So many islands...so little time...

We returned to Corning on our way out of this part of New York state to make a stop at the Rockwell Museum of Western Art. We didn't expect much, but found a collection of very impressive works. Could it be that we were feeling elistist being from the "real" west...


Not too shabby...

We stopped in Ithaca - ok, we spent a night at Chez Walmart - on our way up to the 1000 Islands region.

This is the home of Cornell University. What a beautiful campus. All the buildings are of this gray brick and reminded us of Oxford. Lots of grey matter here.

We met Sasha Gutfraind while doing some computer time at a local cafe. He's just one month away from a PhD in mathematics. A delightful young man straight from Russia via Israel and Canada. We may see him again in Albuquerque if he accepts a position with UNM.

We arrived on the St. Lawrence River, set up in Clayton to await our mail, and drove immediately to Ogdensburg to see a museum devoted to this man:

Frederick Remmington spent time in Ogdensburg during his life. They have received his personal collection of his own work and a large selection of Tiffany pieces. Seems the men were friends... The museum is housed in this ornate Victorian:

Ed was overcome in the gallery. I think this is his version of Heaven.

The towns along the river are really just villages. We drove through many of them and came upon this at the end of a road along the water just outside of St. Vincent.

Tibbits Point Lighthouse sits on the point where Lake Ontario dumps into the St. Lawrence Seaway. (Note - see how big Finnegan Morriarty O'Kibel has grown.)

We opted to take a boat trip on the St. Lawrence and did so out of Clayton where we were staying. This freighter passed us on the water.

Now, Clayton is a cute little town and quite friendly, but we weren't prepared to become "locals" after just a few days. We began to be recognized by some of the people who have their morning coffee on the main street each morning. They knew our yellow Jeep and remembered we were from New Mexico.

Our boat, the Miss Clayton, took us to Boldt Castle and back. Our very good guide told us about the history of 1000 Islands. (There are actually 1800 islands...but according to our guide, the first indian who saw the area said to his wife, "There have got to be to 1000 islands in here...!")

Here's a view of Clayton from the water.

We sailed past Millionaires Row. People live well on the water...

...and arrived at Boldt Castle. Now here was a man who really knew how to tell his wife he loved her. He built her a castle - a real castle. She died of consumption before it was completed, he had work stopped, and never set foot on the island (known as Heart Island) again. The historical society is rebuilding it and allows visitors to visit both restored and unrestored areas. This is the front of the building:

There is also a boathouse across the river: (Jim Steckart - keep this in mind for your next boathouse. ;-D)

A Power House:

A children's playhouse and other buildings in various states of repair.

A couple more homes on Millionaires Row. The photos don't capture the elegance of these dwellings.

1000 Islands is a very interesting place. It seems to be in a time warp 50 years ago. It's way past its prime as a place to live or visit, yet the natural beauty of the place is like none other.

We took one day and drove over the bridge and up into Ottawa, Canada. It never stopped raining the entire day. We drove in the rain, walked in the rain, toured the capitol in the rain. We would have loved to do more, but the weather actually managed to slow us down. Neither of us had dressed for the cold dampness.

(I'll have to post a photo of the capitol next time...seems the blogger won't let me put in here now.)