Why I Live Here: HUNTSVILLE

Though Les Stroud made his name enduring some of the world’s harshest landscapes with only his video camera for company on TV’s Survivorman (for which new television specials are in the works), this 50-year-old doesn’t crave isolation. Stroud opened his 170-acre, off-the-grid property for public use and is launching a multimedia concert tour in which he connects his audience to the earth through film and music. Huntsville, much like this world-travelling Zoomer, blends nature and art in captivating fashion.

BY: LISA BENDALL

Nature Boy

I came out of a childhood of going up to a Muskoka cottage and falling in love with nature. I want to be around rocks and trees and water. But I discovered that, for my kids [daughter Raylan, 16, and son Logan, 14] especially, Huntsville has a lot going on. It’s beautiful and has all the infrastructure necessary. So it works for me on all levels.

More than just cottages and summer camps Huntsville has got a great arts community, which I’m really happy about. We have the Huntsville Festival of the Arts and the Algonquin Theatre. We have strong community events like Midnight Madness Sidewalk Sales and the Reel Alternatives Film Festival. So it’s got an artistic mindset and it’s surrounded by a ton of nature.

Huntsville haunts

The best morning coffee is Mugzy’s Coffee House. The Farmer’s Daughter is my lunch spot, and the Pie Iron Sandwicherie is a new restaurant that I’m loving. And for dinner, 3 Guys and a Stove; also Spencer’s Tall Trees Restaurant.

EXPERT
Twenty years ago, realtor Sher McGrath gave up a big-city lifestyle, becoming co-owner (with husband Bill) of Century 21 Cottage Country Realty in Huntsville. She’s never looked back.

“I love living here. It’s a strong, vibrant community, and it’s self-contained. There’s an awful lot to do: activities, theatre, good food. We have arts and entertainment, or you can get out into the bush … There is a place for everybody here.”

AT A GLANCE

Average home price

$276,619

Population

19,056