Aug. 16-17 - Brockville, ON

Tall Ships Landing Marina

“A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles.” – Tim Cahill

Today we headed down the St. Lawrence River to Brockville, the city of the 1000 Islands. Brockville is the eastern end of 1000 Island and is a beautiful place to visit, full of historic buildings and a fantastic waterfront. We came to explore the area, but we also came to meet a blog friend that I’ve exchanged texts with for over a year. We had plans to meet last August in the Finger Lakes when Hurricane Harvey changed our plans.

Tall Ships Landing...can you spot The Pearl?

Looking north to the courthouse

The view from our back deck...that is the St. Lawrence River and New York.

The reason they call this the Tall Ships Landing

After getting settled in at the Tall Ships Landing Marina we had lunch at a little English Pub downtown and then wandered through town enjoying the wonderful weather.

We had a great dinner with Roxanne and Wayne at the Tall Ships Waterfront Grill.

We had a great time getting to know our new friends and they were wonderful hosts. Thanks for everything...I hope we see you in Texas this winter.

History Lesson:

The founding of the settlement that became the village of Brockville has its roots in the first wave of Loyalist refugees displaced from their homes during the years of the American Revolution, 1776-1783. The government of Upper Canada recognized the important location of this small village in 1808, when they authorized the building of a district court house and jail and established the administration of local government here for the District of Johnstown. The new Court House was opened in 1810 and the surrounding open space was developed into what is presently Brockville’s Court House Green, one of the finest urban spaces in Canada. On January 28th 1832, Brockville became the first incorporated village in Upper Canada to receive the status of a self-governing community.

The Fulford Block Building built in 1898

 Looking south down Court House Ave towards the river

Leeds and Grenville County Court House built in 1810. It's now a National Historic Site of Canada. 

 First Baptist Church built in 1878

First Presbyterian Church built in 1879 

Brockville City Hall built in 1864

Brockville Railway Tunnel runs under the downtown core of Brockville, Ontario. The tunnel was built between 1854 and 1860 to allow the fledgling Brockville and Ottawa Railway to connect the Brockville industrial waterfront area to the outlying areas lying between the St Lawrence and Ottawa rivers. It was Canada's first railroad tunnel. Today it is part of the Brock Trail recreational pathway. Complete with LED light show and music. The 1/3 mile walk gives history of the tunnel and a chance to see the mineral formations.

The tunnel as it looked in 1950

Info on the tunnel 

The changing colors in the tunnel

The tunnel was designed to leak. Allowing water to permeate the stone walls prevents the buildup of hydrostatic pressure that could cause the walls to collapse. This continuous flow of water has caused the beautiful mineral deposits that are seen throughout the tunnel.