It’s 8:45 a.m. and I’m on my cruiser, enjoying the cool breeze off Lake Simcoe as I cycle the short ride to my 9 a.m. pickleball court time.
An early start to savour the shade this morning, before the summer sun rises over the trees; a moment to myself before the regulars arrive. A woodpecker next door imitates the pop of a pickleball off the paddle, and the waves fall against the sandy shore as I wipe the morning dew from the benches and get the net adjusted. It’s going to be a marvellous day.
The games begin, punctuated with our share of unforced errors and miracle shots, good-natured ribbing and a chance to play with and against everyone in the group. Until tomorrow then, as we depart to enjoy the rest of the day. Heading home, I stop at our local grocery store, pick up a few essentials and head home for a hearty, well deserved breakfast.
A quick change from court clothes to bathing suit, and I’m ready for the afternoon. I’ll spend a relaxing afternoon at the resort pool or on a boat outing with friends —either option is perfectly divine to enjoy the midsummer afternoon sun. This is resort life. This is Friday Harbour life.
Five years ago, with one year of retirement under my belt, it was time to consider a move outside the city. I was ready for a more serene environment, less traffic, less noise and cleaner air. The search began. A perfect little cottage on Georgian Bay, perhaps. A little fixer upper, a natural yard teeming with wildflowers and welcoming neighbours. The charming township of Tiny presented some enticing options, but nothing seemed quite right.
After several unsuccessful trips north with my real estate agent, he convinced me to give Friday Harbour a chance. I knew very little about it. I understood it was just over an hour north, but had no real concept of the place. Just east of Barrie, I recall, but no clear idea exactly where. I was in for an awakening.
It’s 2019, near the end of March. It’s rainy, sometimes sleeting, a brisk, bone-chilling wind, and we are on our way to Friday Harbour, to see what the fuss is all about. On this unlikeliest of early spring days, I fell in love.
As we turned off Big Bay Point Road, the Friday Harbour sign welcomed us to the resort. The cloudy, drizzly day cast an impressionist pallor onto the scene in front of me. A golf course, still dotted with patches of snow, a pond with geese resting in the open water and the expansive fairway reaching up to the hilltop clubhouse in the distance. I felt the stress of the treacherous, icy journey north evaporate in that moment.
This was just the beginning. The entry to Friday Harbour is through a Nature Preserve, a couple of kilometres of winding, country road, banked by towering firs and hardwoods on both sides. And you come out on the other side to what can only be described as a modern, waterside village. The residences: condos, townhomes, with floor to ceiling windows, large balconies, all oriented to take in the best views of the marina and lake beyond! It’s both unexpected and intriguing. Even on this cold grey day, it’s breathtaking.
We made our way to the Promenade, the walkway that fronts the marina, where a few retailers have taken up residence — including an LCBO and a Starbucks. But on this cold, wet afternoon, the Promenade is barren and we are the lone pedestrians. We make our way to the Welcome Centre, where an enthusiastic representative is eager to provide us with the ambitious vision of the current and future of Friday Harbour. An amphitheatre, racquets academy, the members-only Lake Club, more retailers, and access to virtually every outdoor activity you can imagine, from fat bikes to paddle boards, kayaks to snowshoes. Something for everyone.
Needless to say, this seemed all too good to be true. How did I not know about this place?
The conversation turned to the current available units, in a building that was scheduled to begin construction “soon.” It would be three years until it was ready. Time enough to wrap my head around this, I thought. I put a unit on hold. I had a week to firm up the purchase and set my future course. A week later, I’m headed north again to firm up the deal. The weather hasn’t improved much, although it’s less icy than the week before. But before I sign on the dotted line, there is a resale unit I need to check out first.
It’s a stacked condo, almost 1,600 square feet, with a view to die for. It’s completely empty, the owner having bought it as an investment, an assignment sale. I jumped at the chance to expedite my move and begin enjoying this active community paradise sooner than later.
Sixty days later, I’m moving. It was a whirlwind to sell my city house, shed unneeded garden equipment and extraneous furniture, but it was done. Now, I can begin to have the serene outdoor lifestyle I’ve been waiting for.
In the first few months of life at Friday Harbour, I met dozens of people, and a robust social schedule formed soon after. Happy hour on a neighbour’s balcony, dinner with some new friends, wine Wednesday chitchats. Walks on the boardwalk and bonding at the pool became the norm in no time. Quite a change from only knowing my city neighbours to wave hello to as I walked past their house.
Of course, the community was just in its fledgling years. The Lake Club was not yet built and the entertainment space, which is now the focal point for the community on the CIBC Pier, not yet established. There was only one restaurant other than the Beach Club, and quite a lot of open space, designated for future development.
It was easy to fall into the tempo of the resort, where Tuesdays and Sundays felt like Fridays and every day offered the possibility of a new adventure.
And then COVID-19 brought life at the resort to a standstill. Our chats were outside in a circle, at a distance, and cautious. Here we were in our little bubble and in time, small gatherings began to take shape again. Overall, it was probably one of the safest places in the country to weather that storm.
Development continues at Friday Harbour. Since I arrived, two condo buildings were built and populated, with a third under construction, to be ready for occupation in spring 2025. Our fantastic Lake Club, with its organic vibe and spectacular views of the harbour, has become a busy hub of activity, featuring game nights, entertainment on weekends, and a very popular brunch scene.
The CIBC Pier has animated the scene with live music on stage every weekend, and the Promenade continues to evolve with shops and restaurants.
In five years, we have come so far as a community and with a racquet academy, more restaurants, shops and additional condos down the road, the possibilities for the Friday Harbour community know no bounds.
Visitors are welcomed to our community here on the lake. Every weekend, we see guests from all over southern Ontario taking in the ambience, enjoying the music, and dining on the outdoor patios. Holiday weekends seem the busiest, especially those evenings when fireworks light up the sky. Special events throughout the year draw from far and wide: the Hallowalk in October and the tree-lighting ceremony in late November are particularly popular.
Each year, Friday Harbour welcomes more and more visitors to this distinctive community. I have no doubt that many of those visitors are destined to be my future neighbours.
Friday Harbour is located in Innisfil, on Lake Simcoe's Big Bay Point, just a little over an hour north of Toronto.
