Photos: Cruising America’s insland seas, with some Canada’s best thrown in

The lighthouse on Strawberry Island in Lake Huron.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

A stop at the Peller Estates Winery in Niagara-on-the-lake, Ontario, comes with a chance to sample some of the product just steps from the vines.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

The Cliff Rock Bar & Grille features open-air dining and hot-rock grilling.  (John Dowling / Chicago Tribune)

Your meat is brought to the table raw, atop a stone heated to 860 degrees at the Cliff Rock Bar & Grille.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Passengers get an up-close look at the Little Current Swing Bridge near Manitoulin Island.  (John Dowling / Chicago Tribune)

Thousand Islands in the St. Lawrence Seaway.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

A shore excursion to The Henry Ford museum in Dearborn, Mich., outside Detroit, features Americana with a focus on history and innovation.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Passenger Kerry Pluto of Albany, N.Y., spent some of her time reading on the top deck.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

The view from Fort Mackinac.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Mackinac Island is one of the cruise’s excursions, and you can’t visit Mackinac without a stop at its iconic Grand Hotel.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

Passenger Rob Funderburk, an artist and educator at Columbia College in Chicago, found time to sketch during daytime cruising.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

The Grand Hotel porch is the world’s longest, at 660 feet, and is a prime spot for spending time in a rocking chair.  (Terri Colby / Chicago Tribune)

You can’t go to Niagara Falls without a camera.  (John Dowling / Chicago Tribune)

The upper deck on the Saint Laurent is a perfect place to relax and watch the sun set.  (John Dowling / Chicago Tribune)