Woman in Real Life

I recently posted about our stay at the 1000 Islands/Ivy Lea KOA. A large part of the reason that we selected that particular KOA was its proximity to the boat tours of the 1000 Islands. We had never toured the area before and we really wanted to go. The islands are located in southeastern Ontario as well as northern New York State. (The property above is partly in Canada and partly in the US.) Waters that were once patrolled by pirates and bootleggers are now travelled by vacationing families, tourists and cottagers.

The Thousand Islands are a cluster of 1,864 islands in the Saint Lawrence River where it emerges from the northeast corner of Lake Ontario. The islands stretch downstream from Kingston, Ontario for about 80 km and range in size from 100 km2 to smaller islands occupied by a single residence or only birds and trees.

We elected to take Rockport Cruises' Boldt Castle Tour, which is 3.5 hours long and includes a 2-hour stop at the amazing Boldt Castle, millionaire hotel magnate George Boldt's unfinished tribute to his beloved wife, Louise. Now managed by the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority (TIBA), Boldt castle was once abandoned for 70 years. Construction began on the castle and its impressive outbuildings in 1900. It was to be the Boldt family's summer dream home.


But Louise Boldt died suddenly just months before the expected completion date and George Boldt immediately called a halt to construction on Heart Island. Today Boldt Castle, located near Alexandria Bay, NY, is being lovingly restored and decorated to complete the vision of George Boldt and his family. (If you are Canadian, you will need a passport to visit Boldt Castle.)
Many of the interior rooms, such as the kitchen and some of the bedrooms, have been restored and decorated with furnishings from the appropriate era.


There are amazing views from the top rooms of Boldt Castle and one can only imagine how wonderful it would have been to live here.



The Children's Playhouse is this whimsical structure that was once home to a bowling alley (see the bottom left pic, above).


And this amazing stone building was to be the Powerhouse, which would generate power for the whole island.




Hearts abound in the details of the house, and George had the shape of the island tweaked through building placement to reinforce the heart shape of Heart Island.


George and Louise's real-life story is the kind of beautiful, tragic tale that would make a perfect Hollywood movie. I couldn't help but think of Great Gatsby-style parties taking place in the castle, with plenty of servants keeping things afloat. If you are ever in the area of Boldt Castle, be sure to drop by. We all (including the kids) really enjoyed touring the buildings and property.