New York's Finger Lakes and 1000 Islands

From the islands, to lakes, to vineyards and belong

Amy S. Eckert

Thursday, January 12, 2023

A swirl of fog hung close to the water, wrapping the islands in misty tendrils. Out the window of the Thousand Islander, one of a fleet of boats operated by Ontario's Gananoque Boat Line stiff breeze and the day's damp kept cruise passengers inside. But the otherworldly haze and the endless supply of islands had us all with our noses at the windows.

1000+ Islands

Scattered across the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, the Thousand Islands rank as one of the prime tourist attractions in southeastern Ontario and northern New York. In spite of the area's official nomenclature, the region's island tally actually comes in at 1,864. Out my window they passed: small, scarcely bigger than a large boulder; and large, covered with brilliant orange- and yellow-hued hardwood trees. Nearly all supported a century-old summer cottage and boat dock.

The granddaddy of all the island cottages - the cottage that routinely elicits oohs and ahhs from boat passengers was the spectacular 120-room Boldt Castle. A project started in 1900 by George Boldt, millionaire proprietor of New York's Waldorf Astoria Hotel, for his wife Louise, the castle sits on a 5-acre island that was reshaped to resemble a heart from overhead.

Private vessels crisscrossed the St. Lawrence, darting from one island to the next. Kayakers paddled around the islands edges, watching birds or soaking up the sun. The highly touted Thousand Island Playhouse on the Ontario side offers boaters the opportunity to cruise in and tie up at the theater's river dock. And in between all those islands runs the liquid border between Canada and the United States.

Look over there, shouted a crew member, jolting me from my reverie. He pointed at quaint Zavikon Island, joined to a smaller island by way of a white, 32-foot bridge. That's the world's shortest international bridge.

Bitter enemies, friendly neighbors

Relations between the Canadians and Americans could scarcely be more neighborly than they are today. But this cross-border rapport hasn't always been the norm.

In Kingston, the unofficial capital of Ontario's Thousand Islands, the remnants of former hostilities become real in the limestone blocks of Fort Henry. Located where the Rideau Canal, the St. Lawrence and Lake Ontario meet, Fort Henry was restored in 1832 specifically to defend against American attack.

The Rideau Canal, said Fort Henry tour guide Mark Bennett, leads directly to Ottawa, Canada's capital city. There was genuine fear in the years after the War of 1812 that the Americans might attack and then head inland, or that they might interfere with these important waterways.

It was a fear that never materialized, and soldiers at Fort Henry never fired a shot. But this Canadian fort routinely draws crowds to observe its recreated 19th-century military maneuvers - and 20,000 visitors each autumn for its transformation into a colossal haunted house called Fort Fright.

Islands to lakes

The Thousand Islands International Bridge joins the Canadian and American halves of the St. Lawrence and links with Interstate 81 in Upstate New York. Following the southern contours of Lake Ontario, my autumn road trip continued over the undulating countryside, past hardwood forests ablaze with autumn color.

Once I neared Syracuse, I recognized the landscape of New York's famed Finger Lakes. Nestled in glacial grooves, ridges that cover the rural fabric between Syracuse and Rochester, the region's 11 lakes range in length from about six to 40 miles. The region pays homage to its Native American legacy in its place names: Canandaigua, Keuka, Skaneateles, and Cayuga.

Perched on these rural ridges sit tidy rows of vineyards, grown golden in autumn. After the outdoor recreation promised by dozens of state forests and parks, wineries constitute the Finger Lakes chief tourist attraction. Riesling and gewurztraminer wines reign in the Finger Lakes, with a good showing of chardonnay, cabernet franc and pinot noir wines to round out the list.

Vineyard excursions

In 1860, Pleasant Valley Wine Company became the United States first federally sanctioned winery, almost immediately making waves at European competitions with its sparkling wine. Pleasant Valley still pours samples of that Great Western sparkling wine that drew early acclaim from its tasting room on Keuka Lake.

Farther north, along glimmering Keuka Lake and its red-and-gold-hued grapevines, I visited Dr. Konstantin Frank Wine Cellars. Frank made history in 1962 when he perfected the method of grafting delicate European grape varieties onto American rootstock, enabling northern American vintners to simultaneously produce hardy vines and award-winning wines.

In Dr. Frank's tasting room, visitors put the wine to the test, swirling, sniffing, and sipping samples of buttery chardonnay, crisp riesling, and floral white Rkatsiteli, a Georgian varietal thought to be one of the world's oldest.

To the east, few wineries command a view of the brilliant Finger Lakes like Glenora Wine Cellars. Perched on the crest of a hillside above Seneca Lake, Glenora's tasting room overlooks acres of grapevines, their fruit heavy and ready for harvest.

Glenora's tasting room looks out through oversized windows, allowing visitors to admire Seneca Lake while pairing wines with locally produced cheeses. It's difficult to pay attention to the tasting room attendant, what with the glorious autumn color just out the window, and I had miles to go before my day was over. But with a landscape this lovely, there was no reason to hurry.