ABORIGINAL DAY

Today marks National Aboriginal Day which also coincides with the summer solstice. Hugh McKenzie, an Ojibwa Native elder, prepares for the beginning of the Sacred Sunrise Ceremony, a traditional Native ceremony to honour Grandfather Sun and the first fire of Creation, offering prayer, thanks and gratitude to the Creator.

AFTER THE RAIN

I climbed to the top of Huckleberry Rock Cut following a rainstorm in hopes of capturing photographs in its wake. When the sun emerged afterwards it created a dramatic effect, painting the surface of the rock with gold and highlighting the channels of water runoff. In the distance pockets of mist filled the valley below and valleys beyond.

YOUNG LOVE

They arrived together on his motorbike, her arms wrapped about his waist, before making their way to the end of the dock where they shared laughs and kisses, and spent quiet moments by the water. Have they known each other long before or did they recently meet and was this the budding of a summer romance, we'll never know.

LADY MUSKOKA

The Lady Muskoka cruises past a popular scene of Muskoka chairs and flowerpots at the end of the dock, on its return journey up the Muskoka River to its berth in Bracebridge. Scenic tours start on the river before reaching Lake Muskoka and its highlight of Millionaires' Row, a passage famous for its century old cottages and boathouses.

MOTHER NATURE

With her shell burnished gold by the setting sun and a watchful eye kept on me, a female snapping turtle deposits her eggs in a hole she dug in the sandy soil at the shoulder of the road. Joined by another couple who stopped to investigate, we marvelled at this display of nature, a ritual performed by these reptiles since prehistoric times.