artists. The theme for this event is Original Art of Canadian Nature, Wildlife and Countryside. For information and applications: c/o Derek Maggs - (613) 336-0830 (Office) fobecho@mazinaw.on.ca

The Friends of Bon Echo provide a number of published documents to promote Friends activities and enhance visitors’ enjoyment of Bon Echo Provincial Park. Members receive periodic publications of Echoes From The Rock , the Friends official newsletter. The Friends also provide interpretive trail guides for many of the Park's Trails, including: the Cliff Top Trail, the Shield Trail, the High Pines Trail and The Kishkebus Canoe Route. Bird Checklists are also available for bird enthusiasts. Many of these publications can be purchased at the Park's Main Gate, the Main Office or at Greystones Gift & Book Shop.

Published in 2006, The Rock features a great introduction to this wonderful part of the creation. This 28 page glossy colour publication provides a fascinating  introduction to the jewel of the Land O’ Lakes, its geology, its flora and fauna, its wildlife, its unique history in the lives of the native peoples and its significant history of white settlement in the last century.  Available at  $6.95, it makes a great gift.

 ed. Robert Stacey and Stan McMullin

“Massanoga” – as Mazinaw.Lake used to be called -- is both a painted place and a place of painting.  Since the opening of the Bon Echo Inn in 1900, this site has attracted countless artists, photographers and writers and Mazinaw Rock is one of Canada’s most frequently depicted landmarks.  Among the painters showcased in Massanoga are five members of the Group of Seven.  They are joined on these pages by such noted interpreters as F.M. Bell-Smith, J.W.Beatty, C.W.Jeffrys and Charles Comfort.  Also featured in this introduction to the immense Bon Echo image-bank are vintage photographs of the Inn and its environs, and examples of the remarkable advertising materials commissioned by its owners from artist friends.

Makes a great gift!      Special $9.95

 Mary Savigny's book documents the era when famous artists, intellectuals and theatrical people visited the Lake Mazinaw area. Privy to the inside story as Merrill Denison's manuscript typist, the author records the struggles and ideals of Toronto feminist Flora MacDonald Denison and her author-playwright son, Merrill. This marvelous account sells for $16.95

 John Campbell traces the presence of human habitation on the shores of the Mazinaw from its beginning to the present. John's passion for the area inspired this book with intriguing character profiles and colonization stories. It sells for $24.95

All four books are available at Greystones Gift and Book Shop during the summer season (613-336-9863) or by phoning the Friends office at 613-336-0830. or by email to greystones@mazinaw.on.ca. They make great gifts.

Interested in being a volunteer for the Friends? See our Volunteer Policy and contact the Friends. We'd love to have your help.