We boarded Polar Princess this morning and have traveled from Moosonee to James Bay and are now returning to visit Moose Factory Island before we return to Moosonee. Our tour of the Island is beginning.

Arriving at the dock on the island we walked a short distance to a school bus. Here too, the roads are all dirt. Our guide, Rachel*, told us a little about the island before she started the bus because she would be unable to talk over the noise. The hospital is heated by steam, along with the housing for the health care professionals. A diesel engine powers the steam machine connected to 6 inch pipes in the air delivering the steam to the hospital and staff housing. It reminded me of telephone and electric wires hanging on the poles.

This hospital serves communities up to 300 miles north, reduced from 600 in the past. The emergency medical technicians in Moosonee, although not MD’s have to perform those services while a patient is transported from the mainland to the island hospital. Patients are transported on the river during the summer and the ice road during the winter. The months of freeze up and spring break up require a helicopter to transport a patient. There is a helipad near the hospital.

The spring can bring flooding to the island with residents tying canoes to their house in case the need to escape exists. When the Hudson Bay Company first established the island as their “New World” headquarters the employees built a church, the Anglican Church was built. It still exists but is locked, needing repairs. I would have enjoyed visiting the church.

After the church was built the spring flood came, lifting the church off its foundation. Not wanting to loose their house of worship the employees boarded their canoes, tied ropes to the building and pulled it back. This time they drilled holes in the floor to hold it. If there is a flood they can pull the plugs for the water to drain, saving the church. Plans are in place requesting it to be preserved as a Heritage Site. It is hoped that it will happen.

Our first stop was a Creek Interpretive Center. Several tepees were seen. The first was a summer one built out of birch bark. It would hold up to six family members. Another one was long enough for four families. Rocks lined a spot inside where cooking took place.

Another tepee is only used for cooking after one of the hunts. A meeting room appeared to be an open air tent of about 50 feet square. It was used for meetings, wedding and other community activities. The center had various animal skins like wolf, fox and moose, which were interesting. Leaving there we drove through residential areas. Rachel* pointed out the tepees in many backyards where the game is cooked after a hunt.

The house where the Hudson Bay staff resided was part of the tour. It consisted of several bedrooms, now the downstairs bedrooms are exhibits; a bedroom, tool room, the doctors room. All rooms had different historical items displayed from that era. A cemetery was nearby which I walked into but did not really investigate.

This tour was ending as we rode back to the dock. Back on the mainland we both received certificates indicating that we have “braved the spray of James Bay and been sprinkled with the salt of the arctic waters.” It is dated and signed by the tour guide and captain, identified as “ye old tidewatcher” and the “ye old captain.”

We went back to the bed and breakfast to just relax in comfort on their “community room” comfortable chairs, relaxing. About 4:30 we walked to the Catholic Church to view its stained glass windows, including the bishops, pope, Jesus, and a unique picture of a moose.

Then we walked to the train station, met up with our new friends, visited until 5:30 when we were able to board for the 5-hour return trip to Cochrane. Visiting with one of the attendants concluded the evening and the expedition to Moosonee.
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Niagara Falls consists of two regions: The Horseshoe falls and the American Falls. The Horseshoe Falls are located on the Canadian side whereas the American Falls face the United States. These two are separated by the Goat Island. The Horseshoe Falls are 177 feet high. Actually the real falls are only 70 feet high, but the presence of rocks underneath heightens the effect.

The width of the Horseshoe Falls is about 2600 feet. Its counterpart, the American Falls is only 1060 feet wide. A small section of these Falls known as the Bridal Veil Falls is situated on the American side and the Luna Island fall divides these from the main Falls. The name Bridal Veil has been given due to its appearance. Actual amount of water varies due to the presence of two hydroelectric plants that pull the waters of the Niagara River into their reservoirs. Their siphoning, greatly affects the flow of water over the cliff.

The Niagara River is a bequest of the Ice age. The formation of the Falls started some 18,000 years ago, when the ice sheets of the Niagara River started flowing southwards towards the basins of the Great Lake. Through the span of next 10,000 years, the Niagara Falls took their present shape. The Falls are around 177 feet high and are spread over a large area. The intensity of water falling from here amounts to about six million cubic feet per minute over the crest line when the flow of the river is at its maximum; but on an average 4 million cubic feet per minute of water falls. This intensity makes it the most powerful waterfall in the entire North America.

The Niagara Falls are not only breathtaking, they serve a variety of purposes to the progress of America. Do you know that these Falls serve as a major source of electricity for Ontario? Yes, the Niagara Falls has been an important hydroelectric power source. Moreover they have a major role in the tourism of America and its industrial and commercial purposes cannot be underestimated.

You can easily travel to the falls from the state of New York and if you are spending the nights at one of the Buffalo hotels, you can get your transportation to the falls arranged by hotel.
rafting

If you are looking for a European tourist destination, consider the Friuli-Venezia Giuli region of northeastern Italy, bordering on Austria and Slovenia. For simplicity’s sake we abbreviate the region’s full name to Friuli. Depending on your interests, Friuli may be an ideal vacation spot. You can get classic Italian food and other specialties, and wash it down with fine local wine. While Friuli is not exactly undiscovered by tourists you usually won’t be fighting crowds to see what you want. Like most regions of Italy it has belonged to many nations over the years. Unlike most regions of Italy, it remains multicultural, an exceptional mixture of Italian, Austrian, and Slavic influences. This article explores Friuli except for its capital and largest city, Trieste, which is examined in a companion article.

We’ll start our tour of Friuli at Redipuglia about twenty five miles (thirty five kilometers northwest of Trieste. Next we head northeast to the city of Gorizia almost hugging the Slovenian border. Then we proceed north to Cividale del Friuli. There we turn left (west) and finish our tour in Udine.

Italy’s largest war memorial, the Redipuglia Military Memorial built during Mussolini’s rule, lies inland from the Gulf of Trieste. Here repose the remains of almost forty thousand known and over sixty thousand unknown Italian soldiers of World War I. A bit further west are the remains of more than fourteen thousand Austro-Hungarian soldiers of World War I.

Gorizia, population about twenty five thousand, is quite close to the Slovenian border. In fact one of its suburbs, Nova Gorica, is in Slovenia. The Transalpina Railway Square that fed the port of Trieste actually lies in both countries. The nearby Sacrario Militare (Military Shrine) of Oslavia, is the burial place of over fifty seven thousand soldiers of World War I.

Gorizia’s old city is known as Borgo Castello in honor of the medieval castle surrounded by Sixth Century walls. It has quite a collection of Venetian art. You’ll also want to see the Gothic Fourteenth Century Church of San Spirito, the Baroque Seventeenth-Eighteenth Century church of San Ignazio, the Sixteenth Century Duomo (Cathedral) and its frescoes, and the Baroque Eighteenth Century Palazzo Attems.

This town is home to several palaces including the Sixteenth Century Coronini Cronberg filled with Eighteenth Century Venetian lacquered furniture, oriental carpets,
porcelain, Japanese prints and sketches, Russian silver, and Sixteenth to Twentieth Century paintings. There is a fine library with over ten thousand volumes of manuscripts and ancient books.

Cividale del Friuli, population about eleven thousand, was founded by Julius Caesar somewhat more than two thousand years ago. Its historic town center is dominated by the Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square) home of the National Archeological Museum. Nearby you will find the Sixteenth Century Palazzo dei Provveditori Veneti. Be sure to see the Celtic Hypogeum, an ancient subterranean series of halls carved in the rock; historians don’t know if is was a Celtic funerary monument or a Roman (Lombard) jail.

The Venetian Gothic Fifteenth Century Duomo (Cathedral) was built on the remains of an Eighth Century construction. The Christian Museum next door houses some Eighth Century art relics and outstanding examples of Lombard sculpture. The Fifteenth Century Ponte del Diavolo (Bridge of the Devil) leads to the church of S. Martino that contains an Eighth Century altar. The small church of Oratorio di Santa Maria (Saint Mary’s Oratorio) in the old Lombard quarter of nearby Valle, next to the Natisone river, is a notable example of Eighth Century High Middle Ages art. Saturday is market day in downtown Gorzia as it was in the days of Julius Caesar.

Udine, population just under one hundred thousand, is a relatively recent city founded only about one thousand years ago. Unlike Trieste, the biggest city in the region, Udine belonged to the United Republic of Italy almost since its inception. The Fifteenth Century Piazza della Libertà (Freedom Square) definitely seems Venetian in style with its Palazzo del Commune (now the Town Hall) opposite the Torre dell’Orologio (Clock Tower). The square also has a lovely Sixteenth Century fountain, Seventeenth Century columns illustrating the Statue of Justice and the Venetian Lion, and statues of Hercules and of Peace.

Udine is home to several churches worth visiting. The Gothic Fourteen Century Cathedral includes a Fifteenth Century bell tower that remains unfinished. Both the Cathedral and the adjacent Oratorio della Purità (Purity Oratorio) contain lovely art works. The Lombard Saint Mary of the Castle is probably Udine’s oldest church and was extensively rebuilt after an earthquake almost five hundred years ago. Make sure to see its period frescoes.

Udine’s major attraction is its castle, situated high on a hill. According to local legend Attila the Hun built it there to watch the neighboring Roman city of Aquileia as it burnt. Twice the castle was destroyed by earthquakes. The Venetians rebuilt it without the fortress, but with a Renaissance palace that now houses the Civic Museum, the Archaeological Museum, and the Historical and Art Galleries. Enjoy the view of the Italian mountains and Slovenian plains from the walls leading to the castle entrance.

What about food? Prosciutto di San Daniele ham is the pride of Fruili. It ranks just after Prosciutto di Parme as Italy’s best ham. Production is centered in the town of San Daniele that once paid its taxes in hams. In fact this area has been known for ham prior to the Romans. But full-scale production only started about a century ago. San Daniele now sells more than two million hams a year. These hams are softer and sweeter than the competition. They are low in cholesterol, high in protein, and rich in minerals, in particular Iron, Zinc, and Vitamin B. Suggested wines to accompany them include Tocai Friulano and Ramandolo.

Let’s suggest a sample menu, one of many. Start with Gulasch di Pesce (Fish Goulash). Then try Arrosto di Capriolo al Pino (Roast Venison with Pine Needles). For dessert indulge yourself with Presniz (Pastry with Rum, Fruits, and Nuts.) Be sure to increase your dining pleasure by including local wines with your meal.

We’ll conclude with a quick look at Friuli wine. Friuli ranks 14th among the 20 Italian regions for acres planted in wine grapes and 13th for total wine production. Approximately 48% of its wine production is red or rosé (only a little rosé), leaving 52% for white. The region produces 9 DOC wines. DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine Controllata, which may be translated as Denomination of Controlled Origin, presumably a high-quality wine and 1 DOCG white dessert wine, Ramandolo. The G in DOCG stands for Garantita, but there is in fact no guarantee that such wines are truly superior. Over 60% of Friuli wine carries the DOC or DOCG designation, this is the second highest percentage in all Italy.

Ramandolo DOCG is a sweet white wine produced in the area north of Udine from at least 90% of the local Verduzzo grape. The vineyards are high in the sky and the slopes are so steep that the grapes must be processed and harvested by hand. Collio DOC, also called Collio Goriziano DOC, is an appellation from eastern Fruili near the Slovenian border that includes many high-quality wines. The appellation includes a variety of styles and grapes.
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Self-guided rafting trips near Toronto offer a unique way for families to experience a river paddle with significant cost savings. On the Grand River there is a section called the Cayuga Rafting Route where families can raft by themselves. By choosing to raft without a guide and using a map instead, groups can save over $100 per raft.
 
The self-guided trips include the raft, paddles, life-jackets and map. Families meet at the starting point where the raft/equipment is delivered and steering lessons are taught. From there the family paddles 10 kilometers (6miles) to an exit point where the equipment is picked up and the group heads for home.
 
Cell phones are required to be brought by the customer. Because at an assigned marker, the self-guided group calls for a raft pickup, normally 15 minutes before arriving at the exit point. Water-proof bags that float are supplied for phones, cameras, wallets and keys.
 
Upon getting off the river, customers can set up their own arrangement by having a vehicle there or have the local rafting companies shuttle everyone back to their upstream vehicles. Customers arriving in two vehicles can take advantage of a cost savings in shuttling by having one vehicle at each end of the trip.
 
The self-guided rafts hold 8 adults comfortably, plus 3 small children can be added in the middle. These rafts don’t tip over, great for non-swimmers. People can also stand up and move around in them. The rafting trips lasts 3-5 hours depending on how the group paddles, swims and picnics.
 
A favorite self-guided trip on the Grand River is the Cayuga Rafting Route. It offers a beautiful wilderness setting, has a gentle current and only one splashing shelf to shoot over. On the river the day is spent drifting by islands and forests, through pools and gentle swifts. People can pull over to swim in the 2 meter deep pools or float beside the raft. Unlike a city which leaves one exhausted… this wilderness setting breathes life back into the spirit.
 
People are advised not to wear “blue-jeans” because they don’t dry out. If swimming, people are told to wear shoes in the water because of the sharp rock bottom. Other things to bring are hats, sunscreen (30 spf or higher), lip chap, drinking water and swimsuits. Because of the double reflection factor off the water… fair skinned people are advised to wear long sleeves/pants for protection.
 
For those unfamiliar with the Grand River, it is located half ways between Toronto and London. The self-guided rafting section is just off the 403 Highway near Paris-Brantford.
 
The costs for a days rafting is around $125 per raft plus tax. Reservations with most companies are required. The trips are good for infants to grand parents. These self-guided rafting trips are a great way for families to “Experience Everything Together” at a reasonable cost.
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There’s nothing like a great soundtrack for your road trip to really make the miles fly by. Rather than just bringing a collection of your favorite CDs, why not look into making your own mixed disc with all the favorite songs of everyone who will be going along on the trip.

With the right tunes, you can really enjoy even the longest of road trips. Just think back to all the movies you’ve seen where they play upbeat music as the characters speed across the countryside. We all want to be like that, so, while you can’t montage your trip into a two minute scene, you can certainly spice it up with some good music.

Choosing Summer Road Trip Songs

Your songs don’t have to actually involve road trips, but it sure lends a fun air if they talk about traveling and cars, which is why most of the tunes on the majority of song lists are all about being on the move.

This just seems appropriate for a car full of people whizzing down the highway and they are also usually songs that you already know and can sing along to.

Look for songs that are upbeat and will keep you bobbing your head and tapping the steering wheel . . . the last thing you want is to fall asleep to some slow ballad that doesn’t inspire anyone in the car to sing. Songs that are easy to sing along to are an excellent way to draw fellow passengers out of their stupor and get them bouncing around and air-strumming to the music.

When you do find those songs for a road trip, it’s a good idea to put a lot onto your disk or MP3 player. This is because a long trip will quickly exhaust your options. You don’t want to be listening to the same ten songs over and over again every hour! So consider putting at least 50-100 songs together for your road trip compilation. This will give you a good 4-8 hours of music and you won’t have to get bored of any particular song, unless, of course, you want to and hit repeat over and over.

If you are having troubles finding enough songs for the compilation, recruit your passengers. Get them to each chip in 10 or 20 songs that they enjoy and you can all be introduced to some new tunes while also enjoying your own favorites. Mix the song order up a bit so you won’t have each person’s favorites all in a row . . . this way it will be more interesting for everyone and if there is something you don’t really like, it’s only one song long.

While you will most certainly have your own favorite music, there are a few timeless pieces that simply must be included on every summer road trip song list. Here they are:

Top Road Trip Songs

• Hotel California – The Eagles
• Ramblin’ Man – The Allman Brothers
• Highway Star – Deep Purple
• California Dreaming – Beach Boys
• Life is a Highway – Tom Cochrane
• Truckin’ – Grateful Dead
• Light My Fire – The Doors
• Roadhouse Blues – The Doors
• American Woman – Guess Who
• One Headlight – The Wallflowers

This list could go on for days, as you can well imagine, but these are some of the best songs out there for listening on the road. They are great to sing along to, they boost morale and get everyone bopping in the car . . . all ingredients for a great summer road trip song list.
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Considering how cold the winters can be, talking of Ontario beaches may seem counter-intuitive but Ontario has great beaches and most of them aren’t crowded, even in the hottest summers.

The biggest is Wasaga Beach, the world’s largest freshwater beach, on Georgian Bay – about 2 hours drive north from Toronto. Wasaga’s almost seven miles of golden sand are generally full once school is out and, because of its popularity, it has all the amenities beachgoers want. Wasaga is the place teenagers come to party. It’s so big and busy it’s been divided into alphabetical zones, each with its own parking and refreshments plazas.

Another great beach, this time more family-oriented, is Sauble Beach on Lake Huron, voted the best in Ontario only a few years ago. Its paler, finer, sand is a great for younger kids, while the famous sunsets over Lake Huron provide the romance their parents still desire. Sauble Beach is about 3 hours drive north-west from Toronto, on a regular day. Also on Lake Huron, but farther south, is Grand Bend, another popular resort town and a great beach.

Another popular beach area with the teen crowd is the Sandbanks Provincial Park near Brighton in the Quinte region. Sandbanks is on Lake Ontario and is easily reached from Highway 401, Ontario’s principal motorway/freeway, heading east from Toronto. It’s generally a two hour drive but in the summer, with everyone heading to their cottages, allow more time. Sandbanks and Cobourg beaches (where they hold an annual Sandcastle Festival in August) are also probably the easiest beaches to reach from the 401, though some of the Lake Erie beaches are pretty good that way too.

Speaking of Lake Erie beaches, another popular beach with Ontarians, and Americans from the Buffalo area, is Crystal Beach near Fort Erie. This has been a busy vacation destination for a century or more. Today, it’s quieter. Cottages and homes line the beach and the big attractions of yester-year are gone.

Crystal Beach is only one of many fine beaches on the north shore of Lake Erie. Others are at Port Stanley and Port Dover. These two holiday towns are connected by the Talbot Trail, which runs along the old pioneer route from the Niagara region out to Windsor in the west. The Talbot Trail is still a pleasant drive and there are many more beaches along the way. One of the most famous of the stop off points is Point Pelee National Park and off the point is Pelee Island, which has its own fine beach – East Beach. Note: The ferry to Pelee Island leaves from Leamington and Kingsville not Pelee Point.

With thousands of lakes and bordering four of the Great Lakes, Ontario has too many beaches to list them all. It’s safe to say most Ontario lake holiday locations have good beaches and most are open to the public. Even places that used to be but are no longer vacation destinations, Oshawa and Pickering for example, still have popular beaches and parks at the waterfront.

Of all the different types of travel that I have done, one type of experience remains consistently at the top of my list: bed and breakfasts. I am a real sucker for family-owned businesses and for unique accommodation environments. And after many dozens of visits to different bed and breakfasts in different countries, there is one thing I can say for sure – bed and breakfasts are always unique. From the personality of the hosts to the décor to the sometimes unconventional breakfast offerings, every bed and breakfast is truly one of a kind.

So no wonder I was looking forward to getting acquainted with the people behind the Kilpatrick Manor B&B, my first bed and breakfast experience in Niagara Falls, Ontario. When I arrived on Friday afternoon, Nance Kilpatrick, who owns this property with her husband Kevin, was already waiting for me and helped me to get to my room with my luggage. After I settled in Nance gave me a tour of her B&B and then we had a chance to sit down in the dining room for an interview.

Kilpatrick Manor has been in operation for about two years now and is a stately Victorian era mansion on Second Street in Niagara Falls. Nance explained that it was custom-built in 1891 for a former Niagara Parks Commissioner. Today it features three luxuriously appointed guest bedrooms, all equipped with upscale features such as ultra-modern ensuite bathrooms, fireplaces, sitting areas, HD TV, DVDs and movies, antique furniture and high quality linens. The owners’ special touch includes bathrobes and slippers, upscale bath products, fresh flowers, fridges, ironing boards and wine glasses and corkscrews for that special celebration. I particularly enjoyed the wireless high-speed Internet access.

Kilpatrick Manor is a popular getaway for couples, and one of its special features is a Romantic Massage Package that features two nights accommodation including two gourmet breakfasts in bed and two full body massages. Nance and Kevin Kilpatrick work with some of Niagara Falls’s top massage professionals to pamper their guests and put them into a state of blissful relaxation.

As I was curious to see the whole property, Nance showed me all the luxurious bedrooms and bathrooms, whose names were all inspired by family members. While Kevin is usually in charge of building maintenance, renovations and cooking, Nance is primarily responsible for decorating, cleaning and guest services. We sat down in the spacious Victorian-era dining room so I would be able to find out more about the entrepreneurial young couple that has created this special retreat.

Nance has always had a penchant for hospitality so she went to college to study travel and tourism in Peterborough, Ontario. Because she was considered too young to become a tour escort she went into the hospitality industry. Nance mentioned that her husband Kevin also has a long standing attachment to the hospitality industry, having been a chef in different locations around the globe.

Both Nance and Kevin have long had a passion for hospitality and travel and a few years ago they decided they wanted to explore the globe while working. So when they answered an ad for a B&B host in the French Alps they embarked on one of the biggest adventures in their whole life. They took on the responsibility for running a local chalet that could host 27 travellers. Most of the clientele was from Britain and came to this resort area for the fabulous skiing. Kevin was the chef and handled breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner while Nance helped with serving, cooking and even did some nanny work.

Nance is enthusiastic about their experience in France – the couple worked extremely hard, but they also had time to explore the local area and do some skiing. This was a very intense learning experience, getting used to running a large chalet and along the way handling various interesting intra-European cross-cultural issues between the local French people and the British travelers.

Their adventure in France lasted from the winter of 2001 to the spring of 2002. After the couple’s return to Canada and spending some time renting, the couple bought the impressive Victorian property that was to become their B&B in November of 2002 and over the next three years turned it into today’s upscale Kilpatrick Manor. In order to be able to create a bed and breakfast, the property had to be rezoned and architectural plans had to be drawn up. As with many older properties, numerous challenges came up along the way: interconnected fire alarms, insulation, new drywall, a new electrical system and three brand-new bathrooms had to be installed. All the necessary fire safety regulations and building codes had to be met. Nancy freely admits that they had no idea what they had gotten themselves into – construction lasted for a full two years and their first child was only nine months old when Kilpatrick Manor finally opened its doors for the first time.

Nance’s decorating talent is evident throughout the entire house. It is her personal touch in the colour schemes, furniture selection and accessories that has created such a harmonious upscale environment. When they were ready to open their bed and breakfast, they had run out of money. So they opened the Chrysler Room first, and Kevin had to learn all sorts of renovation tasks from scratch. As a result of all their hard work, their first guests gave them a glowing review and business was starting to move into the right direction. Altogether the couple created three upscale guest rooms, all with their own brand-new luxury bathrooms. Initially they also wanted to convert the attic into living space, but the stairs would have had to come through one of the bedrooms, a complication that forced them to discard this idea. Their goal is to create a fourth bedroom out of their own personal bedroom which they vacated when they purchased a property across the street.

With bed and breakfast owners the demarcation of private living space and public guest space is always a delicate issue. Particularly in Canada, the concept of bed and breakfasts usually involves the property owner living on site. Nance and Kevin have found a creative solution to this dilemma and now live in another house on the same street, just steps away. This gives them the necessary privacy for their own family, which today includes two small children, yet they are still close enough to the property when a guest needs something. I can personally attest to that since I had problems with my keys on Friday night. When I gave Kevin a call he arrived within less than a minute to help me and show me how to properly lock the door.

In order to spend quality time with their children, Nance and Kevin Kilpatrick have also found a creative way to distribute their work responsibilities. Kevin is usually on site in the morning, handles breakfast and leaves around noon. Nance then comes in to take care of the cleaning and look after check-in until about 6:30 pm. Nance smiles and says that they are a great tag team. Next year they plan to hire cleaning help which will allow them to spend more time working together on site again. Nance in particular misses the interaction with the guests that she would normally be enjoying over breakfast. Entrepreneurs with a young family often have to find creative solutions for arranging their working life and their family time.

Many of the couple’s regular guests have actually met the children and often inquire about them. Nance added that over time many of their repeat visitors have become friends and Nance is looking forward to having more of a chance in the future to socialize with the guests again. Guests at the Kilpatrick Manor B&B are usually also quite young, between 25 and 45 years of age, slightly different from the traditionally older bed and breakfast traveling crowd. Many of the guests arrive for a special weekend escape or to celebrate a special occasion such as engagements, birthdays or anniversaries. Most of the clients come from within a three hour radius, which includes Ohio, New York State, New Jersey and Ontario, and on average they stay two nights.

Nance added that the Ontario tourism industry was hit quite hard by 911 and the after-effects of the SARS epidemic of 2003. Recent changes to US government regulations require US travelers to hold passports to cross into Canada, and the higher Canadian dollar has increased cross-border shopping and wait times at the Canada-US border. Despite these factors, Kilpatrick Manor has been very successful in establishing itself as a choice destination for bed and breakfast travel in Niagara Falls.

One of the main reasons for this is that hospitality is a passion for both Nance and Kevin Kilpatrick. Guests enjoy the broad selection of activities on offer in the Niagara Falls area. Travellers can explore the local history, partake of the many entertainment offerings in the city or explore the nearby countryside, do some golfing or visit one of the numerous wineries in the area. Nance added that many guests also like to go on ghost tours as Niagara Falls is one of the most haunted areas in Canada. The choice of recreational activities in this region is virtually endless.

In addition to meeting my hostess Nance I also had a chance to meet Kevin, the other half of the Kilpatrick Manor hospitality team. On Saturday morning over breakfast I snagged Kevin to find out a bit about his personal background, his experience and his passion for the hospitality business. In his gregarious and friendly manner, Kevin started to explain that he has been a professional chef for many years. During his extensive travels he has gained international hospitality experience and often told his staff members that “there are not a lot of perks in cooking. But people need to eat everywhere, so why not take advantage of that and cook in all sorts of interesting places?”

Kevin’s longest international chef experiences include the six-month stint he did with Nance in France. He has also worked as a chef in Venezuela and various places throughout Europe. For a long time he was the executive chef at a restaurant in Burlington, Ontario, and currently he still is the executive chef at a popular resort in Niagara Falls, although he is presently on parental leave.

His adventure in France provided Kevin with a humorous anecdote: during the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, the hockey game was being broadcast, and Kevin, while out at a pub, asked if the owners could turn the television to the hockey game. The French pub owners responded “What is hockey?” So Kevin explained that ice hockey is Canada’s national sport and that the Canadian team was just about to play the American team for the Olympic gold medal. Shortly after, the TV station was turned to show the hockey game and the French audience promptly started to cheer for the Canadian team. Kevin will forever remember this special hockey game.

A small sampling of the breakfast choices at the Kilpatrick Manor include a standard “full-on fry” (a typical breakfast with eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes and toast), breakfast ravioli (a delicacy I was to sample myself), sautéed-apple-stuffed French toast with Frangelico syrop and candied cashews with cinnamon whipped cream. All main breakfast dishes are accompanied by fresh fruit and freshly baked goods.

Being a consummate chef, Kevin now also offers catering services and his kitchen is now fully licensed to handle catering. He also provides in-home catering, offering the convenience of gourmet-cooked meals at the client’s site. In addition to catering, more plans are in store for Kilpatrick Manor: Kevin is planning to redo the Victorian living room which is big enough to hold 12 to 14 people. This will allow him to host a variety of special events in his property, from weddings and engagements to anniversary dinners and other celebrations.

My own first-hand experience at Kilpatrick Manor was characterized by great hospitality. From Nance’s warm greeting upon my arrival and a tour of the premises to two scrumptious breakfasts prepared by chef Kevin himself I felt welcome and pampered all along. I loved the light yet tasty breakfast ravioli – incidentally the first time I had pasta for breakfast. The breakfast on my second day was even more scrumptious: strawberry crepes with a Grand Marnier sauce – simply to die for.

Despite my very hectic schedule in Niagara Falls I had a bit of a chance to relax in my beautiful room and enjoy the high-definition television, the fireplace and the full-body Neptune shower, a real treat on cold winter days. Kilpatrick Manor turned out to be the perfect place to do a bit of luxurious “nesting” away from home. I just hope next time I’ll have a bit more time to relax and maybe even indulge in the in-room spa service.
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