Two Nation Tour Uncle Sam Boat Tour of 1000 Islands!

While staying in Thousand Islands we always enjoy Uncle Sam’s 2 Nation 2 1/4 hour boat tour. It is the best way to appreciate the more than 1,000 Islands in this area. The Thousand Islands are both in the US and Canada. No passport is needed to enter Canadian waters as long as you do not anchor or dock anywhere. There are 1,864 Islands and you only get to see a small number of them. At the end of the tour you can get off the boat and spend time at Heart Island that contains the beautiful Boldt’s Castle. Pictures and stories will be shared about Boldt’s Castle in a future posting.

The tour starts with getting a ticket and finding a good seat on the boat. We prefer to be on top to enjoy the fresh air of the St. Lawrence River. It is a clean river as there are fines if you throw anything in the water and fines if boats are going too fast. We were staying at Riveredge Resort and you can see our resort from the boat and during our tour.

Below is a view of Riveredge Resort. That is where we stayed and our balcony faces the Uncle Sam boat tours. I shared views from our hotel room balcony in this posting.

We were relaxed on the cruise! The days were sunny, hot and just perfect to be on the river.

I love the Island that has a bridge crossing the US and Canada. The story goes if the owner gets mad at the country he is in, he just walks over the bridge to the other country. He just leaves the country! It is the shortest bridge between the US and Canada. Can you imagine owning it!

My favorite Islands tend to be the small ones! This house has an interesting story. Boldt was extremely wealthy and part of the Gilded Age. He built this small house for his mother-in-law because there wasn’t room for her in the mansion. And it is rumored she was a sleep walker – could be dangerous on this little Island! Not sure how much of that is true, but it makes for a good story. To provide a perspective of the Island size, I included Boldt’s Boat House! Can you see the boat house in the below picture? It is to the right of the small house.

Ok rumor about this house. A retired football player bought this house and asked his grandchildren what color to paint it. And they were little girls and wanted pink. So he has a pink house!

This is the smallest Island. Notice the sign that say 15? That is the speed limit and if you are caught going above it there are stiff fines. To be considered an Island, three conditions must be met: 1) Above water level year round; 2) Have an area greater than 1 square foot; and 3) Support at least one living tree.