Next stop on this long day is a visit to the Saint Croix Island International Historic Site. Although you cannot actually go out to the island, a Visitor's Center and interesting displays sit on the shore of the St. Croix River.
I am, however, getting a little ahead of myself. The US Customs let us back in, and we found the West Quoddy Lighthouse. I know there are a few of you out there that love light house pictures! Incidentally, the lighthouse at the top of this post is located at Calais, ME.
Now turning north on Hwy 1, we head up to St. Croix Island, but first, stop for lunch at Uncle Kippy's.
Now along the shore of the St. Croix River, we finally come to the site. Our experience has shown that GPS navigation, at least when it comes to finding historic sites, leaves much to be desired. After a trial or two, we finally find it!
The yellow house on top of the hill is the visitor's center, and we get to meet the great Park Ranger and, more importantly, Bob gets to stamp his National Passport Book!
There are many displays and very beautiful bronze statues. Basically the French wanted to convert the local Indian's to Christianity, cultivate and settle the lands, explore and find precious metals. Finding a Northwest Passage to the Orient was still one of the goals. Champlain had his work cut out for him!
The choice for this island as a Fort proved tragic. The French had no idea how severe the winters were, and many men died of starvation. So close to the shore, they had no way to reach it, and their food supply consisted only of salted meat and vegetables.
Because the river is narrow at this point, it is difficult to see this small island with the mainland in the background. The model shows what the village may have looked like.
The Ranger, Meg Scheid, told us it was a shame we didn't have time to visit the rural area's of Maine. Bob and I pretty much thought we were out in the middle of nowhere! Can't imagine what the "rural" areas looked like! Meg also said she saw a beautiful bull Moose on the way to work. We haven't seen any moose yet, but are really anxious to see one.
A short drive takes us to Calais, the end of the road for us. It turned out to have a great little pizza place, and they told us of the Moose Preserve right at the end of town. Unfortunately for us, it is dark by the time we finish our pizza, and no respectable moose is showing himself tonight!
For further information:
Saint Croix Island
1 comment:
Nice photos. I've been to Calais, but never to Quoddy Head. Thanks for sharing all the pics.
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