St Joseph Island motorcycle trip. Photo Heavy.

Chako · **on:** August 06, 2014, 01:24:49 AM

I left at 8 am, and came back at around 5 pm...what a great day.

Here is a map of St Joseph Island.

http://www.sjichamber.ca/st-joseph-island-map.htm

At the St Joseph Island turnoff, there is this little rest area just before you cross the bridge onto the island.

Got to take some motorcycle shots in here.

The rest area is very lovely with rugged rocks and pine trees.

Well after the little rest, which was much appreciated after riding Highway 17, I decided to go the opposite direction to my usual route. In stead of heading towards Richard's Landing, I went towards Hilton Beach. Here I am at the Hilton Beach Marina.

War Memorial at Hilton Beach.

More of the Marina.

After a pit stop to get something to drink, I headed out onto highway 548 which does its best to take you around most of the island. On the southern section, I decided on impulse to take a breather at Fort St. Joseph.

A little history link first...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_St._Joseph_(Ontario)

Here is what you see when you get out of the parking lot and walk towards the visitor center.

Inside the visitor center, there is a museum, a souvenir shop, and a small theater. Here is the first display, with the museum in the background.

Now into the museum...

Once the museum was toured, it was time to head out to the fort. Now where I come from...most forts are intact. Fort St. Joseph is a bit of a let down in that it was destroyed in the war of 1812 but was never rebuilt. Thus, all you see are foundations. Not bad however as they only charge 3 dollars admission...still worth a look.

This is the military road.

Another site map.

This is what greets you when you get out of the short forested area that separates the tourist center and the fort proper.

The Powder Magazine.

More of the powder magazine survived than most of the fort, except for a chimney.

In the center was this metal model of the fort. I guess to help you visualize what your seeing. With only foundations left, it did help.

The blockhouse.

Military Kitchen.

Stores Building.

Stores on the right, chimney on left.

The chimney seems to have survived the best.

Guardhouse.

Flagpole next to the block house.

That is about it for the fort. Here are a few general shot of the fort grounds.

There are also a few outside buildings. Here is the Blacksmith.

I didn't take the time to visit a few of the extra external buildings. I figured seen one foundation, seen them all. Here is a shot of the lovely trail that brought me back to the visitors center.

One of the trails leads straight to the fort...they call this the military trail.

And finally back to the visitor center.

And of course the parking lot. One would think I love my motorcycle.

Here I am putting away my souvenirs and getting ready for the road.

On the way in, I thought to myself I need to get this shot...so i got it on my way out.

So after riding along the beautiful scenic route 548, I ended up at Richard's Landing. By this time, I was getting a little hungry, so I stopped at my favorite place on the island to eat, the Lighthouse Grill. I ordered a Bison burger with fries and gravy, and a side dish of rigatoni, along with a glass of unsweetened iced tea.

The view from the restaurant.

And of course the last few of the motorcycle lol.

I then headed back home. It never ceases to amaze me. The max speed limit is 90 km/h. I like to ride at 100 km/h. People were passing me at over 120 km/h.

sawman · **Reply #1 on:** August 06, 2014, 01:38:03 AM

That burger looks damn tasty. You should post that in Lynn's burger thread

detron · **Reply #2 on:** August 06, 2014, 01:50:51 AM

Dan, as usual the pictures are amazing.

I really liked this one

derekmac · **Reply #3 on:** August 06, 2014, 01:51:40 AM

Yep, great as always. Reading these, it makes you feel like you've been there!

greenbear · **Reply #4 on:** August 06, 2014, 09:30:25 AM

Great pics - thanks for posting. Looks like a cracking place

Chako · **Reply #5 on:** August 06, 2014, 12:48:43 PM

That it is. Not much to see of the actual fort, but still very interesting nonetheless.

jerseydevil · **Reply #6 on:** August 06, 2014, 02:49:21 PM

Very cool, Chako.

There are a number of small formerly fortified sites around here, used to defend the Continental Army's encampments at Morristown. The most famous is Fort Nonsense, which has a view clear to NYC. On the Hudson River, right next to the George Washington Bridge is Fort Lee, which has been partially rebuilt and is a national historic site. And a lot of people don't realize how many forts still exist in NYC itself. There are also several 20th Century coastal batteries down the Jersey Shore that are open to the public. And if you're in the woods around here and come across a clearing with a large concrete slab in the center, you've found a Nike Hercules missile site!