Second-generation Fernleigh Lodge owner Kevin Phillips shares stories of growing up on Kashwakamak Lake, the evolution of the lodge, and how lake life has changed over the decades.
There’s something about certain places that stays with you.
Not because they’re flashy.
Not because they’ve remained frozen in time.
Not because they’ve remained frozen in time.
But because they hold memories.
Generations of them.
For Kevin Phillips, Kashwakamak Lake has never just been a destination. It’s been the backdrop to an entire lifetime of stories, relationships, and change.
Long before he became the second-generation owner of Fernleigh Lodge, Kevin first arrived at the lake as a young boy from Ohio, making the long drive north with his family in the late 1950s. What began as family vacations eventually became something much bigger—a life rooted in the rhythms of the lake and the community built around it.
And over the decades, he’s watched that community evolve in ways few people have had the chance to witness firsthand.
🌊 A Different Kind of Lake Life
When Kevin first came to Kashwakamak, the lake looked very different than it does today.
The cottages were small.
Many didn’t even have running water.
Most of the lakefront was made up of simple fishing lodges catering to American tourists looking to unplug and spend time outdoors.
Many didn’t even have running water.
Most of the lakefront was made up of simple fishing lodges catering to American tourists looking to unplug and spend time outdoors.
It was a slower pace. Simpler, but harder in many ways too.
Guests stayed on what was known as the “American Plan,” where meals were provided by the lodge and guides would line up at the docks every morning in white shirts, ready to take visitors out fishing for the day. Wooden boats. Iceboxes in the cabins. Shore lunches cooked over open fires.
It wasn’t polished.
But it was memorable.
And for Kevin, those early years shaped not only his connection to the lake, but his understanding of what people were really looking for when they came there.
Not luxury.
Connection.
Building a Life Around the Lake
In 1981, Kevin and his parents officially purchased Fernleigh Lodge.
At the time, the area was already beginning to change. Many of the old lodges around the lake were being sold off, divided into lots, and transformed into private cottages.
Over time, those modest seasonal cabins evolved into larger four-season homes, and a new generation of lake residents began arriving.
And Kevin adapted alongside it.
What started as running a lodge gradually expanded into construction, marina services, gas sales, boat storage, and renovations—each piece evolving in response to what the community needed.
Because if there’s one thing Kevin understands, it’s this:
Places survive when they evolve with the people around them.
🏡 More Than a Business
Listening to Kevin talk about Fernleigh Lodge, it becomes clear very quickly that this has never been just a business.
It’s a lifestyle.
A gathering place.
A piece of the lake’s identity.
From the restaurant and marina to the small store stocked with local maple syrup, ice cream, and essentials, Fernleigh has become woven into the rhythm of summer on Kashwakamak.
Families return year after year.
Kids who once came as visitors now bring their own children back.
Kids who once came as visitors now bring their own children back.
And while the cottages may be more modern now—with full kitchens, furnaces, and year-round amenities—the feeling people are searching for hasn’t changed all that much.
They’re still looking for a place to slow down.
To reconnect.
To spend time together.
Adapting Without Losing What Matters
One of the most interesting parts of Kevin’s story is how intentionally he’s navigated change over the years.
When tourism shifted, he diversified.
When lake ownership evolved, he adapted the business.
When COVID changed travel patterns, he pivoted again—expanding marina services, boat storage, and supporting a growing Canadian clientele.
When lake ownership evolved, he adapted the business.
When COVID changed travel patterns, he pivoted again—expanding marina services, boat storage, and supporting a growing Canadian clientele.
But throughout all of it, there’s been a clear understanding that while businesses need to evolve, some things are worth protecting.
The shoreline.
The pace of life.
The experience of being on the lake itself.
The pace of life.
The experience of being on the lake itself.
Because for Kevin, the real value of Kashwakamak has never been about the buildings.
It’s about what people feel when they’re there.
✨ The Kind of Place That Creates Memories
Some of Kevin’s favourite memories still come from the earliest days on the lake.
Fishing all day in wooden boats with local guides.
Watching the water.
Learning patience.
Sharing shore lunches.
Watching the water.
Learning patience.
Sharing shore lunches.
And now, decades later, he sees new families creating those same kinds of moments in different ways.
Kids trading screens for paddle boats and swimming docks.
Families gathering around campfires.
People rediscovering what it feels like to simply be present.
Families gathering around campfires.
People rediscovering what it feels like to simply be present.
As Kevin put it during the conversation, if someone can’t relax here… it’s probably their own fault.
Because places like this still offer something many people are searching for:
Space to breathe.
Looking Toward the Future
Even after decades at Fernleigh Lodge, Kevin isn’t interested in standing still.
He talks openly about the future—about health and wellness, creating intentional experiences, and continuing to adapt to what people need from lake life moving forward.
Not bigger.
Not louder.
Just more meaningful.
And maybe that’s what makes stories like this resonate so deeply.
They remind us that success doesn’t always look like expansion for the sake of expansion.
Sometimes it looks like preserving something special while allowing it to grow thoughtfully over time.
What This Really Means
When Diana Cassidy-Bush sat down with Kevin Phillips for this episode of The Country Club podcast, the conversation wasn’t really about cottages or even business.
It was about legacy.
About the places that shape us.
The communities we build over time.
And the importance of protecting the things that help people feel connected—to nature, to family, and to each other.
The communities we build over time.
And the importance of protecting the things that help people feel connected—to nature, to family, and to each other.
Because in a world that moves faster every year, places like Kashwakamak Lake remind us of something simple:
Sometimes the best things in life aren’t the ones rushing forward.
They’re the ones worth returning to.