From the Editor and Paul's Smile

Mid-August, and I hate to mention it, but summer may be on its way out. Schools in the US will be starting this month, and those of us in Canada will be ending our summer vacations. What a summer it has been! Hot, hot, and then just when you thought it may be over, it’s hot again. I, for one, am not complaining.
We have a full house this month with 15 articles. I truly think it is one of the most interesting. Please let me know what you think, too.

The Thousand Islands Life Magazine, Volume 21, Issue 8, August, 2026, is now online.

Paul's Smile for August

We reported last month that Paul has opened a pop-up store. Their booth is at 1000 Islands Artisans and Delicacies, 307 Riverside Drive in Clayton, NY. They also have started an Instagram, @therivercartoonist, where they will be posting River cartoons and content about the inspiration behind them. Be sure to take advantage by following him.

Sad News

We learned this month that River champion, Robert Miron, from Wellesley Island and Syracuse, NY, died on July 29. He was 89. For those executives in the cable television world, Bob was their champion, as you will read in his obituary and in the many tributes announcing his death. But to those of us lucky enough to call Bob a Thousand Islands friend, he was a simple and passionate River Champion, just like us. He and his wife, Diane, who served with me as a trustee on the Thousand Islands Land Trust board, were residents of Wellesley Island where they enjoyed entertaining their family and friends. Today, we join everyone in expressing our sadness – we will miss Bob Miron's readiness to provide wise counsel at the end of a phone line, or sitting in an adjacent chair. He will be greatly missed.

Celebration of 100 Years of Service

WWNY, North Country News announced Alexandria Bay activities to celebrate Uncle Sam's Boat Lines 100th anniversary on August 8th. For us, the boat line has been ferrying appreciative passengers on island tours forever, but putting the number of 100 to a fine reputation is impressive indeed!

Note:

Author Tom King wrote two articles for TI Life about Uncle Sam Boat Tours.
* See the History of Uncle Sam Boat Tours Part 1, Early Years by Tom King, April 2016.
* See the History of Uncle Same Boat Tours Part 2, Passing the Torch, May, 2016

2026 Half Moon Bay Services Conclude

Sunday August 9th brought an end to the Sunday afternoon vesper services held at this small bay on Canada's Bostwick Island, for 2026. Douglas Goodfellow, Chair of the Half Moon Bay Foundation, had the honour of thanking the many volunteers who help make this special Thousand Islands tradition continue.

This year the Foundation's board turned the tables on Doug, by presenting him with a token of everyone's appreciation for his continued leadership. At the end of every service, he likes to wish everyone a safe voyage home by saying, "Be safe out there, and as my friend Susie Smith says, don't forget there’s a rock out there with your name on it."

However, before he could get to this ending, the foundation presented him with his own rock, inscribed appropriately, DOUGLAS. All those attending were pleased that they could thank him in this delightful manner.

Conclusion

Help us! Did you go on a special excursion this summer? If so, please tell us about it. Send us your short description of where you went (500 words, 3 – 5 photographs), what made it special for you, and remember that River has a capital “R.” These articles will be placed on our Excursions section.

Please leave comments or questions for articles, by sending them to info@thousandislandslife.com to post (there is a little glitch using some web browsers and the old system.)

Headers

The header above, for this August article is by James R. Miller and published on Facebook: 1000 Islands River Rats Now and Then. Two comments made us quickly smile. "Bill McClusky wrote: I'll take the one in back; While Anthony Ingerson quickly added: Its a Sunseeker Superhawk. I am a dealer here in the 1000 Islands for Sunseeker."

Our August 2026 Thousand Islands Life header is a popular photograph of Potters Beach, taken by Ian Coristine several years ago. It is a perfect depiction of the many bays and channels we like to explore. It is provided courtesy of ©IanCoristine/1000IslandsPhotoArt.com

Enjoy the end of summer - stay safe.

Susan W. Smith, Editor, info@thousandislandslife.com

Plus, the TI Life Team: Elspeth Naismith is the "Real Editor," joined by proofreaders Georgia Barker, Dane Zabriskie, John Stencell, and Rick Taylor. Jennifer Caddick, Dan Mathias, Beth Lavos, Marie-Anne Erki do the heavy lifting throughout the month and Allison Burchell-Robinson, Michael Laprade, Mark Russell and Paul Reichert are new team members, and last but not least, Mike Cox is our IT magician! (Thanks to all . . . what a job!)