It is difficult to describe with words the spectacular beauty of the Thousand Islands. Over 1800 islands spot a 50 mile stretch of the St. Lawrence river, creating a unique culture of water and land, unhindered by international boundaries (the US and Canada). For a wonderful read about the feel of the region, turn to John Keats' (not the poet) Of Time and an Island and for some beautiful more recent 
photography see Ian Coristine's books.
My husband and I decided to take off for a long weekend in July. We stayed in Cape Vincent, on the US mainland, but traveled by ferry, bicycle, bridge and boat to neighboring islands. Cape Vincent is a quiet, quaint village for 362 days of the year. However, we had planned our trip to coincide with its annual French Festival. As legend has it, Napoleon's (yes, the Napoleon) brother had bought some land in the region for Napoleon and his family to escape to after his defeat at Waterloo. As often happens, even the best laid plans can fail to materialize, and Napoleon never made it the 1000 Islands. But the town still celebrates with a large parade, French pastries, lots of music, vendors, and an inordinate amount of alcohol.
We were staying at a lovely motel/B&B right on the water, and each morning while there we would grab a coffee and the most delicious croissants and then go sit on the bench over the river watching the ships. Cape Vincent sits at the point where Lake Ontario becomes the St. Lawrence river so any international ship legally has to pick up a local captain here to pilot the ship through the Seaway as it is incredibly difficult to navigate through the shoals and the 1800+ islands. We enjoyed watching a pilot boat take a captain out to the cargo ship and see him climb aboard.
The ferry to Canada leaves Cape Vincent to go to the nearest island (Wolfe Island, Canada) allegedly every hour on the quarter hour but as we figured out, the schedule was just a guide. We took our bikes over and after going through customs, we rode to a protected sandy bay area with the most gorgeous beach. Ten miles of biking on gravel though was not the most comfortable experience however.
On Sunday, we went to a church service at Half Moon Bay (also Canada). The unique aspect of this service was that it is only accessible by boat, and people stayed in their boat (or jet ski) for the service. After service, we went over to a friend's island for dinner. She happens to be the editor for Thousands Islands Life. My husband had contacted her a while back regarding his most recent novel, and she just invited us to come over for dinner when we were in the area. It turns out that she holds dinner parties every weekend during the summer and she has the wonderful ability of bringing together a group of friends, strangers, colleagues and acquaintances, all sharing common interests and vocations, thus creating a lively evening for all.
It was a wonderful and relaxing weekend where neither of us looked at our watches. The concept of time is very different for folks in the region. Very few Islanders actually stay year round, but they don't really have a set date for leaving or arriving. Many just arrive when the ice on the river starts to break up and don't leave again until the ice starts to form. If it's an early spring, great. If not, that's okay too. Furthermore, as demonstrated at our dinner party, since many do not want to be boating on the river after dark, the party is over as the sun sets, regardless of the clock time. Clock time is not important to the Islanders; they leave such things up to Mother Nature. If only we all could follow their example a little more often and not always be hindered by the clock.
photography see Ian Coristine's books.My husband and I decided to take off for a long weekend in July. We stayed in Cape Vincent, on the US mainland, but traveled by ferry, bicycle, bridge and boat to neighboring islands. Cape Vincent is a quiet, quaint village for 362 days of the year. However, we had planned our trip to coincide with its annual French Festival. As legend has it, Napoleon's (yes, the Napoleon) brother had bought some land in the region for Napoleon and his family to escape to after his defeat at Waterloo. As often happens, even the best laid plans can fail to materialize, and Napoleon never made it the 1000 Islands. But the town still celebrates with a large parade, French pastries, lots of music, vendors, and an inordinate amount of alcohol.
We were staying at a lovely motel/B&B right on the water, and each morning while there we would grab a coffee and the most delicious croissants and then go sit on the bench over the river watching the ships. Cape Vincent sits at the point where Lake Ontario becomes the St. Lawrence river so any international ship legally has to pick up a local captain here to pilot the ship through the Seaway as it is incredibly difficult to navigate through the shoals and the 1800+ islands. We enjoyed watching a pilot boat take a captain out to the cargo ship and see him climb aboard.
The ferry to Canada leaves Cape Vincent to go to the nearest island (Wolfe Island, Canada) allegedly every hour on the quarter hour but as we figured out, the schedule was just a guide. We took our bikes over and after going through customs, we rode to a protected sandy bay area with the most gorgeous beach. Ten miles of biking on gravel though was not the most comfortable experience however.
On Sunday, we went to a church service at Half Moon Bay (also Canada). The unique aspect of this service was that it is only accessible by boat, and people stayed in their boat (or jet ski) for the service. After service, we went over to a friend's island for dinner. She happens to be the editor for Thousands Islands Life. My husband had contacted her a while back regarding his most recent novel, and she just invited us to come over for dinner when we were in the area. It turns out that she holds dinner parties every weekend during the summer and she has the wonderful ability of bringing together a group of friends, strangers, colleagues and acquaintances, all sharing common interests and vocations, thus creating a lively evening for all.
It was a wonderful and relaxing weekend where neither of us looked at our watches. The concept of time is very different for folks in the region. Very few Islanders actually stay year round, but they don't really have a set date for leaving or arriving. Many just arrive when the ice on the river starts to break up and don't leave again until the ice starts to form. If it's an early spring, great. If not, that's okay too. Furthermore, as demonstrated at our dinner party, since many do not want to be boating on the river after dark, the party is over as the sun sets, regardless of the clock time. Clock time is not important to the Islanders; they leave such things up to Mother Nature. If only we all could follow their example a little more often and not always be hindered by the clock.
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