Building Bridges between East and West through Education and Cultural Exchange
Album: Thousand Islands of Ontario, Canada
Photos here were from our tour that started in Kingston, Ontario. Thousands of islands are scattered through a 100 km or so of the St Lawrence River that flows out of Lake Ontario through Quebec and into the Atlantic Ocean. The international border between Canada and the USA is drawn down the middle of this river, defining many of the islands as Canadian and others as American.
We enjoyed about four hours on this cruise.
Click on the first photo below to view the 30 photos in large format.
The red dot identifies Kingston… a very historic city… and the start of our cruise through the Thousand Islands. (Map by MapPoint)
For about a 100 miles downstream, the river is full of islands. Our cruise was from Kingston to Gananoque and return. (Map by MapPoint)
Kingston owes its existence to the waterway and the international drama of British colonialism and American independence.
The cruise event started off rather wet and drippy. This is 2 pm… and we wonder if more exposure to water was a good idea.
The weather is misty but we are inside, dry, and entertained by a running commentary on the history and geology of this area.
We were a bit skeptical of the thousand islands idea… then started discovering how easy it might be to count a host of them.
Our weather was still rather dull when we got to the top end of our run. We turned to return at the town of Gananoque, seen here in the distance.
Over the years, the settlers moved in… probably known originally as squaters. Today, most islands are privately owned while others are national parks.
Our cruise vessel was comfortable. Two decks were protected from the elements.
And the sun did come out at last… lovely.
Refreshments were available. We enjoyed chatting with people from the Carribean, Asia, and points much closer.
Many of us took to the upper deck.
The St Lawrence is one of the world’s busiest commercial waterways. But, shipping lanes are far from us here… back behind a string of islands.
Yachts at bay, let’s say.
Hmmm… almost as big as us…
Some of the settlers found just a bit of rock to call home.
“Showing the flag” has the value of keeping one’s directions straight. We are heading homeward here… westward… with Canada to the North.
Canada owns the majority of the islands, but the Americans have the larger ones. Allows us both to have something to feel good about.
Hmmm… I wonder if they call this their cottage?
Frontier living… at its best.
I’d certainly be happy to call this little gem my cottage.
Closer to Kingston, we got a view of Fort Henry, a national historic site. Built by the British about the time of the War of 1812.
And, closer yet to our return to harbour, we can view the Kingston Canadian Forces training base.
Back in Kingston… we enjoy a stroll along the historic waterfront.
And mainly for the benefit of grandson Matthew, a good view of a real (but retired) steam locomotive.
