Niagara River

With all the hot and ridiculously humid weather we have been experiencing here, nothing beats being on our boat.

We have quite a few boating choices around here, but my favorite place to go is the Niagara River, between Lewiston and Lake Ontario.  Fort Niagara State Park, located at the tip of Lake Ontario and the Niagara River merge, has a great boat launch. 

After motoring up river to Lewiston, we cut the engine and let the drift push us back to the Lake. 

This is where we start drifting.  Here's a view up river, with the States on the right and Canada on the left. That's the Lewiston-Queenston bridge, with the Power Plant hugging the bank beyond that on the right.

Any further than this point on the River, makes me a bit nervous.  The swirling rapids become more and more intense.  I only venture up to that part of the river on one of these big boys:

While boating in the River on the 4th of July we came across this patriotic group of tubers.  Ah yes, to be young (and foolish?) again! 

They had been stuck in an eddy for about 20 minutes and as we went by them, they asked us for a tow back out into the drift.  We were happy to oblige.  Of course, the mother in me then worried about them the rest of the day!  Yep, guess I'm 'old'.

After we get to Lake Ontario, I always like to head east a bit to see the grounds of Fort Niagara.  Just so happens they were having a re-enactment weekend, so there was all sorts of activity going on.  It's an amazing place.

This is a picture of the building that houses the kitchen.  It's my favorite building on the grounds.

Stay cool - get wet! 

New Garden Blooms!

I put in a new perennial, Lobellia, this year.  I hadn't heard of it before, and I needed something that would do well in shade, so my friendly local grower suggested it. 

Look at the bloom!  Love it!!  Thanks Michael!

And here are the mystery orchids that have appeared under my clump birch tree.  They are teeny tiny but beautiful.

They say we have had one of the wettest Junes on record.  Funny, I don't remember it being so rainy.   I feel like the weather has been so nice for so long, I can't believe it's only the beginning of July!  Promises of a beautiful sunny and warm weekend have been made-let's hope they're right.