Thousands of Islands, Plenty of Adventures
The Thousand Islands in Canada’s St. Lawrence River is more than just the name of a salad dressing (although that’s where it was invented!)
There are actually close to 1,900 islands in the area between Kingston and Brockville, Ontario, making it a great place for adventures on the water, in many forms. It offers some pretty good land adventures, too.
Kayaking the Islands
From Gananoque, you can easily reach the nearest islands in a half-hour paddle. You can paddle your own kayak, but a guided tour means you learn about the area’s nature and history. You’ll paddle over old shipwrecks, past beaver dams on island shores and spot plenty of birdlife, including herons, swans, cormorants, mallards, gulls and others.
You can actually spend several days exploring the various islands by kayak; a good way to do that is to rent an oTENTik (more about those in a bit) from Parks Canada and stay on McDonald or Gordon Island, then do day trips using them as a base.
Is it Camping… Or Glamping?
Staying in a Parks Canada oTENTik bridges the world of rough camping with that of really high-end glamping. In an oTENTik, you won’t get heated marble floors or indoor jacuzzies like you will in some glamour camping facilities—but you won’t be sleeping on the ground or crawling into a tent, either.
Each national park provides slightly different amenities for its oTENTik. The basics include tent-like structures up off the ground, beds with mattresses, limited electrical outlets (sometimes) and a table with chairs inside. Barbecues and fire pits, a picnic table and outdoor chairs complete the outside accoutrements. You also have access to flush toilets and showers.
Hiking in 1,000 Islands Park
There are several good hikes in the park. Closest to the Mallorytown Landing campsites sits the Jones Creek trails. The network there offers 16 kilometres of trails through the woods and past some wetlands. They range from easy to moderate. With that many kilometres, you could easily spend an entire day in the forest.
But if you do that, you might miss out on what’s considered the most scenic trail in the park: the Lookout Trail, one of seven trails at the park’s Landon Bay area, in the west end of the park. There are also two very short trails at Mallorytown Landing: The Smoky Fire Trail and the Six Nations Trail.
Go Fishing
Can’t decide whether to spend more time on land or on the water? If you’re into fishing, you can enjoy it from both the land and water. It’s simple enough to just toss out a line from your campsite if you’re lucky enough to have one right along the shore.
You can also rent a boat to go out fishing, as there are several boat rental businesses in the area. You can even hire a fishing guide or charter to make the most of your time on the water.
Want some more great fishing? Then venture inland, just a little…
Canoeing (and Fishing and Hiking) at Charleston Lake
Less than a 30-minute drive northwest of 1,000 Islands National Park, sits Charleston Lake Provincial Park: a great place for fishing—and canoeing.
The park boasts 75 kilometres of shoreline, featuring several bays and coves. Some of them are motor-boat free, which might make for a calmer paddle.
Five campsites are accessible only by canoe or foot. Want to go further afield? Portages lead to Redhorse Lake (part of the North Frontenac Parklands), west of Charleston Lake, which has eight campsites; and Killenbeck Lake, southwest of Charleston Lake.
Another option is to book a stay at Twin Pines cabin, accessible only by water, and enjoy day canoe excursions and hikes from there. Canoe rentals are available in the park.
About the Salad Dressing…
On any guided tour in the 1000 islands—a kayak tour, a cruise, a trip up the 1,000 Islands Tower or even a helicopter ride—you’ll hear the story of the dressing’s invention. You might even hear more than one version.
The one heard most regularly on those tours tells how it was developed by the chef of George Boldt, the man who built Boldt Castle on Heart Island in the first decade of the 1900s, at the request of his boss. The chef reportedly threw it together with ingredients on hand: ketchup, mayonnaise, minced onion, sweet pickle relish and lemon juice.
