Tag Archives: history

Geek alert!

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elevation changes between the Great Lakes

Only two full days in the Niagara area, and the best-weather day will be at the Falls. What to do on the other?

A question came up in the car on our drive from Toronto to St. Catharines, Ontario, where we are staying in the Niagara region: If the Great Lakes Waterway connects the five Great Lakes, allowing navigation from the westernmost lake, Superior, to the easternmost lake, Ontario, and on through the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Atlantic Ocean, how do ships bypass the falls on the Niagara River? The Niagara is the natural connection between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. [Is it just us, or do other people have conversations like this in the car? A friend just shakes her head when I tell her these things and admonishes, “This is what happens when engineers intermarry.”]

ship entering Lock 3

Marcus had read that there is a manmade canal across the Niagara isthmus that was built to handle maritime traffic. I checked the road map. Sure enough: The Welland Canal connects the two lakes.

Why had I never heard of this canal? With its eight locks, it descends the Niagara escarpment from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario—100 meters* overall. It is the greatest elevation change between any two adjacent Great Lakes. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a canal that drops 100 meters over 43 kilometers in length. How is that possible? Guess where we’re going on our extra day? 

*Note: We’re in Canada now, so I’m using metric units. If Jimmy Carter had had his way, the US would be using the metric system today, just like our neighbors to the north and almost everyone else everywhere. As it is, we are one of only three countries in the world that insist on using “traditional” units, the other two being Burma and Liberia. Seriously? [Sorry. Rant over.]

front gate of the lock holding back water

 

back gate closing behind ship

It turns out that the Welland Canal is the town line between St. Catharines and Niagara-on-the-Lake, so we didn’t have to drive far. We arrived at Lock 3 just as a ship was pulling in from the Lake Erie side. And it just barely fit! We stayed to watch the whole process, until the ship was on its way at the lower level to Lock 2 an hour and a half later.

maneuvering out of the lock at the lower level

After checking out the Welland Canal Museum, which is very conveniently located at Lock 3 and very well curated, we drove up the Niagara escarpment to Locks 4, 5, and 6. This is the steepest part of the grade, and the three locks–one right after another–climb the escarpment like watery steps. 

Locks 4, 5, and 6 (courtesy of Google Earth)

Kudos to the engineers who built all four of the Welland Canals, from the original canal with its 40 manual locks in 1829 to the current canal utilizing eight hydraulic locks in 1932.

#turbanup

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Yonge-Dundas Square

On our last day in Toronto, we wanted to get out and walk this city we’ve grown to love. Normally when we stay in one location for a week, we take at least one day off from exploring to catch up on laundry, pay bills, and generally take a break from sightseeing. But something about Toronto draws us outdoors. Perhaps it’s the compact size. Toronto is a very walkable city, especially from the location of our apartment in Church-Wellesley—almost downtown, yet with the feel of a quiet suburb. We love discovering the personalities of each of Toronto’s neighborhoods from our hub. And after living in our quiet little hamlet of Stuart for most of the year, the city offers such variety. We feel like kids in a candy store! Or perhaps it’s the amazing weather we’ve had this week. Who could sit indoors when the sunshine beckons from our floor-to-ceiling windows?

We didn’t really have a destination, so we headed toward the Harbourfront, where we seem to end up in our wanderings every day anyway. It was an overcast Sunday—not much going on as we headed downtown, except for a queue snaking through Allan Gardens, people waiting to buy cacti and succulents at the greenhouse. Must have been some sale!

We chose Yonge-Dundas Square, Toronto’s unofficial hub, as a waypoint. We were struck by the energy in the square when we visited a few days before and wondered what might be going on there this sleepy Sunday. Nothing sleepy about the square this morning! We arrived just in time for #turbanup. 

Sikh for a day

The Sikh community was out en masse to educate the public about who they are, what they believe, and why they wear those colorful turbans, or Dastaar as they call it. Sikhi, the fifth largest religion in the world, originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of India. Guru Nanak Dev Ji taught that all people are from the same creator, regardless of social status, gender, or religion. Because there is no difference between royalty and anyone else, everyone should wear a crown, or Dastaar, as a constant reminder of a person’s value and importance, and also as a reminder of their personal, daily obligation to take care of other people.

Today everyone was invited to turban up. There were tables and tables of fabric in every color and shade imaginable, and experts to help you wrap it in whichever style you chose, be it farmer, warrior, or raj. They also provided lively music and a Sikh-style community banquet. Free food for all is an everyday practice at all Gurdwaras, Sikh temples. 

community banquet

We had an enlightening discussion with a young, Sikh woman, and enjoyed watching everyone—Sikh and otherwise—participating in the festivities. Did I mention? I love this city!

Lakefront bike ride

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Toronto Inukshuk Park

Activity for the day: a 30-kilometre (19-mile) bike ride along Lake Ontario. We rented bikes at the Harbourfront and started our tour on the west end of the lake trail at Toronto Inukshuk Park. I love these crazy man-shaped piles of rock created by the Inuits in northern Canada, Alaska, and Greenland to look like hunters lined up on the hillsides of the tundra. Two converging lines of inukshuks were used to funnel caribou into herds for easier hunting. They’ve become a symbol of native Canadian culture. Pretty ingenious, I’d say. But then, as my living room will attest, I’ve always had a fondness for stacking stones.

seven ducklings!

Next stop: Amsterdam Brewhouse for lunch. No better day than a biking day to order poutine. We eat this traditional Montréal dish every time we come to Canada: French fries topped with cheese curd and brown gravy. Comfort food at its tastiest!

poutine!

After carbo-loading, we rode the remaining nine kilometres to our easternmost destination, Tommy Thompson Park in Leslieville. You would never guess that this bird sanctuary, on a lacy peninsula extending into Lake Ontario, is so close to the city unless you happened to glance up to catch the Toronto skyline on the horizon.

Canada geese have returned for the summer

 

Toronto skyline from Tommy Thompson Park

 

the Distillery District

Our post-bike reward was visiting the Distillery District just east of Downtown. A refurbished old brick distillery originally built in 1832, it is now home to several boutiques, restaurants, cafes, and the Mill Street Brewery—forty buildings in all. According to Wikipedia, it is the largest collection of Victorian-era industrial architecture in North America. (You know how I love my superlatives!)

No spirits for us today, but we did enjoy a cold brew to help us cool off on this exceptionally warm and humid spring day. Great ride, great day!

Distillery District

 

crazy Jenga towers

Toronto: the Harbourfront

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Toronto’s iconic CN Tower

 

humorous depiction of fans at the Rogers Centre, home of the Toronto Blue Jays

 

on the other side of the Rogers Centre

 

A cement mixer in support of breast cancer awareness. Now, that’s a statement!

 

A henge at Harbourfront Park. Those are the Toronto Islands in Lake Ontario, just off shore.

 

in Yo Yo Ma’s Music Garden

Toronto: Old Town

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view to the north from our apartment

We’ve arrived in Toronto and are loving city life! We’re in a fantastic Airbnb rental on the 27th floor of a tower in the Church-Wellesley area of downtown. This is one of our best rentals ever!

Our first day: walking tour of Old Town, the Entertainment District, the Financial District, and the Harbourfront.

first stop: St. Lawrence Market

 

We love these European-style markets, chock-full of fresh foods.

 

Couldn’t resist a peameal bacon sandwich, known to those of us from south of the border as Canadian bacon.

 

Toronto’s Flatiron Building

 

humorous trompe-l’oeil mural on the back of the Flatiron

 

stumbled across this delightful park—Berzcy Park—behind the Flatiron Building

 

adorable dog fountain!

 

the pinnacle–the almighty bone!

 

Five bonus points if you noticed the cat on the fountain!

 

1000 Islands National Park

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This photo of Belleville is courtesy of TripAdvisor

 

With so many “rocks” sticking up out of the St. Lawrence River, which qualify as islands?

Interesting factoid: To be considered one of the 1000 Islands, an island must be above water for 365 days of the year and it must support at least one living tree. By these criteria, there are 1864 islands in the 1000 Islands. The smallest is Tom Thumb Island, on the Canadian side of the border. It has one tree and only a few square feet of land that stay above water all year long.

No island is bisected by the border between Canada and the United States, which is why the border through the 1000 Islands region is so jagged.

photo courtesy of Omegatron

Just Room Enough Island, aka Hub Island, is the smallest inhabited island. It’s in the US 1000 Islands. Funny, but the name of the family that owns it is Sizeland.

Airbnb Roulette

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Riverview B&B

Months ago, when I was planning this trip, I was looking for a place to stay between Lake Placid and Toronto. We wanted to see the Thousand Islands area, but I didn’t know any of the towns along the St. Lawrence River. So I played Airbnb roulette: Pick a town anywhere in the vicinity—Kingston, Ontario, say. If you don’t see anything you like in Kingston, keep zooming out on the map until you find something. That’s how I found the Riverview B&B in Gananoque. Ganawhat? Doesn’t matter. Just put your chips down and spin the wheel.

The Riverview was a bit difficult to find only in that our GPS (some of you may remember the obstinate Rita from previous trips) disavowed any knowledge of Thousand Islands Parkway where the B&B is located. How can that be? It’s a major thoroughfare along the river! With Rita in a huff and not having cell service in Canada, we were on our own. (What did we do before Smart Phones?) Fortunately signage was good, and we were able to find the parkway, which, by the way, is spelled “1000 Islands Parkway.” Hence, Rita’s attitude.

The B&B, the former Lansdowne House, stands out like a manor house in its rural community just east of Gananoque. It was a large, stately home that has recently been remodeled into eight spacious guest rooms, plus a large suite for the owners. It also has a fitness room, a breakfast room, and a beautiful rooftop terrace. Relieved that we had at least broken even on our bet, we dropped our luggage and headed in to town to explore. 

What an adorable town! Gananoque—or Gan, as locals call it—is just our speed: small, picturesque, quiet, and oh-so friendly. There are several scenic walks through the town of approximately 5000 which highlight some of the elegant homes built during Gan’s heyday as a major transportation hub on the St. Lawrence. Perhaps it’s fortuitous that river traffic was later diverted to Kingston, a city of over 120,000 today, so that Gan could retain its 19th-century charm.

We started at Tourist Information, where a pleasant woman educated us as to Gan’s many highlights. Primarily, it’s a launching point for boat tours of the 1000 Islands. Rather than being cooped up with tourists feeding seagulls for five hours, we opted to see the sights of the town on foot, starting with the Ganonoque Brewing Company which, as luck would have it, was right across the street from TI. We enjoyed a very talented (humorous, as well as musically endowed) duo performing in the brewery’s diminutive Beer Garden while we washed down the dust of the road. 

at the Purple House Cafe

A couple saw us reading through our TI brochures and asked if we were looking for a place to eat. Not particularly, but we would take all recommendations. Purple House Cafe, hands down. Just a pleasant stroll away, Purple House had a sweet stone patio with a wood-fired pizza oven out front. The weather was perfect—sunny and a warm 75°—so we enjoyed a delicious pizza while playing a rousing game of dominoes. Board games are part of the ambience. It just keeps getting better. Winner, winner, pizza dinner!

Bendominoes, bendy dominoes

Local knowledge

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entering High Peaks territory

Our next stop northbound was Lake Placid. I really didn’t know what to expect. A lake, of course, and who can forget the 1980 Winter Olympics when the US hockey team upset the Soviet Union? But do tourists come here? Maybe not; I couldn’t find an Airbnb rental within 100 miles.

Turns out Lake Placid is quite the tourist destination in summer because of the beautiful Adirondack Mountains and the lakes. The Main Street area is adorable, with lots of cute shops and yummy restaurants with lake views. And there are three craft breweries! But physical activity comes before beer. So what to do? When in doubt, seek out local knowledge.

I approached the woman at the hotel reception desk. “If you had only one day to spend in Lake Placid, what would you do? Where is the ‘wow’?”

She didn’t hesitate. “The High Peaks.” 

Adirondack Mountain Club trail

The High Peaks are a cluster of 46 mountains in the Adirondacks, just south of Lake Placid for the most part, that are over 4000 feet in elevation–or so they thought at the time they came up with the designation. If you climb all 46, you are eligible to join the Adirondack 46ers club.

mountain flora

She recommended three easy-to-moderate hikes, at our request, in the High Peaks region. We chose to summit Mount Jo. I’d never summited a mountain before! I mean, how many mountain summits do you know of that are moderate hikes? Jo isn’t one of the High Peaks, but at 2876 feet its summit offers great views of 17 of the Big Guys.

mountain fauna–the third snake we’ve seen on this trip [so far]. Anyone know what kind?

We drove to The Adirondack Mountain Club’s High Peaks Information Center and consulted the experts. The difficult decision: Do we want to take the short, steeper route up Mount Jo, or the longer, less grueling path? We debated, considering our already fragile knees. Our expert suggested we climb up the steep path and return on the gentler path. Perfect!

at the summit

For much of the hike up, we were climbing a dry, steep stream bed like stairs. It must have been a waterfall during the Spring snowmelt! Not too bad though; it only took us an hour to summit. And the view was spectacular, especially of Heart Lake in the valley below. The hike down? Well, let’s just say that the longer path was only mildly easier. We had our hiking sticks with us, so we were able to save our knees, but my quads hurt for days afterward.

And the black flies! The only good thing I can say about them is that they distracted me from the steep descent. We had purchased a natural bug repellent from the information center, which worked well around my bare legs, but apparently my hair product was just too intoxicating. By the end of the hike I looked like a measles-riddled crazy women, with bites all around my hairline (despite my repellent-doused hat) and an extra-special, bulbous bite smack dab in the middle of my right cheek.

Heart Lake

Despite the flies, mosquitos, and sore quads, it was great to get out-of-doors and give our dormant hiking boots some exercise.

elevation gain on our hike: the descent was only mildly gentler than the ascent

From the Vanderbilt estate

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view of the Hudson River from the Vanderbilt estate

As with most trips we take, we ran out of time to see everything we wanted to see in Hyde Park. My intention with extended travel is to see an area so thoroughly that I can happily cross it off my bucket list, satisfied that I have seen it all, and focus future travel on other adventures. In actuality, we rarely see a place as thoroughly as we’d like. I make an exhaustive list, we prioritize as we go, but you never know just how it’s going to flow. And sometimes we want to return to a place we’ve explored because we’ve seen enough to have fallen in love with it. So the plan may not work the way I intended, but there’s a certain serendipity to it that we’ve come to love.

the Catskill Mountains in the distance

My deepest regret in Hyde Park is not giving Eleanor her due. Little was said about her on our guided tour of Springwood, Franklin’s home. And even though her papers and other memorabilia are stored in the Presidential Library, you really have to search to find her in the museum exhibits. 

The day we hiked to her cottage, Val-Kill, on the Eleanor Roosevelt National Heritage Site, we didn’t stay for the tour. For one thing, we were focused on completing our hike up to the top of the hill, to Top Cottage, and back down again before the day grew too warm. But also, there was an administrative meeting of all tour guides for the Roosevelt properties that morning and a backlog of tourists waiting to tour both Val-Kill and Top Cottages. Somehow I thought that we would catch up with Eleanor later, but sadly our time in Hyde Park evaporated.

The same goes with the Vanderbilt estate, which is located just south of the B&B where we stayed. It was so close, we thought we could stop in any time. We barely managed a drive-through of the property at dusk on our last day in town. While we rarely tour houses just to ogle at the opulence, the mansion does look architecturely stunning from several vantage points along the river. I was intrigued, and I’m sure we could have learned something about the prolific Vanderbilt family.

So we will bid adieu to Hyde Park and continue on our journey up the Hudson. Maybe one day we’ll return and pay Eleanor a nice, long visit. I believe her story is worth hearing.