Welcome to Our Story!

Welcome to Ibby & Cathy’s House-Building Blog!

My cousin Judie Kordus suggested I start a blog, oh, like a year ago.  And while I always knew that would be a great idea, it’s just been too crazy to actually execute!  And so many of our friends and relatives already know bits & pieces of our story.  So what I’ve decided to do was summarize from the beginning in a few entries, then we’ll be caught up to current where we’re just about to have the actual building starting.  So feel free to skip/skim if you know the background, then follow along on our adventure!

We bought our cottage on Lake Scugog (just outside Port Perry) in June 2006.  We had demanding criteria in that it had to be right on the water – no “lake access” crap 6 doors down for us – and it also had to be within an hour’s drive of home.  We know way too many people who drive 3 hours or even more to their cottage.  A close location was important, as we weren’t ready to totally leave the city behind every weekend.  Ibby likes his regular golf group, and has played on the same Sunday league softball team for 26 years.  Those guys are like family!  Growing up, I was spoiled to have my grandparents cottage on Lake Shangri-la (Wisconsin) only 20 minutes away.  And of course it had to be affordable!  Something that is becoming a rare commodity in lakefront property.

We truly did find the cottage ourselves, between driving around and scouring the internet.  The cottage was actually better than we bargained for.  I would have been happy with a seasonal cottage, but this one was not only heated but also had AC!  Small – not even 1000 sq ft – and quite a few cosmetic things had already been done such as laminate floors and mostly decent windows.  But oh, the view!  We look across the wide lake to farmlands and forests.  Lake Scugog is a fairly shallow lake renowned for fishing.  And we’re on the less populated side of Scugog Island (which actually is more of a peninsula because of a causeway built that connects the island to the mainland).  The shallow lake means that there aren’t too many annoying “water toys” like jet skis, etc.  In fact, our lake is noisier in the wintertime when the ice fishermen are on their skidoos – commonly referred to as “sleds”.  Not a great swimming lake, but then I’m not a great swimmer.  Much prefer looking at the water than being in it!

Our property is in a unique private community of 40 houses.  Our actual lot is 50’ wide x 100’ deep, and one side overlooks a creek area which the neighbour owns.  Jointly our community owns 40 acres of managed forest behind the houses, as well as a common stretch of shoreline in front.  So no, technically we do not own lakefront property, but we still are responsible for cutting the grass there and can put in our dock, boat (if we had one), etc.  Just no permanent structures like a boathouse or shed can be built at the shore, which is fine by me because I wouldn’t want my neighbours building one and wrecking my view.  The bonus of this type of ownership is the property taxes are comparatively quite reasonable.

We’ve come up nearly every weekend, and have learned a lot about living in the country.  Septic systems and wells were something foreign to us.  Mice still scare me, but that’s part of living on the edge of a forest.  We really enjoy the woodstove in the winter.  And now Ibby revs up his chain saw and can chop up a tree with the best of them!

I’ve become involved in the community by operating a monthly fundraising bottle drive for the past 4-1/2 years, raising over $3300 to date.  Funds raised go toward restoring and protecting our shoreline.  Because the lake is so shallow, we are very vulnerable to ice erosion.  When the ice melts in the spring, it digs into the dirt at the shoreline, pushing up the ground.  When it eventually falls it goes straight into the lake.  During a bad season people can lose significant amounts of shore lands which can never be recovered.  By installing large rocks (boulder toes) staggered at a 30 degree slope, the ice sheets “ride” up the sloped shore rather than digging in.  Native plantings and their root systems also help solidify the shore, just as rebar and cement work together in building. 

Our access road was in danger of eroding away, so the group’s initial focus was to protect that area.  We are fortunate to have several committed volunteers in our community with experience in applying for permits and government grants.  Since 2004 we have been able to protect over 500 feet of shoreline (it’s a costly endeavour!).  And we were honoured in 2012 to have our community chosen to receive the Community Conservationist Award from Kawartha Conservation Environmental Recognition Awards.  On a personal note, the bottle drive has been a wonderful opportunity to get to know our neighbours and work together toward a common goal.

But I digress.  Yes, we live in paradise!  Back to the cottage itself, over the years we’ve only done minimal things to the cottage.  Mostly interior painting and staining the deck, and in 2009 we had a dock built which we’ve enjoyed very much.  No boat yet though!  It soon became clear that the structure itself had faults, and it just wouldn’t be worth sinking a lot of money into a new kitchen, etc.  We also wanted to expand the footprint.  We started looking forward to building our dream retirement home on the lot.