QUINTE CRUISE - DAY TWO

Glenora on Prince Edward County

Today was a "sea" day — a long cruise with no stops from Kingston to Trenton.

We sailed west along the shore of Lake Ontario though broad channels past Glenora and Belleville. Peaceful cruise, time to relax.

The sun shone and passengers conversed, did jigsaw puzzles, and played cards and board games. I caught up with my photos and wrote. We had no stops to get off the ship to stretch our legs. The evening activity took care of that.






I had been wanting to see a laker since we arrived onto the lake and had been
unlucky in the Seaway. But I saw one today, heading east — only one. Also saw three small rocky islands totally destroyed by hundreds of cormorants. Their acidic droppings kill all the flora and then they move on and do it to the next island.

We docked in the heart of Trenton at 1630 by city hall and a pleasant park. A mayoral representative met us and Trenton Tourism handed us goody bags with maps and guides. Many took the opportunity for a walk down the main street.

But I decided to save my energy for the visit to the National RCAF Museum at CFB Trenton. After dinner we piled into a school bus driven by a retired RCMP detective and set out. The museum is in the process of expanding and reorganizing, but it impressed me nonetheless. Outside is the air park full of static displays and inside the new building is the restored Halifax bomber that was salvaged from Norway in 700 feet of water. this is impressive! There are also display cases full of artifacts telling the RCAF story from 1914 to the present.

Billy Bishop's stone is top right

But what most moved me were the "stones." Surrounding the planes in the air park are thousands of white bricks, each with the name of an RCAF member. The ones for those who are still alive, await their birth and death dates. Others show that they were young men who died in WW2 on active service. The most impressive is the small group of Canadian VCs, including Billy Bishop.

Link to Ontario Waterway Cruises is www.ontariowaterwaycruises.com.

IMAGES: © Photos by Pharos 2014. All rights reserved