The cottage itself hits all the right notes. You’re not looking for a retreat with all the bells and whistles, but a getaway that transports you back to charmingly simple summers past. And for you, laid-back living is a tenet of the cottage lifestyle.
When you contemplate how simple or rustic you want the cottage to be, you should also think about the distance you’re willing to travel to the nearest town for services such as grocery and retail stores.
You should also consider how large the nearest town needs to be to suit your wants and your lifestyle. Does it have the diversity of services you would expect? Does it have to have a supermarket with sophisticated product offerings – like gluten-free bread – or would a general store suffice? Would you be disappointed if the local coffee shop didn’t offer cappuccinos?
Although it’s important to consider the proximity of the nearest town and its service offerings, it’s also critical to plan ahead. You likely won’t find fresh curry leaves at your town’s supermarket in cottage country, but you can work around this by shopping before you leave the city.
We usually stop at the St. Lawrence Market at lunch hour on Fridays to stock up on hard-to-find or exotic ingredients.
And we’ve also learned over the years, that local food is often just as good, if not better. In fact, I know of a foodie who used to purchase meat at high-end boutique-style butchers in Toronto and haul his purchases up north. Now, however, he swears by the local butchers in the Kawarthas. In fact, he told me that Foodland in Coboconk offers an excellent selection of quality meat cuts – and the prices are reasonable.
Although you shouldn’t overlook the services on offer within the nearest town, you can usually accommodate for any gaps by planning ahead. Having access to the diverse products of the city and the quiet surroundings of the lake is just part of the beauty of dividing your time between the city and cottage country.
Photo courtesy of petmutt No Alterations Made - Creative Commons
