fillorino
Initially I was struck by how beautifully the large barn-like structure of the museum blends in with it's surroundings. It is situated on high ground on the corner of Highway 89 and Airport road overlooking the rolling farm land of the escarpment region. With it's green siding and red roof and silo it looks just like a giant barn, blending in and at the same time playing with your sense of perspective. Inside it is a large, open and airy, space which includes three full sized historic structures -a log cabin, an Orange Lodge meeting hall, and a railway flagging station. The current exhibit "finding beauty in the beast", on until Dec 22, 2012 is stunning, and fills the entire museum with literally thousands of representations of animals. It's a great show for the kids, if you've got them, and well worth the approx. 1 1/2 hour trip up from Toronto. Airport road is an excellent way to come. One of the great roads of Ontario especially when the leaves are in colour. There is a second floor mezzanine which has a large collection of cornflower glass on display which is beautifully presented in cases if you are into that sort of thing. Go up the silo to the top, (elevator available) where along with the stunning panoramic view, there are changing exhibitions. There is also a well stocked and interesting gift shop.Outside the main building it is worth the time to walk around the beautifully landscape grounds, and look into the historic frame church and outbuildings which are included on the property. There are some flowers but what's interesting is that they have created what initially appears to be veggie gardens with pole beans, corn etc, but which on closer inspection are more highly considered spaces with sculptural elements interacting with plants, paths, benches etc. Very well done, and you feel that lift you experience in a well designed zen garden, if you know what I mean.They have an excellent website which is worth checking out beforehand. We like visiting museums and I would say this is one of the most impressive regional museums I have seen. There are several good restaurants in this area which you of course can find on trip advisor,