Valentine’s Mystery Cabin Escape makes a perfect two-night romantic adventure

TORONTO, January 30, 2023 – Rather than giving your Valentine a box of chocolates or flowers, why not really wow your loved one by taking them on a two-day mystery road trip to a surprise destination where even you don’t know exactly where you are headed. What you do know is the package includes cabin hopping with a two-night stay at two different tiny, off-the-grid cabins in the woods.

This is the premise behind the Valentine’s Mystery Cabin Hopping Adventure offered by Cabinscape. Owners John Loerchner and his wife Laura Mendes have over 35 tiny, off-the-grid cabins in the Kawartha Lakes region, Haliburton Forest and in the Ottawa Valley region. And I know you are wondering – are they heated?

“Our gorgeous tiny cabins have a propane furnace and we’ve had guests stay in one when it was minus 30 Fahrenheit and told us it was quite cozy,” says Laura Mendes. “We also provide 40 litres of water for drinking and doing dishes. The cabins have solar powered lights and an indoor composting toilet, so you don’t have to ‘go’ outside and freeze your butt off!”

The Cabinscape team will have your cabin heated and prepared for your arrival. “Our team go to the cabin ahead of your stay and turn on the heat, clear the solar panels, shovel the snow, etc. Our whole angle is adventure. We provide complimentary snowshoes at all of our cabins. For those cabins where you park your car and hike in, we provide snowshoes and a gear sled. This is a spontaneous adventure where we create a custom itinerary. We have two routes to choose from: the Ottawa Valley Route with stays in Lanark County and one night at a cabin in mountainous ranges of Calabogie. The second route is The Highlands Route with the first night stay in a cabin in The Kawarthas and then up to the Haliburton Forest Wildlife Reservation in Minden.”

Cabinscape guests on the mystery road trip are provided with a map, including GPS points and several suggested stops along the way. “We’ve designed the road trip with stops at unique local shops, family farms, historic parks and spots to discover beautiful scenery,” says Laura. “You end your day by arriving at the first cabin and spend the night. Then it’s on the road for another day of adventure culminating with a stay at a cabin in a different location for the second night.”

Guests can make the package even more special by purchasing ‘extras’ to the main package. The Irresistible Romance Kit offered at the Kawartha Lakes Region cabins include artisan products like chocolates, body Jojoba massage oil and more plus—here’s the best part—the cabin is decorated with rose petals and twinkle lights awaiting your arrival!

“In the summer we also offer Wine in the Wilderness Kits and a Charcuterie Kit,” adds Laura.

The Celebration Package is available at the Lanark County Cabins with a two-night stay at one location. The romantic package includes chocolates from Perth Chocolate Works, a bottle of wine from Grange Winery, flowers from Apropos Flowers in Perth plus a lifestyle photoshoot at the cabin!

Laura and John founded Cabinscape five-and-a-half years ago. “We were avid back country hikers and loved to go backpacking and canoeing in Algonquin Park. When our daughter was born we didn’t feel comfortable taking a baby into the back country, so we were looking for cottages or cabins in the back country, but couldn’t really find anything. We purchased a property on Sharbot Lake, built their own tiny cabin on wheels, and moved it to the property. We posted it on Airbnb and in a few weeks it sold out for the entire summer. We built a second cabin, posted it, and the same thing happened. It was then that our idea became a full-fledged business. We now have our own booking site for our 35 cabins and the company has grown from just John and I to 30 employees.”

“The design idea was to create a small and efficient base camp so people could get out and enjoy the wilderness,” says John. “Most of our cabins are located on a lake or stream so people can get out and do some hiking or paddling.”

John’s family has a background in construction (his father is an Engineer), so all of the cabins are built at their factory and moved to specific locations. “Our off-grid, solar powered cabins are environmentally sound which is core to our business,” explains Laura. “We use pine board and lots of reclaimed wood.”

John designs and helps build each of the five cabin styles and handmakes the furniture. The locations vary from private land, conservation areas and even a ski resort. Most cabins are located near a lake, and some are so remote that you have the lake all to yourself. Rather than investing in buying land, the couple chose to lease or rent the land and approached landowners with the idea of placing an eco-friendly tiny home on their property which could be moved, if necessary.

“We have three cabins with remote locations at the Calabogie Peaks Resort and although they are in the wilderness, they are within a five minute drive to the ski resort, spa and restaurant,” adds Laura. “Our cabins in Haliburton Forest sit on property that’s privately owned but offers trails, snowmobile rentals, canopy tours and more.”

The Cabinscape tag line is “Tiny Cabins, Big Adventures”. The tiny, romantic off-grid cabins in the woods offer a unique experience where you can truly get away from it all. It could just be the best Valentine’s Day present ever! For more information visit cabinscape.com.

by Laurie Wallace-Lynch

Other articles from totimes.ca – otttimes.ca – mtltimes.ca