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If you’re not staying in Niagara Falls its self – you’re likely to be driving there, or taking a coach trip to it. If you are you’ll be most likely taking the QEW east towards Niagara. You could also get a second opportunity to see this coming back away from Niagara Falls.. take a look at the picture and see if you can spot it

Is that an old sail ship by the side of the road on a lisp? Well the answer is yes, and you’re not imagining it! What you’re seeing is what remains of a replica of “Le Grande Hermine”. The La Grande Hermine was a French galleon-type sailing ship built around 1534 and used as the flagship of the explorer Jacques Cartier on his expeditions to Canada in 1535 and 1536. This particular ship was originally a Trois Rivieres car and passenger ferry. It was eventually sold to someone who then lovingly converted it to a replica of Jaques Cartier’s La Grande Hermine. It became one of the landmarks of Ontario, and was even the subject of some paranormal investigations, regarding the person who lovingly converted this ship.

(source of the picture)

Sadly though, on Saturday January 25th 2003, an arsonist thought it would be a good idea to play with a box of matches while on the ship.. The ship was set ablaze and by the time firefighters were at the scene the ship was beyond saving.. Since this day the ship has been left beached at a lisp by the side of the QEW – the landmark still there, though only a shadow of what it once was.

It’s a sad story – but see if you can spot it on your road trip to niagara falls! – Here’s a hint:

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This entry was posted on Sunday, July 26th, 2009 at 10:00 am and is filed under Niagara, ON, Ontario. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.