A 'Mini-Vacation' in the Thousand Islands - June 20 2011

Ber and I took our annual jaunt to the Kingston/Gananoque area recently. It is only a few hours drive from home, but we take advantage of coupons offered by area motels and restaurants and have a relaxing overnight in that very picturesque area. This year we had perfect weather - warm and sunny - as we started the scenic drive toward the little town of Gananoque. We arrived before noon and strolled along the riverfront park, wandering through the tourist shops and indulging in a not-so-healthy lunch - a picnic table by the water provided the perfect spot for our take-out fish and chips in a slightly greasy newspaper wrapping. Mmmmm - it sure tasted good, but then we had to take a long walk to work off the calories!
By mid afternoon we had checked into our motel - basic place but clean and fairly spacious, with a lovely outdoor pool. After changing into swim gear and gathering books and bottles of water, we made ourselves comfortable on the lounge chairs and whiled away the time until our next meal.
The nearby Lobster Trap restaurant was our choice for dinner - we have never had a bad meal there! The ambiance is strictly lobster-trap style - nets, traps, fish type decor, and the service is good, but the meals are wonderful! We both chose the stuffed sole with garlic mashed potatoes and fresh vegetables, and of course I can never turn down Turtle Cheesecake..... we were well fed. Back in our room we watched some tv, read for a while, and turned in for the night. The bed wasn't quite as comfortable as those on the cruiseships, but not too far off, and we had a good night's sleep.
Following breakfast in the morning, we checked out and headed across the border to upper New York State, where we drove to Alexandria Bay and bought tickets for a tour of the islands, getting a pretty send off from the local wildlife :

It was a beautiful sunny day, and although the tour boat was nothing fancy, it had an open upper deck where we sat and pretended to be on a cruise - they actually did have a small bar area, but very limited selection, and very expensive - no duty free here! So we sat in the sun and just enjoyed the tour.
When asked exactly how many islands were in this group, the guide couldn't give an exact number, but he did give the definition of 'an island'. It must have at least one tree and must stay above water all year long. Perfect example:

There were so many really, really expensive homes on these privately owned islands - just imagine having the money to buy, and then maintain, these places!

The entertaining tour guide (cruise director?)was able to tell us who owned many of the homes, their claims to fame, and how much the places were worth. Boldt Castle of course is the highlight,

being built as a gift for a much loved wife - the island in fact was originally known as Hart Island, and Mr Boldt changed the spelling to 'Heart' - throughout the castle are monograms consisting of a large B surrounded by a heart shape, as in this huge dome window. The story goes that before construction was completed, Mrs Boldt died unexpectedly, and an immediate stop work order was issued - Mr Boldt and the two children never visited the site again, and it sat unfinished for many years. Finally the state took it over and are in the process of completing the work, furnishing it as it would have been done by Mrs Boldt.
Almost as spectacular as the castle is the 'Boat house' -

the family racing boats were kept here, a maintenance and repair shop, and crew quarters were part of it.



Then or course we saw more 'affordable' homes on islands -

affordable for somebody, but not us!
It was nice to see that some ordinary people could manage island ownership - if you had gotten into the market many many years ago.
We saw the ideal place for Joanne - this island owned by a Dutch family, or two islands actually, with a bridge connecting them - the international border cuts right between them, with the house on the Canadian side of the river, and the other smaller island on the U.S. side - I guess you could build a small shed on the U.S. land and spend 6 months in each county to manage your citizenship status.

After landing back at Alexandria Bay, we stayed on the U.S. side of the river and drove that scenic route back to Odgensburg - the next border crossing, through Amish territory with occasional sightings of horse drawn buggies. I know they don't like to have their photos taken, but I couldn't resist this one!

The real story is that a young girl hopped from the wagon carrying a large thermos jug, and went into McDonald's to fill the jug with water and ice. Guess this was the closest parking spot, across the street, but I thought it was cute.
And so the afternoon came to an end as we crossed back into Canada - it's only half an hour from Odgensburg to our place, and we were home before dark.
And it felt like we'd been gone for days, so that made it seem like a lovely little holiday!