Muskoka Steamships and Discovery Centre, Gravenhurst, Ontario: July 9, 2016

After touring the ACBS boat show at the Muskoka Wharf and having some tea and cake at a pleasant English-style tea house, we walked over to the nearby Muskoka Steamships and Discovery Centre.  This is a permanent building celebrating not only the history of Muskoka steamships but also the grand hotels of this summer holiday region and the eleven area boatbuilders who constructed the beautiful wooden boats featured at the show.  

The Muskoka Lakes Navigation Company (NAVCO) was founded in 1866 and operated until 1956, offering the largest and finest fleet of inland lake steamships in North America.  It was a key transportation link for the Muskoka region until the 1930s, when it saw a decline in freight and passenger traffic due to competition from highways.  The last steamers, Sagamo and Segwun were withdrawn in 1958.  RMS Sagamo was converted to floating restaurant at the Muskoka Wharf and was lost by fire in 1969 while the Segwun, moored nearby as a floating museum, was unscathed.

RMS Segwun began its career as the SS Nipissing, built in 1887 on the Clyde in Scotland and assembled in Toronto. A paddle wheeler, it was decommissioned in 1915 but then the company elected to rebuild the hull as a twin-screw steamship in 1924, relaunching the renamed Segwun in 1925.  Laid up as a floating museum in 1962 and thus saved from destruction, Segwun underwent a lengthy restoration process which resulted in the relaunch of the ship in 1981 for excursions and dinner cruises.  RMS Segwun has a capacity of 97 passengers plus crew and requires 250 tons of coal for its 4 1/2 month sailing season.  She has been joined in the fleet by Wenonah II, a replica of a 1907 Muskoka Navigation ship built in 2002, which has a capacity of 217 passengers and crew.  A third ship, Wanda III, was built in 1915 as the private yacht of Mrs. Timothy Eaton, wife of the department store founder, and was capable of 24 knots.  It is currently undergoing restoration.  

RMS Segwun (left) and Wenonah II (right)

NAVCO was revived with the relaunch of the Segwun and is owned by the charitable Muskoka Steamship and Historical Society, whose aim is to preserve knowledge of the steam era and let the public experience the "fun, romance, and history" of the Muskoka Lakes. 

The Discovery Centre has an extensive exhibit on the Segwun and the operations of the company, with a recreation of the freight deck, and memorabilia from the grand hotels found on the Muskoka Lakes.

Steamship motive power

Ship steam whistles

The other part of the Discovery Centre is the Murray Walker Grace & Speed Boathouse, featuring North America's largest in-water collection of antique wooden boats.  The boats are privately-owned and the display is constantly changing.  There are exhibits about boat construction and the history of individual companies but the beautiful speedboats speak for themselves in this airy structure.

An English amusement park ride

The boatbuilder's tools

Boat flooring produced by different boatbuilders in Muskoka

Our enjoyable day among the boats was coming to an end.  Taking the shuttle bus back to the parking lot, we got into the car just in time for the rain to begin again.  Our long drive home was a different route than the one we came in on, taking us through Bancroft and the truly spectacular Haliburton Highlands.  The rain continued all the way home, reducing our enjoyment of the scenery somewhat, but the roads were empty so it was a no-stress return back.

The Muskoka Steamships & Discovery Centre is highly recommended when in the region and more information about it can be found here.

Antique and Classic Society Boat Show, Gravenhurst, Ontario, July 9, 2016

Ontario's Muskoka region has been for many years a playground of the wealthy, the "Hamptons of the North." Lake Rosseau's "Millionaires' Row" is outdone only by Lake Joseph's "Billionaires Row."  Among noted property owners were US President Woodrow Wilson, as well as Hollywood figures of today including director Steven Spielberg.  The area's popularity began with start of steamboat services in the 1860s and 1870s, followed by the railroad's reaching Gravenhurst in 1875.  Several grand hotels were constructed, some of which have survived.  From simple cottages private accommodation became grander, with elaborate matching boathouses.  And in those boathouses were often to be found the gorgeous Muskoka wooden speedboats, as much a mark of success as their contemporary Packard and Pierce-Arrow motorcars.

Each year the Muskoka Wharf in Gravenhurst is the scene of the annual Summer Vintage Boat Show, hosted by the Antique and Classic Boat Society (ACBS) of Toronto.  Having enjoyed Concours d'Elegance in various  venues, we thought it would be worthwhile to attend the nautical version of a transportation beauty show in 2016.

On July 8 we left Ottawa in the Corvette for Bracebridge, a drive of around 5 hours that took us through Eganville, Madawaska and Barry's Bay before reaching Algonquin Park and then heading south from Huntsville to Bracebridge, where we found our pre-booked B&B.  Bracebridge (population 16,000) has limited accommodation, particularly in the high season we were in but we were very comfortable and had an excellent dinner in a small restaurant converted from a service station on the main street.  Of course, we also enjoyed some local craft beer there as well.

The next morning a 15 minute drive brought us to the Muskoka Wharf in Gravenhurst.  The weather was poor, being overcast with a light drizzle.  A shuttle bus took us from the parking lot to the wharf itself and we soon found ourselves immersed in the world of the Muskoka Wood Boat as the rain stopped.

Our first sight was the impressive RMS Segwun, a steamboat launched in 1886 and used on Muskoka service until 1956.  One of only four ships to carry the Royal Mail Ship designation now, it was a floating museum for many years before a 12 year restoration project saw it return to service in 1981.  It is owned and operated by the Muskoka Steamships and Discovery Centre, a charitable organization, and will be the subject of a separate post here.

RMS Segwun, about to start another day of passenger cruises

The boat show was pretty simple in its organization.  The docks had been cleared of more prosaic craft and show boats moored, so it was a matter of walking along the docks and admiring them, while keeping your balance.  There was an area on dry land with some exhibitors close to the docks but also further along the shore.  In addition, there was a small vintage car show as well, which was particularly active thanks to a half-dozen Amphicars on the move.

Canoe construction and restoration shop

Modern wooden speedboat

Fine decorative work on a new wooden boat

Wooden speedboat needing some TLC

Small speedboat under construction.  The Muskoka Seaflea was a type of very small boat powered by an outboard engine, inspired by hydroplanes and quite fast.  Seaflea competitions were popular in the 1970s and the ACBS wants to encourage children to participate in wooden boat building and offered some instruction at the show.

 

1949 Muskoka Mosquito, restored by the original builder's grandson in 2010

N-75 "The Specialist" racing hydroplane.  Built in 1976 and raced 1976-1997, it is currently powered by a Chevrolet 306 cu in V-8 from the early 1980s

The show featured both vintage speedboats from celebrated yards such as Ditchburn and Greavette in Gravenhurst and Minett in Bracebridge, but also a number of recent builds.  There are perhaps a dozen boatbuilders in Ontario still offering to produce a classic Muskoka speedboat with the kind of hand craftsmanship of the past but with lighter and more powerful engines.  Of course, if you have to ask how much you can't afford it!

Built in the Peter Breen yards between 2013 and 2016, "The Apprenticeship" is a copy of a 1923 design, a Hacker Rainbow III.  The modern version features a modified Chevrolet small block engine, putting out 340 hp compared to the original's 200 hp.  The boat was made using a white oak framework and a solid mahogany skin, with no veneers used at all in construction.  Castings are solid bronze, chrome-plated.  The boat is used as a sales tool to indicated to customers what the Breen yard can do.

1991 Clarion Gold Cup boat "Riot"

"Cash Injection" is a Peter Breen replica of a 1930s Ditchburn boat and was completed in 2003.  It has 500 hp!

"Gertrude," Replica of a 1900 Swampscott Dory

Along with the mega-powerful speedboats, we came across the charming "Gertrude," a replica of a c. 1900s fishing boat known as the Swampscott Dory once used in the Atlantic fishery north of Boston.  The replica was built in 2002 and features a period 1 cylinder 3 hp two-stroke gasoline motor, which has no clutch or reverse gear but is directly connected to the propeller.  "Gertrude" features a unique "Kitchen Rudder," which uses clamshells around the propeller, furnishing reverse and neutral as well as excellent maneuverability. Top speed of the boat is 5 knots.

Luckily the Corvette does not have a trailer hitch--otherwise how could I have passed up the lovely little Tom Cat hydroplane (65 hp) for $5500, including a custom trailer and cover?

A much-loved curiosity, the Amphicar was built in Germany by the Quandt Group (the same family that controls BMW!) from 1961-1967.  When production ended, 3,878 of the vehicle had been produced, most of which had been sold in the United States.  Lyndon Johnson enjoyed scaring guests with his, pretending to lose control and then driving into the lake at his LBJ Ranch.  A car of very limited performance with its Triumph Herald engine of 43 bhp, it was not a very good boat either as it was steered in the water with its front wheels so it was not very maneuverable compared to a real boat.  It has a two-lever gearbox, one lever being used to engage the twin propellers at the rear of the car in the water.  The doors locked shut for water travel.  The average price of one of these oddities is currently around US$ 68,000.

A selection of the old cars present for the show

1912 Tudhope 4-36, built in Orillia, Ontario, and one of only 2 surviving cars from that year's production.  It was built under a production license from the former principals of the E-M-F  Company, which itself had been taken over by Studebaker in 1909.  The car is on display during the winter months at the Orillia City Hall.  

Austin-Healy 3000

Founded in 1873, the Muskoka Springs Natural Spring Water, Inc., is probably the oldest continually-operating business in the Muskoka region--and has been at the same location the entire time!  In 1941, it purchased at Dodge pickup truck for deliveries and continues to use the truck to promote its Muskoka Dry brand.