GOING EAST...NIAGARA AND ST. LAWRENCE RIVER

ON OUR WAY...

It is early on September 13, having closed the cottage and said our good-byes to family and friends, we are heading east.  After hours of research on traveling across the boarder with an RV and selectively packing food for the trip, our crossing at Port Huron was very simple.  I read so many stories of RVs being searched and food confiscated so I was very anxious, but after being asked a few simple questions, we were on our way through Canada.

The first destination was Niagara Falls, Ontario and a small campground on the Niagara River.  It is  adjacent to a 30 mile bike path connecting Lakes Ontario and Erie through Niagara, perfect for us.  In the 3 days we were there, we road 116 miles, seeing the Falls, the village of Niagara-On-The- Lake, Ontario and the Welland  Canal.

This is a lake freighter easing into the 3rd lock at the Welland Canal.  It is exciting being so close to the ships at the viewing area.  The bike route follows the ships along their journey skirting Niagara Falls.  For anyone who is really curious, there is a web site called boat nerds which tracks every freighter on the Great Lakes.

Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario is a sweet little town at the northern end of the bike path sitting on the shores Lake Ontario featuring boutiques, coffee shops, and Fort George.  Best to go in the off season when the caravan of bus tours are at a minimum.

Both Fort George and Fort Erie played an important part of the War of 1812 and worth the tour.

Everyone's favorite soldier!

SEAWAY TRAIL and THOUSAND ISLANDS

The yellow line follows the LakeOntario shoreline, up The St. Lawrence and over to Acadia Nation Park. (our route)

Road RT 12 follows the southern shore of Lake Ontario through a  country side of rolling apple orchards, wineries and small villages to the Thousand Islands at the mouth of the St. Lawrence Seaway.  This is such a unique destination for many reasons.  There are over 1800 islands, but the definition of an island is as follows... It must be at least 3 feet across, be above water for 365 days a year, and have at least one tree growing on it.  Having said that, there are islands with just the 1 tree, some with mansions, a few with little private retreats, and a couple with "castles" such BOLT and SINGER.

Bolt Castle is the place which put this area on the map in the 19th century when millionaires emerged from the Industrial Revolution searching for a summer place in upper New York.  George Bolt managed the Waldorf Astoria and his business partner was John Jacob Astor.  Yes, the same Astor family who started the fur business at Mackinaw Island, but this Mr. Astor tragically died on the Titanic.  Bolt built his castle for his wife, but she passed at age 42 before it was finished.  Mr. Bolt was devastated and work stopped immediately. The family never returned to their beautiful home and      it sat abandoned for over 70 years. Bolt Castle is  in now being restored, but with only 6 rooms completed and many more to go, the process will take decades. The outside is impressive, along with the gardens, however don't expect to see anything like the Vanderbilt's Biltmore inside.

One of the few rooms restored at Bolt.

Most of the interior looks like this.

This is a 1- tree island and I suspect it might be for sale.  With a little imagination, a "castle" could be erected in some fashion as you will see in some of the following pictures.

Several large mansions on these individual islands were built by business tycoons from the past and each one has a story.  When we took a boat tour of the area, the narrator gave us a history lesson about the islands and who built the homes on them. The excursion was so enriching.

I included a sample of island homes, grand and modest, and also a little caption about the Thousand Island area.

The St. Lawrence Seaway flows out to the Atlantic Ocean and it is the way lake freighters enter the Great Lakes.

The St. Lawrence is the cleanest river in the world at 95% pure.  Bottled water has to be at least 92% pure.  This is due to the rock bottom and the current flowing at 2 miles per hour.

Most island homes are powered by generators and have tanks to collect waste.  A waste collector does 2 or 3 time during the summer.

The islands are actually the tops of mountains and melting glaciers created the St. Lawrence River.   The river can be very shallow but also can be up to 300 feet deep in some areas.

Nearly all homes are seasonal.

There are no tides on the river and very little wave action, and it does completely freeze during the very cold winters.

This property is unique because the island on the left is in Canada and the smaller island on the right is in the United States.  They are connected by their cute little bridge.  The line between the US and Canada winds around the many islands.

There is a turnover of properties with an average 2000 sq. home priced around $450,000.  The taxes are high because you just don't have lake "front", but you have lake circumference.  That same house would sell for over one million on a Canadian island.  This is the  southern "warm" area for that country.




SINGER CASTLE

Now this is a real castle actually built in medieval style and patterned after a castle described in Sir Walter Scott's WOODSTOCK novel.  The home was built by Fredrick Bourne who was the 5th president of the Singer Machine Co. and actually has been occupied until fairly recently.  Mr. Bourne, like many of his contemporaries, had another home on Jekyll Island, SC.

Entry hall and greeting area.

This dining room has a portrait in the wall with the eyes removed so the guests could be viewed by the servants.

The entire home is filled with hidden passages so Mr. Bourne and his guests would not see the servants moving about the house.

Sun room.  Every room has natural light and a view of the river.

Denny with Mr. Bourne.  They could be brothers!

The BOLT CASTLE is magnificent for its size, but the SINGER CASTLE is much more interesting historically and architecturally.

We are continuing our trip and the next stop is Acadia National Park, near BarHarbor, Maine.

See you there!