Brockville Reawakens

The summer is getting closer now, today was finally nice weather for a change! I was actually able to wear a tank top, begin to work on my natural tan on my arms. It’s so surreal to think that a few days it go it was cold, grey, and miserable. That’s how the weather is in Canada, for those reading from overseas, or in other parts of North, and South America. Ontario, the Province (basically like a state), I reside in gets very hot and humid in the warmer times of year (May til around the fall months). In the winter it gets bone chillingly cold, not necessarily as cold as more Northern parts of the country. I live near the USA border, as do most Canadians, the communities further North, in this vast land, tend to be smaller in population. There are some large cities though, Northward, but the largest Canadian cities are all near the USA, in the Southern parts of the nation.

I took a visit today to a lovely little tearoom called Cosies, located in the heart of downtown Brockville, Ontario, Canada. I’ve done a piece on them before. For those new to the blog, my name is James Hardiment, I am a singer/songwriter based near Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. It’s a little border town that borders New York State in the USA. Brockville is also on the border, a little further down the St. Lawrence river, which divides the 2 countries apart from each other.

Cosies was having a special celebration in honour of the new King of Great Britain being crowned, King Charles III, in his Coronation ceremony. They had a sticky toffee pudding on the menu as a special item, on top of the usual British delicacies, and it was absolutely faboulous (a picture of that British comedy show Ab Fab is on the walls, amongst others too!). Abi Goodyer, the daughter of the owners Alison, and Paul Goodyer, had baked them fresh today. It was so warm, rich, and sweet. My tastebuds were delighted by the sweet British treat. I think the last time I’ve actually had the desert, was back in 2020 before the pandemic, when I went to visit my Nana in the UK. It’s sort of a spongey, brown cake, with toffee poured on top of it, and a healthy dollop of whipped cream, sort of like a hat, or crown, on the cake. I also ordered a pot of tea, Yorkshire Gold, with milk, as I usually do. The way us Brits like to drink our tea, I never could really get into the whole herbal, and flavoured teas that are so popular over here.

After dining at Cosies, I said my goodbyes and ventured around the downtown core, King St. specifically, the tearoom is actually at 45 King St. West, very close to the courthouse, which is just up a hill on a side street, which is divided in the centre with statues, fountains, lawns, and flowers. The fountain wasn’t working yet, I imagine they will switch it on soon, now the snow is gone, but I’m not sure. I took a look up that area as well, and discovered a bit about the courthouse, and it’s history.

Pictured: The Leeds-Grenville County Courthouse building, in the heart of Brockville, and it’s downtown core. The building is seeped in lots of interesting history.

Finally competed in 1843, the current courthouse that you see, in the pictures above, was designed in a Neo-Classical style, by Toronto architect, John George Howard. The actual construction of the building was lead by a man, named Benjamin Chaffey, who was a contractor based in the area, at that time. It’s a very imposing, impressive structure, reminding people of what happens if they disobey the rules of the town! Not sure if that’s what he was going for, but that’s how I interpret it anyways. On the top, I noticed a clock, and a flag pole, with a statue of a woman, holding the scales of justice in her hand. Known as “Sally Grant”, this is actually a replica of the original statue, carved from wood by William Holmes, a Brockville carpenter (the original) in 1844. The present statue, was created by Smith Falls sculptor, Bob Kerr, and installed in 1981. The current piece is known as “Sally Grant II”, the original is now in Westport’s museum, and has been restored.

I also noticed some lovely churches near by as well, and took a few nice pictures of them, and the flowers too, that were in full bloom. Truly a beautiful place to live! Maybe some day I might move to Brockville, or at least get a summer home out here. I’d love to continue to support Cornwall, Ontario though, I can’t just leave it behind. I’ve spent most of my life moving around to different places, it would be nice to finally settle down somewhere permanent, and continue to work on my art.

Down near the waterfront, there was a local farmers market going on. I wanted to learn more about it from the organizers, but I didn’t see a booth set up by them. There was lots of cool things for sale, such as jewelry, clothes, and baked goods. It was actually fairly busy too, which is great to see. I love to see the little guys out there, mom and pop shops, having a good day for a change! Every Thursday, and Saturday, from May to December, the stalls are set up on Market St. close to the Railway Tunnel. Known as the Brockville Farmers Market, it also has a history to it, according to its official website. Maybe I’ll write more about them in the future! I know my Cornwall, Ontario based chef friend has been looking to get into Brockville markets to sell his spices. Probably not this year tho, I think cutoff to sign up was at the end of last year.

Lastly, before I go, there was one other thing to mention, the 1000 Islands boat cruises are opening up again in the coming weeks, and months. The 1000 islands, is what they call the chain of islands that are located all across the St. Lawrence river, close to Brockville, and many other communities along the water. I’m hoping to do a piece on them at some point, perhaps go on a tour, and see if I could do a vlog style video with a friend.

That’s all for this adventure, until next time!

James

Falling in Love with the North - Part 1

Last summer I, singer/songwriter James Hardiment, ventured up to Northern Ontario, Canada, with my father on a road trip. We started in Long Sault, a small town close to Cornwall, Ontario, where I currently reside, and eventually ended up in Thunder Bay. The trip we split into 2 days so we weren’t driving in the dark, and could also take our time exploring. For those unaware the province of Ontario is vast is scale, to put it into perspective you could fit France, and Spain inside of it, or a 1/3rd of India!

Growing up in the United Kingdom, a tiny island nation beside mainland Europe, the size difference was extreme. Everything is bigger in North America, cars, houses, trees, mountains, waterfalls. It’s pretty much on steroids especially when you get to places like the Rocky Mountains, which are out West, a few provinces over from Ontario. Canada is the 2nd largest country in the world by land mass, topped only by Russia.

We ventured through Ottawa, the nations capital, on the first day of the journey, and continued Northwards though places like Renfrew, Pembroke, and eventually passing through the town of North Bay. I would always get Thunder Bay mixed up with North Bay, it was hilariously frustrating sometimes. When we passed through the city we noticed a lot of indigenous craft stores, and gas stations, along the route. We were debating on entering one, but we wanted to keep moving, and the traffic was very heavy on the main road that we drove through, at that time of day.

Once we had departed North Bay, we travelled in a Northwest direction, and eventually approached the city of Sudbury. Sudbury, like many of the populated communities in this part of the world, is known for its mining industry. It’s currently the largest city in Northern Ontario, with a population of over 166,000 people. There is a giant nickel coin on display in the town, we stopped there for a photograph. The region is famous for its nickel mining, as well as lumber. It makes sense, there’s plenty of trees around! Canada is basically trees with the occasional city or town.

Pictured: James Hardiment stands besides the giant nickel in Sudbury.

After Sudbury, we moved on towards Sault Ste. Marie, and checked into a hotel. That night we went to a wing place beside the hotel that gave a deal to the guests. The food was very good, and the portions were generous. In North America the portions are much bigger than growing up in the UK. You usually end up with plenty of leftovers, unless you are really hungry. Maybe that’s changed at this point, I’m not too sure, I haven’t lived there since 2007.

The next day, leaving Sault Ste. Marie, suddenly the landscape changed dramatically. We were surrounded by breathtaking scenery, mountains towered all around us. Ascending, then descending, as we navigated the single lane road, which would change to 2 lanes on one side, to allow cars to pass easier. It would alternate sides as you continued along the highway. Lakes, ponds, rivers, and creeks, surrounded the rock giants. It was probably some of the most stunning views that I had seen in a long while. I haven’t really travelled too far since the pandemic began, and my region is fairly flat in comparison.

Pictured: Mountains along the way, a little bit past Sault Ste. Marie. The scenery is like something from a postcard!

After Sault Ste. Marie it becomes a series of very small communities, spread across a vast area. We took a break in a town called Wawa, which has a giant statue of a Canadian goose. Wawa is known for its fur trading in the 19th century, and then later gold and iron ore mining. Most of these remote communities have a strong connection with some kind of trading, or mining, extracting, industry. The town has only been known as Wawa since 2007, prior to that it was called Mitchipitocen, and was founded in 1899.

Pictured: James Hardiment stands in front of the giant goose in Wawa. I told you the nature was on steroids in Canada!

Another community worth a mention, was the very small town of White River. Best known as the birthplace of the Winnie the Pooh character we all know, and love today. In 1914, a trapped bear cub was purchased by Captain Harry Coleburn, in White River, who named the creature Winnipeg, Winnie for short. I’d show the statue to you, but I don’t want to anger any Disney copyright lawyers, since it features the cartoon characters likeness. There is also a nice Hertiage museum with local artifacts to see.

Aguasabon falls is a really spectacular sight, as you pass through Terrace Bay. The speed in which the water rushes over the waterfall, is truly something else to see. Hidden away from the town by forest, you wouldn’t even know it was there if you just kept driving along the highway. We only stopped briefly to see the falls, and then proceeded onwards to Thunder Bay.

Pictured: Aguasabon Falls in all of its beauty and splendour, truly a sight to see!

Eventually we would reach our final destination, the city of Thunder Bay. I will talk more about it next time. Thinking of making this a 3 part series, there’s too much for one blog post!

Anyways enjoy your weekend. Sorry I’ve been a little behind on my blog posts lately.

James