This morning First Light headed off in the opposite direction of home. It seemed kind of silly to come all this way and not visit the Thousand Island part of the St. Lawrence River. That lay east up the river. The path home is west. But it was certainly worth the trip. If anyone had described this area to me I would still not have been prepared for what we found. The place is stunningly beautiful and utterly unique in my experience. Island after island with dwellings built on them, often with a boat garage. Boats are like cars around here and the place is awash in them swarming around a main shipping channel where monster freight hauling ships go about their business.
One strange thing is that the size of the island seems to determine the size of the shack, shanty, house, mansion, or castle that built on them. Yes, castles. We visited two islands with actual castles that have been turned into tourist attractions. The first was Boldt Castle. The second Singer Castle. Bolt was the most opulent. In fact, it was one of the most opulent places I have ever seen. There were actually two islands involved. One had the castle. The other the “yacht house”. The yacht house might have been thought of as a castle if there hadn't been a real castle just a few hundred yards away. I am generally not a big fan of opulent, but I do have to admit that the design and workmanship of both were truly impressive. The castle was to be Mr. Boldt's gift to his wife Louise, but her death in 1904 halted all construction. He simply couldn't bear to complete it without her.
The Boldt Castle was then abandoned for 73 years before being bought by the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority who then started to restore the damage done by the elements and vandals. They have done a good job but it isn't finished yet. On the very top floor, graffiti still mars the walls. I think they should leave it as a reminder that, no matter how rich, powerful, or important someone likes to think they are, no one, and nothing they might build, lasts forever.
I found the Singer castle, built by the founder of the sewing machine company, a bit more tolerable. It stayed in the family for a long time. Eventually it was sold to a quasi-military outfit and then to a series of religious organizations for the sole reason (according to the guide) of getting back at the state of New York for the property taxes the Singer family paid over the years. The military and religious operations were tax-free enterprises. Rich people and tax evasion. Who would have imagined that? Now it is owned by a European entrepreneur. You can rent the top floor for a night. Dinner and breakfast are included, so you get some servants to enhance the experience. Don't know what it costs; there's no price on their website so I assume if you have to ask, you can't afford it. But I'll bet the bill includes taxes...
We are currently anchored up behind an island across the river from the Singer Castle. There is some weather moving in. We would like to find a dock to tie up to to ride it out, but hours of searching have yet to turn up an available spot anywhere within a long day's travel. We could make Kingston to check into Canada, but there appear to be no slips available on that side of the border either. So we will be leaving at first light to get First Light back to the anchorage where we were last night. It is likely we will not quite beat the weather, but we should be settled in before the worst of it arrives. After it clears, we will head toward and clear customs. From here on in every mile is a mile closer to home. But it is still all new territory for us and, so far, most of that territory has been spectacular.
The following pictures are of the Boldt Yacht House:
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