Bruce and I bid Niagara Falls farewell around 7:30 this morning under sunny skies and a temperature of 60 degrees and still very breezy and cool. We headed east on a scenic highway which turned out to be a very historic road to travel as there were a lot of older, very beautiful homes that appear to have been very well kept over the years. Also along the way ever so often, we would see really neat looking cemeteries, and as you all know, I enjoy tromping around old cemeteries so this definetely merited a stop. While walking around the cemetery we spotted a couple of intersting things. We found at least 2 Revolutionay War soldier's graves. One of the soldier's was born in 1729 and died in 1812 at the age of 83. There may have been more soldiers buried here, but the grave markers were very hard to read since they were so old. So...Picky...I found a place for the cemetery ride this year!!! (Just kidding!) We arrived in Watertown, NY around 1pm which was our destination for the night. Since it was still early in the day, we decided to go on up to Boldt Castle and tour it this afternoon rather than in the morning. This will put us about a half day ahead of schedule. We arrived in Alexandria Bay just in time to take the next shuttle boat out to Heart Island to tour the castle. Boldt Castle was truly another wonder. (The picture of Bruce and me is taken in front of the power house for the castle.) This is a very beautiful castle which was built by George C. Boldt for his wife. During construction of the castle, tragedy struck. Here is some information from a brochure that we received: "Boldt castle, on Heart Island, was to be the testimony of the unsurpassed love of a man for his wife. The magnificence of the structure was to be equalled only by George Boldt's adoration of Louise, who was the love of his life and reason for the construciton of such an elaborate summer home. The finest of artists, craftsmen and materials were sought for the work which was well underway when tragedy struck. Mrs. Boldt was dead, and a telegram arrived ordering all work to stop. Three hundred workmen dropped their tools and left the island, never to return. The sculptures, Italian mantle pieces, imported tapestries and fine furniture never reached their intended places in this ill-fated, melancholy mansion. Today, visitors wander in awe through the huge, empty rooms, imagining the luxury, splendor and gaiety that might have been."....."George C. Boldt came to America in the 1860's from Prussia, the son of poor parents. A man of tremendous organizational skill, daring and imagination, he became the most successful hotel magnate in America, managing/profit-sharing the Waldorf-Astoria in New York, and the Bellevue-Statford in Philadelphia. He was the president of several companies, a trustee of Cornell University, and the director of the Hotel Association of New York. For Boldt, to dream and to do were synonymous. Boldt Castle stands as an eternal monument to the memory of the man whose dreams were no more far-reaching than his capabilities." If you would like more information on Boldt Castle, go to http://www.boldtcastle.com/ . If you are ever in the area, this is a must to see. Truly breathtaking! After returning to Watertown, we checked in to our hotel, and found a really nice family style restaurant called Fairground Inn (because it is located next to the local fairgrounds). The restaurant was established in 1937 and is still there today, and doing a very good business. It was packed tonight. We are now settled in for the night a little earlier for a change. Today's mileage was 278 miles.
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