Travel Thursday Archives - Monique McDonell Author

Today we take a journey with author Jean C. Gordon to Boldt Castle on the US/Candian Border and celebrate her new release Trusting His Heart.

With spring and romance in the air, what could be more romantic than a trip to a castle on a heart-shaped island? I know of one that fits the bill ~ Boldt Castle ~ which isn’t TOO far from me. I’ll admit right off that I’ve never actually been to Heart Island, but I’ve long meant to visit it. 😀 So let’s go.

We’re headed west from Albany, NY, first on the Thruway (I-90) before we turn north toward Alexandria Bay and the Thousand Islands. The Thousand Islands are a group of more than 1,800 islands in the St. Lawrence River, straddling the border of the U.S. and Canada.

While we’re driving, here’s the romantic/tragic history of the castle. In the late 1800s, George C. Boldt, millionaire owner of the world famous Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, set out to build a full-size Rhineland castle in Alexandria Bay, on Heart Island. The creation of the grand structure was a display of his love for his wife, Louise.

Beginning in 1900, 300 workers including stonemasons, carpenters, and artists fashioned the six-story, 120 room castle, complete with tunnels, a powerhouse, Italian gardens, a drawbridge, Alster tower (children’s playhouse), and a dove cote. Not a single detail or expense was spared.

But in January 1904, tragedy struck. Louise died suddenly. Boldt telegraphed the island and commanded the workers to immediately stop all construction. Broken hearted, Boldt couldn’t imagine his dream castle without his beloved Louise. He never returned to the island, leaving behind the structure as a monument of his love.

For more than 70 years, the castle and various stone structures were left to decay and vandalism. Then the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority acquired the property and renovated it to be preserved for the enjoyment of future generations.

Heart Island is accessible from the U.S. and Canada only by a tour boat or personal pleasure craft. We’re taking our personal pleasure craft. Feel that river spray. Arriving at the island’s docks, we’re off to the castle and our virtual tour starting with the Alster Tower, followed by the Castle itself, Dove-coat, Entry Arch, Garden and Grounds, and Power House: TAKE THE VIRTUAL TOUR.

What did you think? I can’t wait to see it in person. Maybe this summer . . .

And while we’re in the Adirondack Mountains, I invite you to take a side trip east to Paradox Lake in my new release Trusting His Heart

After being widowed and subsequently discovering her husband’s infidelities and shaky business practices, Dr. Anne O’Conner Howard is restarting her life by teaching an environmental program at North County Community College and maintaining her company Green Spaces Environmental Engineering, LLC. The last thing Anne expects is for the boy who took her to Junior Prom to walk into her office as a prospective student.

Neal Hazard had planned to go to college to become an environmental engineer, but instead he became a single dad at 17 and raised a terrific daughter named Autumn. With Autumn in a nursing program and doing well, electrician Neal has left the National Guard and is going back to school to finish his dream. Discovering that Anne is his student advisor is a shock and takes a little getting used to.

Neither Neal nor Anne’s lives turned out as planned, but both are charting new directions. Then an unexpected tragedy throws Anne’s world into chaos. Neal is a strong shoulder to lean on as Anne once again reevaluates her future. Will these unexpected life changes allow them to discover what their hearts truly want?

Welcome to Paradox Lake

Any fan of sweet romance will love settling into the stories of small-town love in the Paradox Lake Sweet Romance series. Grab your tea or coffee, settle into your favorite chair, and be swept away into the cozy Adirondack town where complex characters navigate challenging situations as they find their way to love. Whether it’s love at first blush, old flames reuniting, or second chance romance, you’ll find pure reading enjoyment and satisfy your craving for sweet, wholesome romance.

Part of an ongoing series full of familiar faces, each story will stand on its own. With novel and novella lengths available, there’s something for everyone. Paradox Lake is written by USA Today Bestselling sweet romance author, Jean C. Gordon, who’s penned stories for the No Brides Clubs Series, Indigo Bay Series, and Harlequin Love Inspired, as well as for multiple sweet romance collections.

BUY: Amazon | Apple Books | B&N | Kobo | Google Books

Jean C. Gordon’s writing is a natural extension of her love of reading. From that day in first grade when she realized t-h-e was the word “the,” she’s been reading everything she can put her hands on. She and her college-sweetheart husband tried the city life in Los Angeles, but quickly returned home to their native small-town Upstate New York, where she sets many of her books. She and her husband share a 175-year-old farmhouse in Upstate New York with their daughter and her family. Their son lives nearby.

Contact Jean on her website at JeanCGordon.com.

I’m adding a new weekly theme to the Blog – Welcome to the first Travel Thursday Post

It’s a while since I shaken things up here and I got to thinking about some fun new things to add. I know none of us has travelled much in the last year, and here in Australia we won’t be going beyond our shores, largely until 2022 but because COVID is pretty under control here we are allowed to travel internally. Not only that, but I’ve recently moved to a new area where there are lots of things for me to explore and share with you. Plus, many of my author friends feature travel in their books and I love a bit of vicarious travel every now and then so off we go on some adventures.

A Trip to Scone in the Upper Hunter.

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I went with a couple of friends to Scone, NSW. It’s located in the Upper Hunter about 2 hours from where we live now in Newcastle.

We chose this place because a longtime mutual friend of ours owns a B&B in Scone. If you’ve followed this blog for a while, you might recall I was in a writing group for a long time called The Writer’s Dozen. It formed out of a writing course at the NSW Writers Centre, where we aimed to write a novel in a year. Well, my friend Angella was in that original group, as was Jen who owns the B&B, so it made sense we’d plan our overnight jaunt there.

Me, jen and Angella — L-R – Monique, Jen, Angella

Turns out we didn’t see too much of the town itself but we saw lots of our friends so here’s a little recap.

Pre-COVID Angella and I often met up at the Customs House Library in Sydney for a Friday writing session and lunch and we hope to get that started again soon.

Our first stop was the Two Rivers Winery for wine tasting and a lovely charcuterie plate. We sat outside in the glorious sunshine and sampled their delicious wine. The cheese plate was so good we asked where the cheese was from and that led us to the (Cheese factory) so we could grab some cheese and crackers for our hostess, we already had the champagne on ice.

Jen’s B&B – Russley Rural Retreat is all kinds of adorable. I had been there before but not for four years and it was just as adorable as I remembered it. It was also lovely to see Jen who is hands-down one of my favourite people on the planet. She always, always brings a smile to my face.

These are some pictures of Russley Rural Retreat.

That night we went to the Linga Longa Inn which we chose because – that name is so Australian. It was basic pub fare, nothing to write home about except the company. Afterwards we sat under the stars talking and laughing for hours. It was food the soul.

After a delicious breakfast and a lot more talking, we headed back towards Newcastle. We stopped at the another winery – Hollydane – which was gorgeous and I would love to have a long lunch there one day soon (Expect a blog post about that!). We tried some wine (and bought a couple of bottles) and when we were finished a family was taking off in their own private helicopter, which was fascinating to watch.

We meandered back home after a lovely night away.

It was a good reminder that sometimes all you need is a change of scene, lots of laughs and good friends to reinvigorate you.

Travel Thursday – we’re off to Boldt Castle with Jean C. Gordon

Today we take a journey with author Jean C. Gordon to Boldt Castle on the US/Candian Border and celebrate her new release Trusting His Heart.

Travel Thursday – this week we’re off to Scone

I’m adding a new weekly theme to the Blog – Welcome to the first Travel Thursday Post

A Trip to Scone in the Upper Hunter.