Upper Canada

Update on May 17 Truck Incident: 

Long story short, the other driver finally admitted to losing control of his car while trying to pass us in the wrong lane in the rain and crashing into us. His insurance company will pay for everything and we are being reimbursed for all expenses while we were in Sault Ste Marie and are getting our deductible back . Also ICBC said as we are at no fault it will not affect our insurance rates.

May 25

One night stop at Stone Creek, then onto

Upper Canada Bird Sanctuary 

(West of Cornwell, Ontario)

A few hours east of the Soo, the terrain is similar to the prairies with large agriculture farmlands.

For several miles, we see this type of signage.

(managed a couple of fly-by photos from the truck with wipers at high speed)

We eventually see what the signs represent.

Through torrential rains, this Amish man, his little boy, and horse, make their way along the shoulder to their destination.   We did not see any of their farm houses along the way so most must live off the beaten path away from civilization.

But the shoulders are super wide in order to allow them space among the speeding automobiles.

An old, abandoned farm house

May 26

We arrive mid afternoon to our next stop:  

Upper Canada Bird Sanctuary, Morrison Island.   Just 30 km west of Cornwall, Ontario along the St. Lawrence River, which extends out in the river to the US boundary.

Our RV/campsite is

about ten miles on a dirt road, across Nairn Island and onto Morrison Island.   

First two nights, there were two others camped here.  The rest of the week - ALL to ourselves.

Regularly watching the large barges make their way up the St. Lawrence river, while navigating through the Great Lakes.

Upper Canada Interpretive Centre

A quick drive to the info centre and start of the trails, to check out the new surroundings.

First thing, I see a red squirrel

"now, grab your left foot here, and stretch it this way . . . "

to my left, I look down to see

these eyes staring up at me   .   .    .

About a three foot red-striped garter snake calmly watching me.

Very soon, I see a blue jay

and baby Canadian Geese

The trails are heavily wooded and along alot of ponds and swamp land, with several places still flooded from spring snow melt.    Feeling so lucky that the bugs aren't out yet!!!

Just down the road from us is Camp Kagama - a summer camp for kids.   Only open July/August.

Several boardwalks connect the pathways across the ponds.   Some of the boardwalks have been battered by winter weather and spring flooding.





Surrounding our campground we see alot of wildlife:

Wild Turkey

White-tailed deer

very 'chicken' white-tailed deer

and not so wild wildlife

On our way to see one of the coolest things we have seen in quite awhile, we see these Coromorants resting beside the causeway between the islands and the mainland.

Upper Canada Village

Just west of us is this amazing Historical Village. It takes you back to the 1860s, with an interactive, working village of history.

The brief history of Upper Canada began in 1791, with the passage of the Constitutional Act of 1791.  As a result of the influx of Loyalists from the American Revolutionary War, the Province of Quebec was divided into two new colonies, consisting of Lower, and Upper Canada.

BELLAMY'S FLOUR MILL

Upper Canada Village began in 1958 as part of the St. Lawrence Seaway project, which required the permanent flooding of ten communities in the area, known as The Lost Villages.


The Village depicts life in a rural English Canadian setting during the year 1866.   With over 40 historical buildings and staff dressed in period clothing, discussing and interpreting life in that era, it feels like walking into a time capsule.





















Bellamy's Flour Mill - wheat is brought in, ground at the Mill with steam power and flour and homemade bread is sold at the Village market only (not sold in super markets).   

The bread is super great - fresh, wholesome and totally natural.

Beach's Sawmill

A single, water-driven vertical saw runs this mill.   All the lumber for the Village is processed here by hand.   






Prior to the construction of this technology, all lumber was "pit sawn."   It meant two men, one in a pit and another standing on a log above him working a long two handed saw.

Spinning wool with an over 200 year old spinning wheel.    The McDiarmid family arrived from Scotland in the early 1860s.  This house was brought into the Village (from 50 kms away) and is used for demonstrations of spinning and weaving.   Sheep are kept on the farm and sheared on site, wool sent to the factory for processing (on site).

A beautiful hand-sewn quilt.   A new technique that has not been used before (fabric is felted).


ASSELSTINE'S WOOLLEEN FACTORY





Raw wool (from the sheep on site) is brought into a large holding room to the working factory from the 1800s.

The wool is carded with water driven turbines on this machine and through a pulley system, the next machine spins it into a rope, next machine forms the carded yarn into balls and then,







Eventually, dyed and spun into yarn on this giant spinning machine.

And, finer yet - into threads.















The Asselstine family was involved in the manufacture of woolen material in the early 19th century (yard, batts for quilting, blankets, tweeds, flannels etc.   This atomization changed a large part of the workforce in textiles at the time.





(Photo is a picture of an automated weaving loom).







FARM ANIMALS

Milk cows, pigs, chickens, sheep, horses  . . . .

Oxen

CHEESE FACTORY

By the 1860s, an increase in milk production led to the emergence of privately owned and co-operative cheese factories.


Settlers of Upper Canada frequently made their own cheese, using home prepared rennet and their supply of milk.


Today, they still make their own cheese, sold only on site at the gift shop.   They still use the old wooden mould and this vat with stringent sanitation rules.

Photo courtesy of website

CHRIST CHURCH

Christ Church was built in 1837 in a style known as Picturesque.   

The church has no cross inside or candles on the alter;  such things were unacceptable to this congregation in the 1860s.






The land and support for its construction were given to the Church of England congregation of Moulinette by Adam Dixon (a wealthy, local miller).

The church has a functioning melodeon (reed organ built in 1862).

HOUSING

The wealthier families had much larger rooms of course but also parlors with pianos, draperies and the kitchens had stoves.

Photo:   Courtesy of the website

Interestingly, some of the kitchens are still used.   During opening season today, staff prepare and cook meals for the staff in the actual kitchens of the 1800s.   The staff then eat dinners early in the afternoon.    You can wander through the houses on all floors and the smell of the home cooked meals permeates throughout the house.

Photo:  Courtesy of the website

Less fortunate families cooked their meals in a fireplace in the kitchen.

TOW SCOW

You can take a scenic ride along the canal on this scow

which is 'driven' by Maggie the horse:   she pulls the scow with a heavy duty rope and has a path worn along the edge of the canal.

There is so much more to this Village but I will end it here.

Back at the campground and marshlands, I finish with a few more 'creatures' I encountered during my quiet walks (hardly saw anyone).

A mother painted turtle coaxing her little one to get a move on.

and, of course - the Canada Goose appears everywhere.

The closest I could get to the beaver before they (two of them) slapped their tails on the water and fled.

I watched for a long time as the weeds wiggled in the water and saw this creature surfacing.   It slowly emerged with its head, slowly opened its eye and slowly sank back down into the water.    I believe it is a large snapping turtle (you can see the bumps of its back in the photo if you look closely).

Then, swimming across the pond this muskrat came towards me and under the boardwalk, unconcerned.   Unlike the shy beavers.





Apart from alot of bird species that I saw (they migrate and nest in this area), we saw these things covering our RV every evening.

They do not bite (thankfully) but are quite annoying asl they fly in huge clouds around your face.

After a week, we leave a place that we highly recommend and now, May 30th, head towards the city - Quebec City.    Time to get out our translation app!