A colleague of mine is coming to TO in mid May with his missus for a conference. They're going to have a bit of a holiday too. They're outdoorsy types (biking, canoeing etc). Any ideas on places they can go within reasonable striking distance of TO? He's mentioned taking a trip to Sudbury, so that gives an idea of how far they are prepared to travel.

Algonquin. Tent. Canoe. Can get details of outfitter from child who does this all year.

bit cold to camp in may for me anyway, but algonquin also has a few resorts which are meant to be really nice - can go for day hikes and come back to the spa (more my speed).

if they're headed for sudbury (not that I would recommend it particularly) then Killarny is beautiful with many good trails.

kingston is also quite pretty in May and visitors I've had have really liked the 1000 islands cruises that you can catch from the waterfront at the foot of princess street.

Killarney's better if you can sail in. A charter in Georgian Bay in May might be, er, edgy.

In may...bring bug repellent. Lots of it!

Hiking on the Bruce Trail (ending up at Peter's Cellar in Mono Centre..not sure if it is still going), the lift locks in Peterborough, hiking on the Bruce Trail near Milton all come to mind.

Tobermory.

This year cross-country skiing might be the best bet for May.

It is. I was there last night. It's still horsey, snobby, cliquey and Wayne's still flaming. Ideally one should arrive in a pink Range Rover carrying the latest opus from some antipodean long shot for the Booker. Don't order the venison as it's farmed and not very good value at a little over $30.

Sounds jolly. Is the beer any good?

I haven't been since about 1993 and back then it was run by an Australian guy called Peter. He had an absolutely stunning looking lady from France as the bartender in the basement. I've eaten meals on the main level a couple of times and it was good (not cheap though).

I seem to recall they had a good selection of beer downstairs, although a lot of it was bottled and I prefer mine cask conditioned.

Not sure who Wayne is.

Is that you dbd in the kilt in the picture www.monocliffsinn.ca/pub.html

King Pilsner, Wellington Dark, Creemore on tap. Lots of Australian, maybe only Australian, wines. The vibe is faux Aussie, in the manner of an Oirishy pub. The "barkeep" is actually from Brighton but, by all accounts, does down under well. A fair few single malts, not like the Feathers but enough for a tasting. It's a nice enough pub but, my God, are the people there up themselves - easily the most snobbish place in which I've lowered the tone.

Yes, the Caledon horsey set can be quite insufferable.....or is it too far for them to travel.....is there a similar horsey set further north.

There is a pub like that in King City that can be quite snooty.

Wayne is the bar tender downstairs, perhaps in another life he'll be a stunning looking woman. Upstairs is run by a vast Irish woman, exotic name, escapes me for the moment. There's a largish room, perhaps 50 covers, nicely set out without crowding, we had dinner there last night for about $100each then went downstairs. At the back there's a private room, the "Maclaren" I think, which the locals frequently step into, presumably to share a joint.

[QUOTE=dbd33;]King Pilsner, Wellington Dark, Creemore on tap. Lots of Australian, maybe only Australian, wines. The vibe is faux Aussie /QUOTE]

Why would anyone want to pretend to be Aussie?

King pilsner is good though.