On the Water with As You Wish: July 3 Clayton to Alexandria Bay

July 3

First things first – A very Happy Birthday to my one and only sister, Susan. Still getting better and more appreciated with each passing year!!

Big 4^th of July celebration starts tonight in Clayton with a fireworks display and their marina spaces get reserved months in advance, so despite enjoying the town immensely, we were told it was time to leave. We decided to head up towards Alexandria Bay and Boldt Castle and anchor out for a few days. Conditions were finally feeling summer timey here. Sunny, 80’s, a bit of humidity and very light winds. They supposedly have a fireworks display over the castle tomorrow so we figure we’ve got a good viewing spot locked in. Rumor has it this anchorage will get packed tomorrow. We plan an early morning visit to tour the castle and then chilling on the boat and watching the crazy boaters and shooing them away from our anchor.

High water even has the lighthouses under water

It was a relatively short cruise to here – just 11 miles going through the American Narrows and under the Thousand Islands Bridge. It’s actually 3 bridges that connect the USA with Canada. One long suspension bridge on the US side and two shorter bridges on the Canada side. I remember driving over those bridges 2 years ago when I came up here to crew for a guy going through the Trent -Severn Waterway and thinking that it looked like an awesome cruising area. It really is pretty spectacular with all these islands.

A few of the houses on "Millionaires Row"

The water continues to be unbelievably clear but anchoring can be difficult as much of the bottom is rock with thick vegetation. Plus there’s underwater power cables going to many of the islands that are on the charts and need to be avoided when anchoring. We’re in about 8’ of water and you can clearly see down at least 4’-5’ to the vegetation so not really looking forward to pulling the anchor when it’s time to leave and cleaning all that green stuff off. The Rocna anchor continues to amaze me grabbing without difficulty. The American Narrows are just that. A narrow section of very deep water that is the main shipping channel. It’s over 200’ deep in places and a lot of water is pushing through it. The current , aided by the water being 3 feet higher than normal, was giving us a good 2 knot push at times but also jostling us around as the water would swirl around in unbelievable patterns as it got pushed up and around some of the underwater shelves. And of course fate figured into things as we timed it perfectly with a big freighter coming at us in the middle of the narrows section to add to the drama.

Making way for" VOLGABORG" as we approach the Thousand Islands Bridge

We left Clayton around 10 and had our anchor set by lunchtime. So plenty of time to play a bit. We put the dingy down, attached the motor and had it running on the first pull. Then dumped the 2 kayaks in and got some exercise paddling around a few of the islands.

Settled in our anchorage

We haven’t been at anchor since Rock Hall on the Chesapeake Bay and it feels way overdo. We really enjoy the relaxation it brings . And firing up the grill and eating a home cooked meal on board is almost a treat. When visiting towns we typically try the local restaurants and cuisine. Lots of crab on the Chesapeake and lots of Italian and Pizza through NY. Poutine and butter tarts once we hit Canada.

Typical Tour Boat - castle in background

Boldt Castle

After dinner I took another kayak ride around Boldt castle for some better pictures. Unfortunately, the house is so large with trees covering much of the island that I couldn’t get pictures of much of it. But some of the associated structures should give you an idea of the scale. George Boldt owned the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in NYC along with a lot of other properties. He was building the castle for his wife and 2 children. Before it was completed she passed away at age 41. Heartbroken, he had all work on the castle stopped and never returned. It sat vacant and decaying for many years before the NY Bridge Authority bought it and started renovations hoping to turn it into a tourist spot. They’ve been working on it for 39 years and still aren’t close to completing everything on the inside. But every year they do a bit more. It is definitely a tourist mecca with non-stop tour boats from towns on both the American and Canadian side unloading and picking up people. They even have an on site border and customs stations for the tourists arriving from Canada. Just his boathouse, located across from the island, put many of the other Gilded Age houses to shame.