Water is one of the best attractions here in Perth County. Whether it is a river, waterfall, lake, or stream, there is nothing better to do but to sit along side and enjoy the songs that the water plays for us.
One of the nicest things to do here in Stratford, is to take the tour boat around the lake. It was one of the first activities we did when we moved here and plan to take it again in the autumn when the trees start turning colour. It’s not exactly “rolling down the river” but it is a nice, relaxing cruise!
You get the boat from Avon Boat Rentals -- it is right between the Lake and the public parking lot on York Street. So the dock is a little hard to explain where it is – but let me try. Obviously, they are down at water level at the west end of Lake Victoria. (Some people say it is part of the Avon River, but on maps, the Avon feeds in at the west end of Lake Victoria and continues after the east end of the Lake.)
At the west end of downtown Stratford, Ontario Street crosses Erie Street. One block north of Ontario Street is York Street, where you turn left to get to the Public Parking lot and Avon Boat Rental. It is a quaint little street that has small stores and cafes that are actually in the basements of the buildings facing onto Ontario Street.
One of the nicest things to do here in Stratford, is to take the tour boat around the lake. It was one of the first activities we did when we moved here and plan to take it again in the autumn when the trees start turning colour. It’s not exactly “rolling down the river” but it is a nice, relaxing cruise!
You get the boat from Avon Boat Rentals -- it is right between the Lake and the public parking lot on York Street. So the dock is a little hard to explain where it is – but let me try. Obviously, they are down at water level at the west end of Lake Victoria. (Some people say it is part of the Avon River, but on maps, the Avon feeds in at the west end of Lake Victoria and continues after the east end of the Lake.)
At the west end of downtown Stratford, Ontario Street crosses Erie Street. One block north of Ontario Street is York Street, where you turn left to get to the Public Parking lot and Avon Boat Rental. It is a quaint little street that has small stores and cafes that are actually in the basements of the buildings facing onto Ontario Street.
On the upper level of the building, there is a tourism office to help you find your way around town, as well it has pubic washrooms. Take the stairs or the ramp down to the lower level and you will find Avon Boat Rentals. From here, you can rent canoes, kayaks, paddle boats or take the tour boat.
This covered, slow-moving tour boat goes down Lake Victoria, under the Waterloo Street bridge, around the island, past the Festival Theatre and turns before the bridge at the east end of the lake before it starts its way back. The boat even has soft music playing so that you really can relax and enjoy the scenery. I don’t know how long the trip was as I was so taken by looking at the homes and shooting some pics of the landscape and wildlife, but I would guess it was about 30 minutes. The guys who run the boats are really nice and try to answer any questions you may have.
While on the tour, you get up close to the swans, ducks, geese and even a Cormorant who poses on a buoy just as you leave dock. When we left on our tour, the bird just posed and didn’t move and I was sure it was a decoy. When we returned, there he was still posing, but as we went around him, he turned his head and looked at me. What a ham!! After doing a little research, I think this is a Double-crested Cormorant that strips trees of vegetation and eats lots of fish every day. No wonder he waits on the buoy while looking for his next meal!
When we got back to the dock, we noticed the white swan came over with her four 4-month old cygnets. It is so interesting that baby swans are actually quite gray until they fully mature. So I snapped lots of pics while Dawna fed them their special roasted corn (also for sale at the snack shop where you buy your tickets for the boat ride). They are so soft and beautiful – almost as graceful as their mom. We then sat at the snack shop patio and had ice cream – but they also have great hamburgers, hot dogs, sausage, peameal bacon, chips and cold drinks in case you get hungry after pedaling or paddling those boats.
When I said at the beginning of this blog, that it is so nice to sit along the river banks and listen to the music – I also meant literally. Almost every evening in the summer months, the H.M.S. Razzamajazz barge is launched around 6:30 p.m. For about an hour, this riverboat goes up and down Lake Victoria with live music being played for all to hear. Some nights there is a jazz singer, other nights a band, maybe a couple of guitarists, and even a country folk band. No matter who is playing, it is always fun to go out on the front porch and sing along to “New York”, “Tiny Bubbles”, or “I Want a Girl”. No matter what genre of music is being played, and whether or not you know the words, you can always tap your foot to the music.
So not everybody cruises down the river or sits on the riverbank listening to the music. Stratford is also known for its famous Dragon Boat Festival Races put on by the Rotary Club. This year, the big race is on Saturday, September 15. Apparently this is a really big festival with over 60 teams competing and people come from all around to watch the races. In fact, from our front porch, we have been watching two local teams practice in the evenings just to get ready for the big race! But I just checked the website for this event, which is: www.rotarystratford.com and found out that these teams will start their practicing on Monday, September 3 for the next two weeks. It should be an exciting time – I can’t wait to watch – yes watch, no way I’m getting in a boat that long with so many people on board! But cheers to those risk-takers who get out there to have some fun! If I get close enough to get some good pics, I will post them in a blog later this month.
I do have a sad post script to add to this blog. The other night, we went down to the boat dock just to have a burger by the water. This was the last day of August and the weather has been so beautiful, we figure why not eat outside – we don’t know how many more evenings we will have till it starts getting cold. But I digress! We saw the mother swan and her cygnets come over to the dock – but there were only 3 cygnets. So I went and asked one of the guys where the other cygnet was. He said that last week, a mink (can you believe it – a mink running around Stratford??) came down, swam in the water towards the cygnet and attacked it. Someone was able to get the cygnet out of the water and take it to the vet, but the young swan lost an eye and had required a lot of stitches. The poor cygnet was returned to the lake a few days later, but the family rejected it as they thought it was ill. So the young injured swan was taken to a pen to recuperate. I know that life in the wild is dangerous, but why would a little mink try and kill a swan that is almost full size by now? Life isn’t fair! But it is good to know that he wasn’t killed, that he is in a lovely new home for now and, perhaps later on, he will be reunited with his siblings.
At least I have some pics of the cygnets and I hope you enjoy them.
At least I have some pics of the cygnets and I hope you enjoy them.
So when you come down to visit Stratford, and you want to get some exercise, rent a paddle boat, canoe or kayak and enjoy the outdoors. And if you want a more relaxing cruise on the lake, remember to take the tour boat – the one with the blue canopy on top!
Happy Cruising!
Heather
Happy Cruising!
Heather
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