Day Fifty-nine - Niagara Falls

 

Departing Toronto, we entered the Welland Canal and passed through several locks over night.  By morning we were at the canal's southern terminus and docked at Port Colborne.  It is a sleepy little town of 20,000 people, all of which we found to be very friendly.  

Niagara Falls, Ontario, was a 45-minute coach ride from Port Colborne.  The weather was cool, but sunny  as we strolled along the walkway.  The park was busy, but not as much as it is during the summer.

Down river from the Horseshoe Falls Jan admired the smaller American Falls and Rainbow Bridge.  Appropriately, a rainbow appeared above the river below us.

Half-a-mile south, the Niagara Parks floral garden was putting on its spring flower show!

Day Fifty-eight - Toronto

 

The skyline of Toronto viewed from the lake is something to write home about! (I guess that is what I am doing now.)

Our first stop of the day was at Brookfield Place, an office complex in downtown Toronto. The complex contains more than 2-million square ft of office space and consists of two towers, Bay Wellington Tower and TD Canada Trust Tower, linked by the  Allen Lambert Galleria. The Galleria is one of the most photographed locations in the city.

The lower level of Brookfield Place is the home of the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame.  Standing at the entrance is a life sized bronze statue of "Mr. Hockey", Gordie Howe.  Gordie spent 25 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings.

Then it was on to Toronto's city hall.

Inside on the east wall is Metropolis, a mural created from more than 100,000 nails.  Toronto artist David Partridge regards his sculpture as a symbolic interpretation of a great metropolis, but not of any city in particular.

The center core is a circle of massed copper nails which indicate the heart of the city. In concentric circles, the central panel grows like treed ravines that enclose the city’s heart. The widened circles are bisected by grids that reflect the suburban regions and beyond.

This is a closeup of the mural.  Nails are placed half-an-inch apart.

A visit to the city market was a must!

This is not a vegan cheese shop, but don't you agree it is quite picturesque? 

 

Day Fifty-seven - St Lawrence Seaway

 

We departed Trois-Rivieres on our way to Toronto.  This 189-mile stretch of the St Lawrence River contains 7 locks.   Combined, they lift ships 246 feet to the level of Lake Ontario.  The Octantis is about to enter the Iroquois Lock.

The Octantis was designed to be the largest ship that can pass through the locks. The locks are 78 feet wide.  The Octantis is 77 feet-one inch wide.  I opened our stateroom window and placed my hand on the wall of the lock as our ship was lifting.  Sure enough, there was less than 6 inches of clearance!

After passing through the 7th lock, we headed upriver.  this section of the St Lawrence is known as the Thousand Islands.  The river is cluttered with small islands, many with just a single summer cottage on them.

Boldt Castle is on one of the larger islands. In 1900 George C. Boldt, a millionaire hotel magnate, began construction of it as a tribute to his beloved wife Louise.  It was to be their summer dream home.  Unfortunately, Louise died months before the completion of the castle.  George immediately stopped construction and the property was vacant for over 70 years.

As the sun was setting, our ship's expedition team was preparing their weekly weather balloon launch.

After 2 months of requesting (finally begging) I received permission to be on the top deck with the launch team.  It was windy and cold as the team filled the neoprene vessel with helium.

Once properly filled, it was carefully moved to the open deck for launching.

10 - 9 - 8 - ..............-2-1 release!

Day Fifty-six - Trois Rivieres, Quebec

 At Trois Rivieres we visited a sugar shack, traditionally a place where maple sap was boiled to make syrup.  Robert du Boise the owner, produces about 150 gallons of maple syrup per year from his 5,000 maple trees.  Because there is a "cartel" which controls the production and price of Maple syrup in Quebec, small producers like du Boise only sell their product directly to retail customers.  

Robert's business is more than selling bottles of syrup, his joint is a local hang out where on Friday and Saturday nights he serves traditional "sugar shake" family-style meals: pea soup followed by bacon, ham, sausage, potatoes and biscuits all smothered in maple syrup!  The syrup is, of course, produced from his own sugar bush.

After the sugar shack, we visited the Basilica of Notre-Dame-du-Cap. It is a national shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary, one of five national shrines in Canada. Each year, the site is visited by thousands of Catholic pilgrims.

A wooden church was first built here in 1659.  That structure was replace in 1720 by a field stone structure.  The current basilica, replacing the stone church, was opened in 1964 and can accommodate up to 1,660 people. Reinforced concrete arches outline the building.

After lunch we boarded a zodiac to view wildlife along the river.

Our zodiac headed north up the Saint-Maurice River, a tributary of the St Laurence. The area was wooded, remote and a great place to spot migratory birds.

Jeff Skivington, the expedition's ornithologist, was aboard our zodiac.  He is an amazing specialist who can mimic bird calls which bring feathered friends from afar. 

Jeff's ability brought a pair of pileated woodpeckers within view.  Nearly the size of a crow, it is one of the biggest, most striking forest birds on the continent.  

Returning to the ship we crossed the "meeting of the waters".  This is at the confluence of the  Saint-Maurice  and Saint Laurence Rivers.  In the photo, the colder blueish water of Saint-Maurice (left) contacts the warmer brownish water of the Saint Laurence (right).  The waters eventually homogenize and continue to the Atlantic Ocean. 

The wind picked up creating white caps that occasionally sprayed cold water over the bow of the zodiac.  After being the victim of a rogue wave, Jan expressed her displeasure of being photographed. 

After sunset, we sailed passed the beautiful skyline of Montreal.  The casino is prominent in the foreground.  The Biosphere is the purple dome on the right and the downtown skyscrapers are behind.

Day Fifty-five - Quebec City

 

It was a two-day cruise up the St Laurence River to Quebec City.  Originally founded in 1608 by French explorer Samuel de Champlain, the city was located at the narrowest part of the St Laurence River.  This strategic position was key to defending itself against the British.  Quebec became an important shipping port for fur trade with Europe.

The morning was cold, 13 degrees wind chill, as we set out on an early excursion.  Our coach journeyed to Ile d 'Orleans,  an island in the St Laurence river dedicated to agricultural.  We stopped at a small family business that has produced maple syrup for four generations.  Jan learned how to make and eat maple snow candy (kind of a lollipop).

Then we visited Montmorency Falls.  Located at the mouth of the Montmorency River where it drops over a cliff into the St. Laurence River.  Its 276' height makes it 100' taller than Niagara, though with much less water flow.

Day Fifty-three - Cap-aux-Meules

 

This morning we arrived at Cap-aux-Meules.  Wind gusts of 35 knots caused the cancelation of all off-boat operations.  Waves were running 15 feet.  We sailed on to Quebec City and will arrive on Monday!

Here is a map of our journey so far.  Only 13 more days to Milwaukee.

Day Fifty-two - Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia

This morning we were up early for an 8:00 AM excursion.  Our tour group met in the restaurant waiting for our call to board a tender that would take us ashore.  At the other end of the room, the executive chef was meeting with his staff checking menus, supplies and assignments for the day.  

Cape Breton is a small island without large-ship docking facilities, so the Octantis "parked" a half-mile out and passengers were transported ashore by a tender.

On shore the 20 MPH wind and 40 degree air temperature felt colder than we experienced in Antarctica.  Thankfully we had our cold weather gear (and needed it.)  Our sympathy went out to fellow travelers not prepared for the cold (those not dressed in red parkas).

Our local guide escorted us on a 1-1/4 mile walk through what is now a Canadian National Park.  In the 18th century this area was filled with fishermen's homes.  Cod was abundant in these waters.  They dried and salted the fish before shipping them to Europe. 

We stopped and visited the recreation of a 18th century fisherman's home.  Notice the sod roof.  Fish were dried and salted on tables behind the house.  A family member protected the catch 24 hours a day to prevent seagulls and other animals from helping themselves to an easy meal.

Nearby is the reconstructed fortified town of Louisbourg.  Founded in 1713 by French settlers, it was named for King Louis XIV.  It became the capital of the French Colony Royale and was France's chief stronghold in North America. The British eventually seized the area in the 1760s and evicted the French population.

Today's Louisbourg is a town of about 1,000 residents, many of French descent.  Fishing remains their predominant occupation.

Fishermen now harvest lobster and snow crabs rather than cod (which have declined from overfishing).  Lobster season opens on May 15th for 60 days and local fishermen are ready.  Lobster traps are stacked high on their docks ready to go!

Nearby we frighten a pair of male surf scoters.  These colorful birds nest in northern Canada near the Arctic Circle and winter here in Newfoundland.  Our ship, the Octantis, is traveling in "bird mode" after dark.  Unnecessary lights are turned off and stateroom curtains closed. This prevents migrating birds from being attracted to a brightly lit ship and crashing into the windows. 

Day Fifty-one - Halifax, Nova Scotia

 

On arrival in Halifax, the day was sunny and the sky a vibrant blue.  Our morning tour was a cruise aboard the Tall Ship Silva.  The temperature was 45 degrees with a wind out of the north at 20 MPH! Brrrrrrr.

Thankfully, we had our cold weather gear from Antarctica and bundled up using all of it!  The crew informed us that this was their first cruise of the season and this was their earliest start ever.  

Halifax is a major Atlantic shipping port and the open deck of the ship provided a wonderful view of the harbor and shoreline.  Hot toddies would have been welcome, but the crew only offered coffee and hot tea.

 A local fiddler provided toe taping music throughout the cruise.  "Cold fingers" kept him inside the small cabin.

We passed the Canadian Navy's Atlantic fleet which is based in Halifax.  No aircraft carriers or nuclear subs here!

In the afternoon we boarded our ship's Special Operations Boat to further explore the harbor.  By now the temperature was a warm 50 degrees as we explored Halifax's beach front communities.

This photo looks like it was taken in Northwestern Michigan!  Not so, its Halifax, Nova Scotia.

It's 50 degrees and sunny.  A great day to do a little sun bathing!