Steamboat History in Muskoka
The Port Carling Wall is a photo mosaic that contains 9028 photos. The size of the wall is 111 feet by 45 feet. When the wall is viewed from a distance, the photos create an image of the RMS Sagamo passing through the Port Carling locks in 1922. The RMS Sagamo was one of many steamboats that navigated Lake Muskoka, Lake Rosseau and Lake Joseph since the late 1800's.
One of the first steamboats on the Muskoka lakes was the Wenonah which was launched on Muskoka Bay in 1866. The 1920's, the steamboat industry flourished due to increasing tourism in Muskoka. Resorts on the lakes in Muskoka relied on the steamboat to bring their guests. Muskoka was still remote and had a lack of paved roads.
The decline of steamboats on the Muskoka lakes began in 1929 with "Black Tuesday" and the beginning of the great depression. In Muskoka, businesses closed, tourism declined and many resorts closed due to the lack of tourists. Roads in Muskoka were also upgraded to asphalt at this time which made it easier to travel by the automobile.
Today, there is one remaining steamboat that navigates the Muskoka lakes. It's the RMS Segwun. The Segwun is the oldest operating steam driven vessel in North America. It was built in 1887 and has several daily cruises from June to October.
To log this cache:
1. You'll see a blue plaque on the wall. To the left of the plaque there's a photo with people sitting in front of a house. Including that photo, count 13 photos towards your left and then count 1 photo down. Tell me what 5 digit number you see on that photo and what the number is on.
2. Including that photo with the 5 digit number, count another 5 photos to your left and up 2 photos. Describe what kind of boat you see in that photo.
3. Take a photo to prove you were there. Take a photo of yourself (your face does not have to be visible) point/touch your favourite individual photo that's on the wall. Your photo must be uploaded with your log to prove that you were there.
4. Bonus Question (Not required to log the cache as a find.) What Canadian movie featured the Port Carling wall in a scene and what famous Canadian musician had a cameo appearance in the movie as a cancer survivor?
(To log this cache, you must include your photo with your found it log. Photos sent through email or through a geocaching message do not count. Even if you're with another geocacher that posts a photo, every individual geocaching account that logs a find must include a photo. The same photo is okay. If your log does not include a photo, your found it log will be deleted.)
Send the answers to the questions above to the cache owner.
Log your find after answering the questions and be sure to include your qualifying photos with your log. If issues arise with your photos or answers, you will be contacted. Note: Spoilers or logs without qualifying photos will be deleted!
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.
