Cruising The St Clair River Flats

Our cruise today is called "Wetlands and Wildlife" and it takes us on a 4 hour run to the northern part of Lake St. Clair and to part of the St. Clair River Delta. This, the largest freshwater delta in the world is shared by US and Canada with the border running through the middle.

A guest speaker from the Department of Natural Resources - DNR.

Erin and I enjoying the cruise.

We remembered some of the places we passed from our boating days when we visited the delta several times. In fact our old boat the Phoenix came from this area.

Some of the residences are very old.

Erin gets right into the mud and vegetation retrieved from the lake bottom.

Samples of lake mud were collected and analysed as we went along

An underwater camera was deployed to scan the marshy lake bottom.

The trip took us through canals with interesting and historic architecture.

These properties were reclaimed from the swamps by filling the land to create a building site accessible only by boat.

Michelle and Cathy, our interpretors explain the difference between muscrat and beaver pelts.

Wendy chats with fellow explorers.

Erin talks shop with the DNR guest speaker.
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Goodbye Quay Street Brewery! R.I.P.

One of our favorite restaurants is officially dead. Last year a young couple purchased the restaurant from previous long-time owners. At first everything seemed to stay pretty much the same but our visit with Jake and Erin was a sad experience. The clues of negative change were, in hindsight, fairly clear. Clue 1: We had no trouble parking on the street right out front. Clue 2: The main level bar near the entrance was replaced by a huge, sterile room with big beer vats. Clue 3: There was none of the usual line-up to get a table on the outside terrace overlooking the Black River.

After we were seated we were surprised that everything on the menu seemed to be different and worse... NO DOMESTIC BEER in the place. Only expensive, heavy tasting "craft beer" was offered. These beers are never my favorite but especially unsuitable for a 90 degree beer-drinking day. Ominously the place was nearly empty at noon even though it was a perfect, sunny, warm Saturday noon. Even the new name, Thumb Coast Brewery, makes me want to thumb my nose at their new offerings.

The Muffaletta sandwich no longer comes with fries but was large and quite tasty. The lager beer I ordered was heavy and bitter and didn't quench my thirst. I ended up ordering water to cool off. The staff was eager to please and the view was still great but the total bill was considerably higher than past visits. Sadly, I doubt if I'll return soon. So long old friend.
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We're Booked!

Wendy, Erin and I are driving down to Metro Beach Park next week to board the M.V. Clinton for a cruise out onto Lake St Clair.

Internet file picture

You may recall we did a similar cruise last summer on July 16 and really enjoyed it. Summer Discovery Cruises offer anyone interested in exploring Lake Erie, the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair the opportunity to get out on the water for an educational experience. CLICK HERE to read about these inexpensive and interesting water encounters. I'll post pictures after our cruise next week.
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Doors Open Sarnia/Lambton - Day 2

We usually go to the Sarnia Street Machines car show with our condo neighbour George but he has not been well lately so Wendy and I drove over to Canatara Park bright and early in hopes of getting there before it got too hot since they were predicting highs in the 80's F.

It looked like there was a very good turn-out, I suppose because of the excellent weather.

After the car show we headed downriver to Mooretown and  few miles east on Moore Line to Leaper's Farm. Wendy wouldn't let me stop at the Sarnia Sewage Treatment Plant which was also on the tour. "Some things are better watched on TV." ...Wendy

I think Wendy would have enjoyed a milk shake after walking all day.

An old Studebaker in the garage.

An old Ford truck waits patiently at the clearview pumps.

Mr. Leaper (center) describes his many projects.

Leaper Farm

The owners of Leaper Farm have collected various large antiques over the years. Included in their collection is a Texaco gas station, 4 antique gas pumps, 6 antique cars including a 1931 Auburn that previously belonged to the Lawrence family of Sarnia, 5 antique tractors, and a 1950s room. The Moore Museum is worth a whole day's visit. I was blown away by the size and diversity of this collection of buildings and artifacts. An old friend from the condos, Ross Laur (now deceased)  used to own this historic wooden bicycle. Read about it CLICK HERE. The old Duc D'Orleans, a former Fairmile cruiser  is now just a memory as it hit the dumpster last year. CLICK HERE to read the sad details. Moore Museum Moore Museum offers a wealth of historic settings and intriguing exhibits. Our 12 buildings – including a one-room schoolhouse, log cabin, Victorian cottage, railroad station, caboose and blacksmith shop – provide opportunities for nostalgia or discovery for visitors of all ages. Artifacts ranging from mastodon bones to antique toys, and demonstrations by costumed staff, will engage visitors in authentic heritage experiences. The always popular Lionel model trains will be running during Doors Open weekend. Finally, we rounded out the day by visiting a private residence in Port Lambton. It's the home of a former steamer captain. Captain Cain's House This home was built in 1933 for retired Great Lakes Captain Richard Arthur Cain and his wife Josephine. See the original hard wood floors and ceilings, solid wood doors, crystal chandelier, and bevelled glass lead came windows. Enjoy the river view from the dock and see the brass light fixture from the Captain's ship which still hangs in the front foyer. Location: 4448 St. Clair Parkway, Port Lambton Wendy relaxes on the dock as a freighter approaches. This ended our Doors open tour of Sarnia Lambton for this year. We took a nice drive back up the 25 or so miles along the St Clair River to our condo. . . .