I would like to travel more, and write about travelling more. I’m not sure how to go about it just yet as the time and budget to travel is nearly zero but I wanted to put it out there to The Universe anyway. (It’s only when You Put Things Out There that things happen, right?) All that being said, I wanted to tell you about a trip we took to Kingston recently. It was fantastic, and made me wonder, yet again, why we don’t take the time to visit Kingston more often. It’s so close to Ottawa and there is great stuff to be seen there!
So this was our itinerary as we set out:
- Pack and leave Ottawa for Sandbanks first thing in the morning.
- Spend the day at the beach and leave for Kingston in the afternoon.
- Check in to our hotel (we booked a room at the Delta Kingston Waterfront Hotel)
- Grab dinner
- Sleep
- Poke around Kingston before heading back to Ottawa
It’s not very detailed, is it, but I was happy to be winging it because I really just wanted to play it by ear and not feel the pressure of having to be somewhere at a certain time. Well, it couldn’t have been better.
Sandbanks, which was so packed with people the weekend before they had to shut down road access to incoming traffic (!), was pretty much perfect. The weather was fantastic (sunny, but not boiling) with a nice breeze coming off the water. We packed a picnic lunch in a big cooler and ate it in the shade of the trees edging the beach.
I’ve written about Sandbanks before. It really is a lovely destination, and perfect for families. The water is relatively calm and shallow, the beach is wide, and there’s plenty of space.
Here’s the view from the parking lot just as we were going to climb the dune to the beach side:
And here’s the beach!
We lolled around for a few hours before deciding to check out a nearby hike: the Sandbanks Dune Trail. Sandbanks has a really unique geology, and we figured this trail would be a good one. We were right. It was, in a nutshell, unlike anything we’ve seen before.
There were hardly any people on the trail, and it was simply gorgeous.
We were pooped out when we were done, and were more than happy to collapse in the car and head to our hotel.
I was happy with our choice: the Delta Kingston Waterfront Hotel. It is in a really great location, right in the heart of Kingston. It was lovely to check in, dump our stuff, have a shower, and just walk out of the hotel in search of dinner. (This is how we ended up at Wooden Heads, which I wrote about here.)
This part of Kingston is very scenic and pedestrian-friendly, and after dinner we stopped at Mio Gelato. Even though I couldn’t possibly eat another bite I somehow managed to eat mine:
We crashed in our beds with full tummies that night, that’s for sure.
There’s a lot to see and do in Kingston, and history was our guide this time around. When we were first researching this trip online, I was disappointed to learn that Kingston Penitentiary was closed to the public. We decided to make do with the Penitentiary Museum. Built in 1873 as the Kingston Penitentiary Warden’s residence (and directly across the street from Kingston Pen), “Cedarhedge” now houses Canada’s Penitentiary Museum.
It was truly a fascinating look at the history of Kingston Pen and the evolution of prison system. Honestly, I have rarely seen the kids so absorbed in a museum experience. A display of real “shivs” and escapes (here’s one novel idea) was of particular interest, as you can imagine. Our visit resulted in many interesting conversations about crime and punishment, rehabilitation, prisoner rights etc. What happens to someone if they’re locked away in a cell that’s hardly bigger than themselves?
If you visit Kingston you must make this a stop along the way. And it’s free. (!)
We walked around the big prison too, but access is limited so we had to stick to the exterior, just off the road.
Next stop: Cataraqui Cemetery. It’s a National Historic Site, and was listed as a stop in a brochure we had. I noticed it was the final resting place of our first prime minister, so we hopped back in the car and set out.
Once we got there, his burial site wasn’t hard to find:
And here’s where I was totally taken by surprise. Given his place in Canadian history, I expected that Sir John A. Macdonald to have an elaborate tomb or sculpture. Well, this was it:
It’s a family plot, marked by a low wrought iron fence. Sir John A’s grave marker is a simple stone cross with an inscription. I guess he didn’t want a fuss, eh?
Of course we couldn’t leave Kingston without visiting a few shops. I was particularly smitten with Midori Gifts and the Antiques Emporium (which had a great mix of old and new items for purchase):
The last stop during our visit to Kingston was to Graham’s Pharmacy. It’s a working pharmacy but it’s also one of Kingston’s oldest and is housed in one of the city’s oldest buildings. It has a cool display of old apothecary treasures which were fun to check out:
When we were too tired to walk anymore we piled back into the car and made our way back to Ottawa. We had one more stop to make along the way. More about that later!
