About

The Big Rock at Lost Bay Lake Aug 2010

Lost Bay Lake, part of the Gananoque River, is located between Charleston Lake and Gananoque on the St. Lawrence River in the Thousand Islands area. In the early 1950′s, Fergus O’Connor, my grandfather, bought what had been a 600 acre working maple syrup farm. My uncle, Mike O’Connor, still makes maple syrup there. The farm included about 2 kilometres of shoreline; basically the entire northern shore of the lake. Though, it’s not geologically classified as a lake – this fact has protected it from development by resort developers who search geographic databases for lakes.

It’s also part of the Frontenac Arch Biosphere. According to Transat, “Located midway between Montreal and Toronto, the Frontenac Arch region covers an area of more than 2,700 square kilometres, extending along the St. Lawrence River and Valley and encompassing the ridge that connects the Canadian Shield and the Adirondack Mountains of New York State. Known for its unique migration route and biodiversity, it is often described as the “backbone” of eastern North America. The region is home to all five types of forest found on the eastern part of the continent, and its vast ecosystem includes plant and animal species rarely encountered in other regions of Canada – among them the rue anemone and the black rat snake, Canada’s largest reptile.”

I’ve been lucky to be able to visit Lost Bay Lake every year since I was born. It’s the most beautiful place in the world!