[dropcap]W[/dropcap]hile national attention is focused on the southern border with Mexico, our continent-spanning boundary with Canada is largely forgotten. “It’s uncrowded. It’s cheap and it’s so beautiful. You feel like you’re being let in on a secret when you drop in on these places,” says writer Porter Fox. hile national attention is focused on the southern border with Mexico, our continent-spanning boundary with Canada is largely forgottenHe spent three years researching “Northland: A 4,000-Mile Journey Along America’s Forgotten Border” (Norton, $26.95), to be released July 3. In it he explores the region and how it has changed in a post-9/11 world. In honor of Canada Day (July 1) and the Fourth of July, he shares some favorite sites with Larry Bleiberg for USA TODAY.
Courtesy of www.banfficefishingguides.com
Roosevelt Campobello International Park
Campobello Island, New Brunswick
President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his family spent summers on this idyllic Canadian island, across the border from Lubec, Maine. “It’s just 100 feet from the U.S.,” Fox says. Admission is free to tour the 34-room “cottage” and museum, and the park also serves “Tea with Eleanor,” sharing stories about the first lady. fdr.net
Wheaton’s Lodge
Forest City, Maine
When this pine-knot fishing lodge opened in 1951, its guests were wealthy businessmen and celebrities escaping to Maine’s North Woods. “It looks exactly what you think a Maine cabin on a lake would look,” Fox says. “All your meals are home-cooked, everything is included.” wheatonslodge.com
Antique Boat Museum
Clayton, New York
With the largest collection of antique and classic boats in North America, this museum not only lets visitors see vessels, but also row and sail them. “They have mahogany really slick, beautiful speed boats,” Fox says. Many once belonged to the industrialists who built summer castles in New York’s Thousand Islands. abm.org
