On this Labour Day holiday weekend I thought I would take a bit of a diversion from my usual fare to write about some of the things I love at this time of year right here in the Garden City, my adopted home for almost 40 years now.
Much of the weekend I've been working around the house getting caught up on chores that needed to be done, but Saturday afternoon I decided to put all that aside and celebrate our city with a tour around town. I made several stops and all of them made me glad I decided to make this city my home.
Most Saturday mornings I head to the YMCA for a walk on the track, followed by my morning visit to our downtown farmer's market at Market Square. This is a particularly grand time to visit the market, as there is so much to choose from. The corn is still in as are the peaches, plus a wide variety of other delectable treats ranging from local honey and maple syrup to baked sweet treats and almost anything else your heart could desire. The Tuesday and Thursday markets are nice, but the Saturday market is the big one and best attended.
After lunch I pointed the car north east and headed up Niagara Street for my second visit of the weekend to the Niagara Greek Festival at the Greek Cultural Centre at the corner of Niagara and Linwell. I picked up dinner Friday afternoon shortly after they opened but Saturday was my time to just wander the grounds, check out the vendors and sample some Greek red wine, loukoumades (dough deep fried and coated in honey and cinnamon) and of course the music.
The Greek Festival continues today and wraps up early this evening, so still plenty of time to get your Greek on and celebrate with the most hospitable people around.
I continued north east along Linwell and Bunting Roads, then a hard left on Lakeshore Road and up Arthur Street, past the first house I almost bought back in 1993 (it was listed at $51,000 back then!) and turned in to Sunset Beach. This is really one of the hidden gems in the north end, although it was certainly busy on Saturday afternoon when I visited. Looking out past the beach into Lake Ontario with large ships not far off in the distance is something you just don't see in many other places.
As there was a ship passing through the canal at Lock One in Port Weller I decided to bypass the traffic and head down Niagara and across Parnell, past another celebration of summer on the grounds of one of the two schools in the area, and began the long journey down Government Road, otherwise known as the Welland Canals Parkway or, as many locals refer to it, simply Canal Road.
This is always one of my favourite drives on a lovely day, as you see ships passing through the fourth Welland Canal, negotiating the locks and stopping traffic in the vicinity in the process. People are from two camps on this whole thing, of course. You have the tourists who just pull over and watch in awe the whole thing transpire, and you have the locals who either grumble as they wait or change course and try to find an alternate route. Welland Canal roulette, as I call it.
The Welland Canal is an engineering marvel to be sure, and something we tend to take for granted here in the city. But people come from all over the world to see what we can see every day, as they do to Niagara Falls to see the celebrated sights there.
I stopped at the Welland Canal Viewing Centre and home of the St. Catharines Museum at Lock 3 for a visit and see the Victorian Tweets display on until this November. While there I took the opportunity to watch the 10-minute film on the history of the Welland Canal, and learned a few things even I didn't know before.
On my way out I stopped to chat with St. Catharines Transit bus operator Rick who updated me on the changes coming to that particular route 337, the Crosstown. I like the route as it passes right by my street but that will change this week as it makes a detour to the downtown transit terminal in both directions, thus enabling it to connect to other routes in the city. Good idea but I'll miss the local stop at the end of my street.
After our chat I drove south along the parkway and continued up the hill past the twin flight locks that bring ships into Thorold, which is always one of my favourite stretches of the drive. Passing through downtown Thorold I of course had to stop at the variety store on Front Street that is always resplendent with hanging flower baskets for purchase.
Heading back into the city on Ormond Street South, crossing back into St. Catharines around the paper mill where the road has turned magically into Merritt Street, I thought I would make a stop behind the businesses on the west side of Merritt where those in the know can walk up a secluded path to a small area that reveals one of the few remnants remaining of the third Welland Canal, the brick walls still visible amongst the foliage and rushing water still a part of the scene.
Although I didn't visit on Saturday, today the stretch of Merritt past Glendale and in the surrounding area will be the place to be for the annual Labour Day festivities many locals look forward to every year.
Back in the city I headed west on Glendale Avenue and finally north east again along Pelham Road through Western Hill. This is an area of the city I did not visit much in my earlier years but since becoming a letter carrier for Canada Post a few years ago, I have become quite familiar with the area due to the routes I have covered there quite often. It is not the wealthiest part of the city financially, but it is rich in character and interesting people. Some new shops have opened up along Pelham Road recently and I think this part of the city, once home to our former mayor Joe McCaffery is due for a renaissance of sorts as the years go by.
Back along Fourth Avenue from Louth Street past the vast shopping complex many simply refer to as "Fourth Avenue" you can see the change in the cityscape as the city grows west, eating up the remaining farmland in the area to fully envelope the new hospital complex a little further west.
Then it was home again to feed the cats.
Total distance travelled on the day? 57.7 kilometres. Memories that will last a long time as I discover or rediscover so many of the things that make this city what it is.
You don't have to travel far to find new adventures. They are out there waiting to be discovered in your own backyard every day! Celebrating all we have in St. Catharines makes me feel good about my chosen home and I think it's something we should all do from time to time.
Happy Labour Day, and best of luck as the kids head back to school tomorrow.
Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
September 2nd, 2019.
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