The Lake of Long and Winding Waters
Lake Kashagawigamog
The Haliburton Highlands is a vast and stunning region of Cottage Country containing more than 600 lakes. Lake Kashagawigamog is one of the largest in the area and is in fact a widening of the Drag River (formerly known as Burnt River) which flows from Drag Lake into a chain of five lakes at Head Lake and then out again at Canning Lake. It is part of the Trent-Severn Waterway system.
Kashagawigamog is the central lake in the chain, connected to Canning Lake to the west, Soyers Lake to the north, and Grass Lake and Head Lake to the east. It stretches for 16 kilometers and is located minutes from the Village of Haliburton.
The name ‘Kashagawigamog’ (pronounced “Ka-Shag-A-Wig-A-Mog”) is an Anishnaabeg name meaning “lake of long and winding waters”. The lake was an important passageway for the First Nations people, who used it when travelling to their traditional hunting grounds, and for the early European settlers who began arriving in the late 1800s.
Construction of roadways was not completed in the area until 1868 so Kashagawigamog and the adjoining Canning Lake were the first links between Haliburton and Minden with lumber being transported and delivered to the south by waterways. Kashagawigamog lies within the area known as ‘The Land Between’ and not only is it home to a diversity of species found both in the north and the south but also to a number that are unique to that area.
Kashagawigamog has the oldest cottaging history in the country and although the lake shore is well populated with cottages and resorts they are hidden from view by the dense forest which comprises of deciduous and conifer trees. Lake ‘Kash’, as it is known to many, provides endless boating and is famous for its trout fishing. Its north end is popular for bass and walleye, and it’s said the muskie here are much larger, fighting fish making fishing for them particularly challenging.
Situated deep in the heart of Cottage Country, Lake Kashagawigamog provides all those who land on its shores with a taste of paradise.
by Moira Gale
Photo Credit Bonnie View Inn
