Page 93 - Travel Guide to Canada 2019

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Shield granite outcrops, vast wetlands and
deep lakes. Frontenac County/Lennox and
Addington is a fisherman’s dream come true
and the park’s OFAH TackleShare program
provides free rod and tackle loaners to new
and young anglers. pre-Confederation era lock-up. Atop Fort
Far from the city lights, the Lennox &
Addington County Dark Sky Viewing Area
is renowned for a night sky that provides
stargazers clear views of planets, constella-
tions and the Milky Way.
Planning your stay is easy—this outdoor
playground is well serviced by marinas, lodges,
cottage resorts, B&Bs and campgrounds
(www.frontenaccounty.ca; www.lennox-
addington.on.ca).
RIDEAU CANAL
WORLD HERITAGE SITE
The Rideau Canal is the watery link connect-
ing small villages between the City of
Kingston and the nation’s capital, Ottawa.
Towns along the Rideau are popular stops
for cottagers and day trippers searching for
unique products, attentive service and an
intimate atmosphere. Westport offers the
perfect lakefront setting; small streets
sprinkled with unique shops, antique
haunts, bakeries, restaurants and tea rooms.
Picturesque Merrickville has been named
Jewel of the Rideau with a downtown of
boutiques, studios and galleries housed in
many heritage Victorian-era properties. Not far from Gananoque, along the
The historic 202-km (126-mi.) waterway
draws the boating crowd, from canoes to
luxury houseboats. In all, there are 47 locks,
most still operating with the original hand
cranks used to open and close lock gates
and raise and lower water levels in the lock
chambers (www.rideauheritageroute.ca ). and trips into the heart of the Islands, some
KINGSTON 1000 ISLANDS
At the gateway of the Thousand Islands and
the UNESCO-designated Rideau Canal,
Kingston is a city rich in history and
culture. It is a city built on a grand heritage
and defined by the ability to blend the
beauty of yesterday with the passion and
sophistication of today. Peruse art shops
and alleyways such as Antique Alley for
collectables, and Martello Alley, an artist
collective of original and printed works.
Visit the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, a
research-intensive art museum, illuminat-
ing the great artistic traditions of the past
and innovations of the present. Eight
galleries house more than 17,000 works,
with a large permanent collection of
historical and contemporary Canadian
pieces, Inuit and Indigenous art as well as
more than 200 paintings from the Dutch
Golden Age, including three by Rembrandt.
Along Lake Ontario, tour the recently
closed Kingston Penitentiary and hear the
sombre history of Canada’s most notorious
Henry National Historic Site, views of the
harbour, teeming with boats, are panoramic.
th
Explore 19 century military life in this
living history museum and enjoy the world-
famous Sunset Ceremony re-enactment.
Native sons and daughters from Sir John A.
Macdonald to The Tragically Hip have forged
Kingston’s cultural landscape from Canada’s
first capital to its burgeoning music, arts
and food scene (www.visitkingston.ca ).
GANANOQUE 1000 ISLANDS training, support services and equipment
The soul of Gananoque is a main street
lined with historical and cultural sites, in
addition to a popular waterfront gateway
to the scenic Thousand Islands.
It is possible to arrive by boat to take
in a play or concert at the internationally-
acclaimed Thousand Islands Playhouse,
one of the region’s most active theatres,
consistently named one of the top summer
theatre festivals in the province. find water bottle refill stations, park
Along the waterfront, just steps from
downtown, there are kayaking expeditions,
fishing holes, houseboat rentals or the
popular Gananoque Boat Line cruises.
scenic Thousand Islands Parkway, is the
quaint village of Rockport, the boarding spot
for Rockport Cruises. The Palaces & Palisades
Cruise is a Destination Canada and Ontario
th
Signature Experience. Celebrating its 65
anniversary, the cruise line has dinner cruises
with stops at Boldt and Singer castles,
architectural marvels marking the region’s
Golden Age of Castles (www.1000islands
tourism.com ).
BROCKVILLE 1000 ISLANDS buildings at the Lost Villages Museum tell the
The centuries-old town of Brockville is a
popular departure point for traditional and
high-speed cruises of the Thousand Islands,
including stops at both Singer and Boldt
castles, dining cruises and special event
cruises. It’s also home to the new Big River
Festival, celebrating everything to do with
the St. Lawrence River. The festival events
include river jousting, fishing contests, tall
ships and the crowning of the canine
titleholder at the Canadian Dock Jumping
Championships.
Close to the downtown waterfront is
the Aquatarium, a discovery centre with
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interactive adventures and experiences telling
the story of the seafaring history, culture and
ecosystems of the Thousand Islands. There are
shipwreck remains, touch tanks, rope courses
recreating a ship’s rigging, hands-on robotics
and an underwater observation bubble.
Steps away is Canada’s First Railway
Tunnel—a major engineering accomplish-
ment, completed 21 years before construction
on the Canadian Pacific Railway even broke
ground. The 0.5-km (0.3-mi.) railway tunnel is
Canada’s oldest; visitors can explore and take
in the million-dollar sound and light show.
Scuba divers can experience world-class
freshwater diving, thanks to excellent water
clarity and an abundance of shipwrecks.
Local dive operators provide a full menu of
rentals (www.brockvilletourism.com ).
CORNWALL AND SDG COUNTIES
Enjoying the outdoors is easy along the
Great Lakes Waterfront Trail, a paved cycle/
recreational path stretching the entire
length of SDG (Stormont, Dundas and
Glengarry counties) and the City of
Cornwall. Cyclists, runners and walkers can
benches, nature trails and picnic areas. In
addition, there is almost 1000 km (621 mi.)
of country road cycling. The shipwrecks and
clear waters offshore have earned SDG
Counties the scuba nickname of “diving in
the Canadian Caribbean.”
In Cornwall, there’s a downtown core
filled with boutique shops and unique
eateries. Festivalgoers mark their calendars
for events like the annual Cornwall Ribfest
and the Glengarry Highland Games in
nearby Maxville—one of the world’s largest
Highland Games.
The vein of history runs deep here. It’s
the birthplace of the McIntosh—Canada’s
national apple—celebrated at many autumn
county fairs. The saved and restored heritage
story of small communities which existed
along the river, prior to inundation, as part
of the St. Lawrence Seaway construction in
the late 1950s. At historic Upper Canada
Village, interpreters in traditional period
costume create a living history of the 1860s,
where visitors can step into a working
bakery, sawmill, blacksmith, schoolhouse
and small cheese factory (www.cornwall
tourism.com; www.whereontariobegan.ca ).

South Eastern Ontario is a relaxed place
to visit and stay, tap into experiences and
build some priceless memories.