10-Minute Milk Run: The Best Of Both Worlds

STORY WALTER FRANCZYK | PHOTOGRAPHY SANDY MACKAY

As seen in the Barrie Spring 2026 issue.

Don Robertson has just filleted his latest catch, a three-pound bass, when he stepped over to the lake to wash his knife. That’s when he spotted the thieving bandit, a dark brown mink, teeth clenched on half of his freshly cleaned bass. “He was running out of the shed with this great big fillet in his mouth,” Don recalls. “He could barely carry it. His hind legs were actually popping up in the air because of the weight of the fish fillet in his mouth.”

Don shouted at the critter to come back with his fish but quickly realized he wasn’t going to eat the bass after the mink had its teeth in it. The mischievous mink is just one of the wild creatures that share Lake Simcoe’s shoreline with Don and his wife Janin. Deer, foxes, coyotes and, in autumn, a bald eagle frequent the waterfront habitat where the Robertsons built their six-bedroom 1867 Confederation Log & Timber Frame home.

Janin found their two-acre property using her 10-minute milk run test. In retirement, she explains, she didn’t want to drive more than 10 minutes to get milk, buy groceries or gas. On a map, she drew circles around small and major towns to find a spot that suited them.

Carthew Bay, on the west side of the lake, offered the best of both worlds. It’s woodsy and rustic, just a short drive from Orillia and 90 minutes from downtown Toronto, where the couple lived and worked for more than 30 years. Some people who retire to Muskoka feel they need to keep a condo in Toronto, Janin says. “By building here, we don’t have that need. We’re close enough.”

While working in Toronto, they owned a Confederation log cottage on Pigeon Lake in The Kawarthas. “We fell in love with it. We loved the warmth. We loved the rustic feel,” says Janin.

When they began thinking of retiring, they thought they’d love to live in a larger version of their Kawartha cottage that Confederation built, but building during the COVID-19 pandemic was challenging. Just hours after they were told their building permit would be issued the next day, Ontario put a halt on all building permits, Don recalls.

Their engineered trusses mysteriously disappeared. Delays in getting windows and doors installed, cost overruns and labour shortages were all overcome. “At the end of the day things went quite well,” Don says. “We’re extremely happy with the end result.”

Janin sketched the couple’s initial plan for the home with the main floor primary bedroom, large en suite bathroom and office in a wing off the great room. On the home’s other side, she included the dining room, sunroom, kitchen, butler’s pantry and laundry. The experts at Confederation did a great job designing the home close to the sketch, says Don. “We put a lot of thought into what our needs are and what we wanted, and they were very good at listening to that,” says Janin.

For their adult children, the Robertsons built bedrooms with separate walkouts on the home’s lower level. “We want them to have the feel of having their own space,” says Janin. That ground level includes an entertainment room with a Napoleon Home Comfort wood-burning fireplace. “It really can feel like a separate space, or it could feel like part of the bigger house at the same time,” she says. All audio and video in the media room came from Simcoe Audio Video.

Don and Janin each have home offices. “Don, even in retirement, does a little bit of work on the side, so we have offices that are like havens to get away from things and putter around,” says Janin.

They relied heavily on their building contractor Steve Johnson, owner of Cedarwylde Homes Inc., to bring in subcontractors and oversee construction. “We weren’t going to be helicopter builders from Toronto hovering over the project all the time – we were largely hands off,” says Don. Confederation and Cedarwylde were very responsive throughout the construction process and had very good design ideas to tweak things, he says.

Don and Janin designed a stately home with lots of windows overlooking the lake and its beautiful sunrises. They infused it with warm wooden finishes and a cosy, rustic ambience. An engineered wire-brushed hickory hardwood, supplied by Irvine Floor & Home, covers floors in the main living areas.

Burkes Kitchens and Bath built walnut cabinets in the kitchen where Quartz Co furnished creamy Cambria countertops. All appliances were purchased at TA Appliances & Barbecues. David Shaw of The Northern Joinery custom built a walnut dinner table that can seat 14. “It’s really a spectacular piece,” says Janin. David also built an island bar top of maple.

To complement the home’s rustic character, Don found a Quebec artisan at Boivin Lampiste who created elk antler chandeliers for the great room and sunroom.

Dodds Garage Door Systems designed custom doors for the large garage, where Don likes to spend time. “They were absolutely amazing.” Dodds furnished a double door and single door for the garage front with oversize hardware and right-sized motors. The company worked with the couple to match the Confederation look with custom-designed windows and barn-style trim. Installing a third garage door at the back of the garage, facing the lake, is one of the best things they did, says Don. “Every day we go through that garage door. It was a great idea.”

Parklane Landscapes installed and supplied hardscape materials, plants and flowers. The Robertsons love their new home’s proximity to winter and summer sports. They’re members at the Braestone Club, a golf club west of Orillia. During winter, they ski at Mount St. Louis. Cross-country skiing on the lake and trails is great. Don enjoys ice fishing, hockey, scuba diving, boating and angling. He also plays baseball in Barrie. “It’s very convenient for all the things you want to do in retirement,” he says.

Bass fishing remains the elusive mink’s favourite summer hobby