Where do you swim near Meaford and Thornbury?

Georgian Bay, from the town beaches and harbour areas at Meaford and Thornbury, both a short drive from the house. The bay is clear and cold; it warms up through July and August and is bracing before then. There is also a hot tub on the rooftop terrace, which is a different proposition entirely.

What is there to do here in summer besides the beach?

The Georgian Trail runs flat and paved along an old rail bed between Collingwood and Meaford, which makes it good cycling for mixed abilities and families. The Bruce Trail follows the escarpment for proper hiking with a climb in it. Thornbury has the harbour and the fishway. The Beaver Valley is the best drive in the region. And this is apple country — the Apple Pie Trail runs through orchards, cider houses and farm stands.

Are long weekends harder to book?

Yes. Victoria Day, Canada Day, the August civic holiday and Labour Day are the four weekends everybody wants, and they go earliest. Minimum stays for those dates are still being set with the booking provider, so ask early and we will tell you what applies.

Is this a good summer cottage rental for several families?

It is built for it — separate sleeping wings, more than one kitchen, three distinct places to sit indoors, plus a full-length deck, a covered deck, a ground-level fire ring, a lawn and the rooftop terrace. In summer the outdoor space does most of the work, which means two households are far less on top of each other than they would be in winter.

A lit gas fire bowl and navy sectional on the rooftop terrace, with the escarpment ridge and a strip of Georgian Bay on the horizon

Summer stays

A summer rental with the bay in the morning, and the roof at nine.

Georgian Bay is a short drive one way and the escarpment is on the horizon the other. In summer the house mostly functions as somewhere to come back to — and then nobody goes inside.

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Outside: Two decks and a lawn
On the roof: Hot tub and fire
On the ground: Fire ring and pond
From Toronto: About 2¼–2½ hours

What summer here is

The day is a plan. The evening is the point.

In July the light holds until well past nine, and the whole shape of a stay here bends around that. Whatever the day was — the bay, the trail, the orchards, a hill — it ends outside, and the house gives you three separate places to do it.

There is a full-length deck off the main floor with a six-seat table on it, and a covered deck beside it for when the sun is still too much or the rain has arrived. On the ground there is a fire ring in the open, with the pond and the field beyond. And on top of the building there is the rooftop terrace: turf underfoot, glass railings, a gas fire bowl, a barbecue and a hot tub facing the ridge.

The practical effect for a group is that people spread out. Someone is swimming at four, someone is asleep in a chair, the children are on the lawn, and dinner is being cooked on the roof. That is harder to arrange in a house where the only outdoor space is one patio.

The composite deck running the length of the house with a black metal railing and fields beyond — The full-length deck, which is where breakfast happens whether or not anyone planned it.

A covered cedar deck with timber posts looking out over the pond and drive — The covered deck, for the hour after a summer storm.

The bay, and how close it is

Near the water, not on it.

Said plainly, because a lot of listings in this region are vague about it and the difference matters when you arrive.

The house is inland, on a rise, with the escarpment ridge running across the horizon and a band of Georgian Bay visible above the tree line from the roof. It is not waterfront and it is not a beach house. What it is, is a short drive from two separate stretches of shoreline in opposite directions, which in practice is more useful than being fixed to one of them.

Meaford sits west along the shore with a harbour and a town beach. Thornbury sits east with a harbour, a beach, and the fishway on the Beaver River where the trout and salmon run, which will hold a child for twenty minutes. Both are working small towns rather than resorts, which is most of their appeal.

The bay itself is clear and cold. It warms through July and August into something you can swim in for a long time, and before that it is a swim you talk about afterwards.

The area in full — towns, trails and harbours

Days worth having

Trail, orchard, valley, harbour.

The Georgian Trail: Flat, paved and traffic-free along an old rail bed between Collingwood and Meaford, running close to the shore for much of it. The best thing in the region for a group with mixed cycling abilities, and the only one where a nine-year-old and a grandparent can do the same ride.
The Bruce Trail: Follows the escarpment itself, so this is hiking with a climb and a view at the end rather than a flat path. Sections of it are within easy reach in both directions.
Apple country: This is one of Ontario’s main apple-growing areas and the Apple Pie Trail links the orchards, cider houses, bakeries and farm stands through it. A slow afternoon that ends with more food in the car than you intended.
The Beaver Valley: The valley the Beaver River runs through, inland and south. The best drive in the region in any season and an exceptional one in early October.
Thornbury and Meaford: Two harbour towns, twenty minutes apart, both with somewhere decent to eat and neither of them a resort. Thornbury has the fishway; Meaford has the harbour and the hall.
Scandinave Spa: Outdoor hot pools, cold plunges and steam in the woods below the escarpment, with a silence rule that is actually enforced. As good in August as in February, and it books out on weekends.
Golf: Several courses are within reach and we would rather name the ones worth your morning than list everything within thirty kilometres. Being checked. (detail to be confirmed)
Drive times: Measured from the gate and confirmed before publication. Everything above is described as near or a short drive because that is what we can stand behind until somebody has driven it with a clock. (detail to be confirmed)

The full front elevation at dusk: stacked charcoal steel and concrete volumes lit by warm soffit lights, with a round porthole window and a rooftop terrace above

Booking a summer week

Four weekends everybody wants.

Victoria Day, Canada Day, the August civic holiday and Labour Day are the four dates that go first, in that order of difficulty. If your summer depends on one of them, ask about it in the winter — it feels absurdly early and it is the only reliable way to get them.

Midweek in July and August is a different market entirely: usually open, usually better value, and considerably quieter everywhere you would want to go. A Tuesday on the Georgian Trail is a better experience than a Saturday on it.

Minimum stays: Long-weekend and peak-summer minimums are set with the booking provider. Ask and we will tell you what applies to your dates. (detail to be confirmed)
Summer rates: Nightly and weekly summer rates are not published yet. Send your dates and the size of the group and we will quote properly rather than approximately. (detail to be confirmed)
Group size: Confirmed on enquiry, so we can tell you exactly how the house divides for the households you are bringing. (detail to be confirmed)
What summer needs from a house: Somewhere shaded, somewhere for wet towels, a laundry, and more than one outdoor space so people can be apart. All four are here.

Ask about a summer week.

Tell us the dates and who is coming. Long weekends move early, so it is always worth asking sooner than feels necessary.

Check availability Coming with another family?

Keep reading

Summer questions

Is The Collingview on the water?: No, and it is worth being clear about that. The house sits inland on high ground with the Niagara Escarpment across the horizon and a band of Georgian Bay visible above the tree line from the roof. The harbours and beaches at Thornbury and Meaford are a short drive, not a walk. If you want water at the door, this is not the property for you.
Where do you swim near Meaford and Thornbury?: Georgian Bay, from the town beaches and harbour areas at Meaford and Thornbury, both a short drive from the house. The bay is clear and cold; it warms up through July and August and is bracing before then. There is also a hot tub on the rooftop terrace, which is a different proposition entirely.
What is there to do here in summer besides the beach?: The Georgian Trail runs flat and paved along an old rail bed between Collingwood and Meaford, which makes it good cycling for mixed abilities and families. The Bruce Trail follows the escarpment for proper hiking with a climb in it. Thornbury has the harbour and the fishway. The Beaver Valley is the best drive in the region. And this is apple country — the Apple Pie Trail runs through orchards, cider houses and farm stands.
Are long weekends harder to book?: Yes. Victoria Day, Canada Day, the August civic holiday and Labour Day are the four weekends everybody wants, and they go earliest. Minimum stays for those dates are still being set with the booking provider, so ask early and we will tell you what applies.
Is this a good summer cottage rental for several families?: It is built for it — separate sleeping wings, more than one kitchen, three distinct places to sit indoors, plus a full-length deck, a covered deck, a ground-level fire ring, a lawn and the rooftop terrace. In summer the outdoor space does most of the work, which means two households are far less on top of each other than they would be in winter.