Gardener's Cottage

This is a favourite house in the Beaches neighbourhood. It was built in 1901-02 by Kew Williams on land his father Joseph owned. Built from two kinds of stone in Queen Anne Style, its charm comes from the two-storey rounded tower and the shapely veranda that wraps around two sides of the home. When you stand on the veranda, you can look south to the boardwalk and Lake Ontario beyond, and it seemed like a perfect place for Sandy to lodge herself in her agitated stage near the end of the book.

For more info, visit this link and scroll down to the section titled "The Quaint Kew Gardener's Cottage." There’s also lots more information there to read about the neighborhood in general.

http://www.beachesliving.ca/pages/index.php?act=landmark&id=1

Glen Stewart Ravine

This is a deep gash of beautiful wilderness in the middle of the Beaches. Houses surround the upper edges of the ravine, and several sets of stairs near Kingston Road lead down to its bottom where tiny Ames Creek rambles. There are many native plants that grow on the steep slopes, some quite rare to Toronto. Sandy and Dan enter the ravine from Beech Avenue, descend the stairs and follow the path beside the creek out to where the parkland opens and leads south to Queen Street.

The link below maps the location of the ravine and suggests a beautiful walking route you can take that leads right down to Lake Ontario.

http://www.toronto.ca/parks/brochures/walks/DW_Eastern.pdf

Ashbridge’s Bay Park

This park was created in the 1970s by filling in the lake with excavated material from development sites around Toronto. Boats fill the popular marina, walking paths allow great views of the lake and the downtown skyline, and beaches and picnic tables beckon. Two hundred years ago, the marshy lands nearby were home to loons, wild geese and wild swans. Swans are still regular visitors to the calm waters near the marina. Sandy comes here often to watch the lake and look for the condominium tower her father designed.

The link below gives you a little history of Ashbridge’s Bay Park.

http://www.toronto.ca/parks/parks_gardens/ashbridge2.htm