The Thousand Islands: United States & Canada...
July 28 - August 5, 2023
Upon leaving Kingston, Ontario, we had a chance to see Fort Henry and the Cathcart Tower. Fort Henry was built during the building of the Rideau Canal to provide protection to Canada against the United States. In later years, it was used to house prisoners during World War I. The Cathcart Tower provided a strong functionally built structure to provide this area additional protection. The thickness of the walls allowed for better protection if there should be bombardment from the United States. The appearance of the structure while crossing into the Thousand Islands was very obvious. We had to wait for a train bridge in Kingston to be raised after rush hour and then enter into the Thousand Islands. David sent me a picture as we were approaching The Thousand Island Bridge.
Thousand Island History...
The Saint Lawrence Seaway connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean over portions of Canada and the United States. After the War of 1812, the Treaty of Ghent formed a joint commission to the land boundaries between Canada and the US. The three points included:- A surveyor would count the islands in the Thousand Island area
- There would be no island that would be split between the countries which is why the line is a zig zag in some places
- The border would be 100 yards off any land mass and if this is not possible, the line would be straight down the middle.
We walked through the trails on this island and talked with other people there who gave us good information about our trip back into Canada. You can see Danny at Aubrey Island with the boat.
Danny and I, once we got to Alexandra Bay, called border protection since we were denied entrance into the US the night before. I called the previous night and the man I spoke to said I had to wake Danny up (never a good idea after 9pm) and do a zoom call with both of us on the zoom. So we do that at 11pm and he said he misunderstood and we needed to make a call when we reached the dock in the US. We could not get off the boat until we got approval. So we did that and the person says- do we have anything on the boat purchased in Canada- No. The guy, who we can't see says you are approved and hangs up. Well, how nice....we will have to call when we go back into Canada and go through their border patrol. I am interested to see what happens when we return from Canada in Michigan.
Alexandra Bay...
This area on the US side is a small town where we could walk downtown and the couple owning the marina allowed us to use their car to get to the grocery store. We also got our hair cut and the hair stylist gave us tips on places to go on Alexandra Bay and Clayton which we would visit in a couple days. The biggest attraction here is seeing the Boldt Castle and Singer Castle. Because Singer Castle was further north, we decided to go to Boldt Castle instead. We definitely made the best decision.
Boldt Castle is very close to Alexandra Bay so we were able to enjoy a visit over to Heart Island. In 1900, the Boldt family lived on Wellesley Island while George Boldt, the manager of the Waldorf Astoria, built a "summer home" for his wife. Unfortunately, before it was finished, his wife died. He walked away from the project. It wasn't until 1977 that the Thousand Island Bridge Authority took over ownership and began restoring the house over many years. On audiotape, you are told what has been done each year. There is still more work to be done. There is also a yacht house across from the home. Other property owned by George Boldt in the Thousand Islands included land for crops and livestock for the restaurant at the Waldorf Astoria. One of the things I didn't realize is when Boldt ran the Waldorf it was not located on Park Avenue, its current location. When it was torn down, the building that replace it was the Empire State Building!
I have included numerous pictures of the Boldt Castle and grounds. The dove alcove(note they were set up for a wedding); we got to see the bride having her pictures taken with a lovely tanker passing by; the power house with a connecting bridge; the beautiful stained glass ceiling in the entrance hall; a functioning Otis elevator when this was built; the "yacht" house where the doors would go up for the boat to be under cover; the house built for the Boldt family to live during the building phase (it is often called the playhouse); and the grand foyer, I took from the 2nd floor. While in Alexandra Bay(also known as A-Bay), while walking and driving through town, Danny had to stop at ACE hardware. When we pulled up, we saw an Amish carriage by us.
While the 1000 Islands is actually an extension of the St Lawrence Seaway, we saw large tankers pass on the US side as well as many boats of all different sizes and conditions. Where we stayed, the guy restored old boats. While we were there he had a 1972 Boston Whaler he was doing a complete restoration, restoring a 1965 Chris Craft Seaskip and a 1954 Bertram 33'- #1hull made (he said there are only 2 known boats of this model left and this was the 1st one built). The Bertram was built by Bertram when they were trying to start their business in building boats. Jim told me with this boat he was restoring, it had won the championship race from Miami to the Bahamas and back 7 years in a row. Mr Bertram had no seats in the boat to make it light as possible. The engines were 2 Pratt Whitney aircraft engines 1000HP. The boat would start with 10- 55 gallon drums of fuel and as it was used the barrels were thrown overboard. During the winter Jim goes on Facebook under JP Marine and you can see him working. I am going to try and remember to watch him this winter.
Other sites we saw as we travelled through the Thousand Islands included:
Princess Charlotte Island, Sunken Rock Lighthouse(looks like it is on a rock), Rock Island Lighthouse(right out on the water), Devil's Oven (with big rocks raised in the water), and Gull Island (with a house on top of rocks). There were numerous antique gorgeous wood boats we saw throughout the islands. There was a cool house sacalled Napoleon's Hat which was built in 1913.
Clayton...
Danny and I went into the Thousand Island Museum to learn more about the area. We learned that Carl Frink was the man who developed the first snow plow. The regional bus driver knew he was a tinkerer and he was asked for ideas to develop something that would make the bus continue to run by plowing snow. Frank developed a company in Clayton that stayed in business until the 1970's. Many of the patents he received are still used to this day.
- Fried strips of fatback
- Slices of sweet onion on bread
- Tossed salad with Thousand Island Dressing
- Salt potatoes
- Corn on the cob
- French toast with powdered sugar and maple syrup for dessert
The red building you see was previously the Herald Hotel and restaurant where Thousand Island dressing was concocted by Sophia Lelonde, the innkeeper in 1890's.
One of the big draws to Clayton, NY is the Antique Boat Museum. We were fortunate in our timing and decided to stay a couple days longer to go to the annual antique boat show. There were many facets to the day as we toured the museum, attended a talk by a historian for the Old Canoe Company in Maine, went on a ride on a Hackercraft with Danny and David on the back, and toured many gorgeous boats. I was surprised that the ones for sale were not more expensive than they were. Danny did tell me sitting on the back where the engine was would have been really bad had something happened in the engine. He finished the ride without a problem. They had many boats on display and a took a few pictures of a Birchwood Canoe- the real thing, a 1952 Penn Canoe, and a 1955 Christ Craft Cobra Model someone brought in for the boat show.
On Bostwick Island in Half Moon Bay, there is a church service held every Sunday at 4pm in July and August. Churches take turns providing a pastor. We went over on a tour of the island and later in the museum saw a picture of how crowded it was. Everyone stays on their boat and it is shallow! You can see the dated photo where the minister is on the far left and speaking from the pulpit. In my picture, you can see the stone which is the pulpit.
We loved the Thousand Islands and would come back here. To truly appreciate it though you would have to be on a boat, so we are very lucky and again blessed!
After another beautiful sunset!
Next up- Bay of Quinte, Canada!
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