Captain Jack Spotted at Boat Show - Big Winner: Come on down!

Picture above and story received directly from Dark Island's Jean Papke, Administrative Assistant to the President of Singer Castle (Tom Weldon). Click on the photo to see it larger.

CAPTAIN JACK SPOTTED AT BOAT SHOW

Over 72,000 visitors from all over Canada, the U.S. and several foreign countries braved wintry weather to attend the 2011 Toronto International Boat Show.  Representatives of 1000 Islands International Tourism Council and Singer Castle joined over 500 other vendors in Toronto’s Direct Energy Center to share information about the 1000 Islands Region.  Among those spotted at the Singer Castle Booth was Captain Jack Sparrow who is pictured above talking to Sir Frederick.

More than 850 of the visitors to the Singer Castle booth registered to win an evening in the castle’s Royal Suite. At the close of the show an entry from Nelly, one of the Canadian visitors to the castle’s booth, was chosen.   Castle staff is awaiting a reply to the e-mail that notified Nelly of her lucky entry.

1000 Islands video tour from Rockport Boat Lines.

Kick back and take this easy tour of the Thousand Islands with a focus on Boldt Castle and a sampling of "Millionaires' Row" (stately summer homes, each on its own island). An interesting 10 minutes and 22 seconds, enjoy the free tour on this part of the St. Lawrence River! Courtesy of the Rockport Boat Line, Ontario.

The ship Algobay off Dark Island is free!

The ship Algobay that ran aground near Singer Castle on Dark Island in the St. Lawrence River near Chippewa Bay NY is free as of this morning! The photos above, taken by the President of Singer Castle, Tom Weldon, show the tug boats and the ship. Click on the photos to see them larger. The ship ran aground several days ago on July 4th, and now is on its way to a Canadian port at Prescott, Ontario. For more details, check out my previous blogs and Michael Folsom's blog, The Shipwatcher.

Who owns these lands?

This Canadian video is very timely. While our State of New York debates the closing of its State parks (as the State drowns in taxes and debt), this video asks the question...who owns the park lands?

The last scenic clip (with the little girl and canoe) is of the St. Lawrence River, which we know is the home of Boldt Castle on Heart Island and Singer Castle on Dark Island and so many other wonderful sites in the Thousand Islands and beyond.

New book inspired by Thousand Islands' Boldt Castle

The Castle on Deadman's Island is authored by Canadian author Curtis Parkinson who has roots in the Thousand Islands. Written for young adults, the author states that his book (fiction) was inspired by Boldt Castle. As the book gets into secret passageways I imagine Singer Castle on Dark Island also had some influence on the storyline. The cover picture even has a startling similarity to Singer Castle secret passageway entrances that I have passed through myself (click on the above picture to see it larger). I have not read the book, but in trying to keep my fellow 1000 Islands castle aficionados up to date I am blogging about it here.

When the owner of the castle on Deadman’s Island dies, his bizarre will leaves it to three of his friends who hate each other. Product description calls it an excellent new mystery that involves an eccentric millionaire, a woman’s disappearance, a towering castle, a secret tunnel and much more make this a compelling read.

The Kingston Whig Standard reports: “’I like setting the book in the early '40s when I was a young teenager,’ says Parkinson. ‘Canada was coming out of the Great Depression and everything was changing. The war was going on but in Canada we remained relatively innocent. And because a lot of women were out working, teenagers had a lot of freedom. And the Thousand Islands Bridge had just been built.’ In the book, Graham's Aunt Henrietta has just inherited one-third of a castle in the Thousand Islands. Unfortunately the two other beneficiaries have an intense dislike of her. When she goes missing, Graham suspects foul play. He recruits his friends and soon they are tramping around the castle -- at night of course when it's creepier -- discovering clues and secret passages and, of course, criminal activity.”

The book is available from Amazon.com. It is also reported to be available in Kingston (Canada) at Chapters, 2376 Princess St., Indigo Books, 259 Princess St., and Novel Idea, 156 Princess St. (This blogger has no ties to this book).