Toronto Christmas Lights 2011 – 165 Benjamin Boake Trail, North York

Toronto Christmas Lights 2011 – 165 Benjamin Boake Trail, North York

I had first seen the DeSario House a few years ago. (December 2007 images)

On my current trip to Toronto, the DeSario Christmas lights were again on my ‘try-to-visit” list. I began the evening by photographing the view from the 33rd floor of Toronto’s Westin Harbour Castle Hotel. The moon was full, the winds were brisk and the temperature was at or just below the freezing point as I left the hotel and drove to Toronto’s Historic Distillery District where I photographed the lights and the stage performance of Maritimer, David Myles. Then I was off on my way to the DeSario house. The location: 165 Benjamin Boake Trail, North York, Toronto, Ontario (LOCATION)

I hadn’t traveled very far when the spectacular chandelier hanging in the archway of the Exhibition grounds caught my attention. This image is of a 22 foot long chandelier about the height of a two storey building containing 32,000 LEDS. It was designed for Toronto’s Festival of Lights by Blechere Illumination Canada and is suspended from the Prince’s Gate archway that marks the east entrance to Toronto’s Exhibition Place, home of the Canadian National Exhibition. (Location)

At this time of the year. it would be possible to stop on almost any street in Toronto and find at least a few homes where the owners have taken the time to add a few seasonal decorations to their homes and properties.

Tonight though, my destination was North York where the DeSario family have taken seasonal home decoration to a whole new level. To get there before midnight, I would definitely have to have my blinders on or else I might find myself stopping far too often to snap a shot here or a shot there along my route.

Benjamin Boake Drive is a loop and access to the best view of the DeSario home is from the Fredrick Mowat entrance onto Benjamin Boake Drive. Many other homes on the street are nicely decorated but as you turn a bend in the road it is this scene that awaits.

Although at first glance, one might see this display as one great big jumble of lights, closer examination reveals many individual scenes and thoughts.

It is hard to imagine the size of this display of lights until you are actually standing in the driveway and looking up at the displays above the roof top high above your head and stretching out in all directions at ground level.



There was no snow on the ground on the evening that I visited but, with a strong breeze blowing and temperatures hovering around the freezing point, the arrival of a bit of snow might have added even more sparkle to the experience.

Each year the DeSarios put out a collection box in front of their home.  Each year the many visitors that drop by to experience this scene collectively donate tens of thousands of dollars to help the SickKids Foundation and their support of The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

Santa wasn’t very talkative but when I bent over and whispered in his ear, he seemed to understand!

The night was still young so knowing that Santa was now well informed, I headed off to see what other lights Toronto might have to offer.

My four blog entries of my Toronto visit with about 80 images are now completed.
My first blog entry for this Toronto trip is here: Travel to Toronto, Dec. 2011
My second blog entry for this Toronto trip is here: Lowe’s Toronto Christmas Market
The DeSario home is here: DeSario home
My midnight activities are here :-): Late night