A narrator wearing a headset mic told about the bridges we went under and some history of the Miami Indians who had an important settlement called Kekionga along the banks of the river.
I must confess I found the wooden chairs uncomfortable. There was a head (potty). Passengers were allowed to go out on the front of the boat in the fresh air. One father took his kids out there. The narration though interesting to me became a bit boring after 30 minutes. Kids' attention spans are short.
The first bridge we passed under was the Harrison Street Bridge on the east edge of Promenade Park.
The dark "mud" you see on the overhang are actually swallow nests.
Lots of people out on the river in kayaks and privately-owned boats. The kayaks, canoes, and paddle boards can be rented at the park.
Headwaters Park adjoins Promenade. Once under Harrison Bridge, most of the landscape and bridges we saw are on the banks of Headwaters. I wish the narrator had talked about the Columbia Street Bridge as I would have liked to know who made the globe lights.
The Saint Mary's River joins the Saint Joseph River and then those waterways become part of the Maumee River.
Significant buildings we passed were the water filtration plant and the replica wooden Old Fort.
Though it was not the largest settlement of the Miami tribe, Kekionga on the shore of the Saint Joseph was a central ruling village. Here important decisions were made. The Indians were involved in many wars against the white settlers (French, British, and American). Little Turtle was the admired war chief.
William Wells who had been abducted by Indians from Kentucky as a teen ended up living among the Miami for several years. He married one of Little Turtle's daughters. Her name was Sweet Breeze.
Fort Wayne has done quite a bit of beautification of its bridges. The Martin Luther King bridge is pictured below.
Spy Run Bridge has been renamed or will be renamed Veterans Memorial Bridge. Current status not clear to me.
We parked on Harrison Street just south of Superior. On the weekends the metered parking is free. Across from our car was a mural on a building at the start of The Landing (a pedestrian shops/restaurants area).
Since Kilwin's Ice Cream was about 2 blocks from our car, we indulged.
As we headed back to the car, we stopped to chat with a lady painting a picture on the cement above the storm drain. This is a project that Fort Wayne does from time to time to bring awareness to storm drain safety (not dumping stuff). The artist told us that special waterproof paint is used, then some kind of a varnish is applied so that the drawings will last at least two years. This was her first time to participate.
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