Our run from Bobcaygeon took us first to a charming stop, Fenalon Falls. It made me wish briefly we were not in such a hurry to get home. Not only was the lock right in town, but there were power pedestals with water along the dock. The Captain who had been hungering again for pizza saw a place just across the street from the lock wall and it being lunch time we tied up while he ran for some hot pizza which we ate as we got underway. I had told him I’d like to stop just for lunch one day, this wasn’t what I had in mind, but the pizza was good.
Our run that afternoon took us through more limestone terrain. Several shallow lakes and narrow canals which required securite warnings on our part as we entered and the faith that anyone else entering would hear and abide them as there wouldn’t be room to pass another vessel our size and the walls of the channel were unforgiving limestone.
The end of the day found us at lock 36 where we encountered a house boat which asked if there was any one else behind us. It looked like he had just come up on the lift lock and saw us, lucky huh?, we didn’t hear him issue a securite. It is odd not hearing much on the radio here in Canada.
Our arrival was just in time to experience a thrilling ride in which the Captain drove to the end of the world, seemingly, where we stopped in a pan of water which was then lowered as we hung out, at the end of the world, until we stopped and were let out into the channel below. As lock 37 was under construction and we had more narrow channel to travel with no possible anchorages, we spent the night under the structure of the lift lock. It was a little brooding, but there was a charming waterfall just ahead.
At the top of the Kirkfield lock we had been at the highest point in the waterway. The rest of the locks would all be lowering us. The notable landmark of the day was Lake Simcoe, the biggest body of water on the TSW. If conditions are right, the lake can really kick up and the breakwater from the canal to the lake can be dangerous in these conditions. We traversed the 5 locks before the lake quickly. Since the winds had not been up, we did not expect any problem and sure enough, the lake was flat. We met a couple from the area at our stop that night at lock 42 who said this was unusual.
We left Lake Simcoe and entered the last stretch of the waterway on the Severn River. Back were the lovely granite islands covered with green trees and charming cottages much like what we will see in the North Channel when we return in a few months. Back unfortunately with this were some narrow channels and down stream current making for some exciting rides. It was also Friday, which meant for a few more small pleasure boats on the waters, several of which we met in narrow channels where rocks were evident nearby just out of the channel.
Just after lunch we came to the most interesting lock of the TSW, the Big Chute railway. The rail car was up and waiting for us just having delivered a large yacht to the top before we arrived. We no sooner took the blue line than we were pulling in our fenders and casting off to motor the boat into the sling. The lock master kindly climbed down to have a lock at our running gear under the boat once we were lifted in the sling when we explained we had hit bottom in New Jersey. The good news was nothing looking unusual, nice to have confirmation of what we thought.
One of us rode up front, met some future loopers who were visiting the lock, they recognized the flag an identified themselves. Probably the first loopers we’ve seen since Norfolk. The view from the front was a bit like an amusement ride as the rail car clicked to the top of the hill, but unlike an amusement ride, there was no wild plummet down into the waiting water, but a slow gentle ride down where the boat was then slowly lowered back into the water. Not something you will be able to do anywhere else on a boat.
That left just one more lock before we left the waterway, the small Lock 45 at Port Severn. There was another friendly group here visiting the lock that we talked to as we waited for our last lowering. We didn’t have long to congratulate each other before we were hit with our first Georgian Bay challenge in another narrow channel with strong current turning as it passed under a bridge, again we could see those granite boulders just under the surface on either side.
We picked our way between more rocky outcroppings toward Midland pausing frequently to tease apart the puzzle of the many possible routes showing up on our charts.
A shower, water, and fuel were on the must have list for the night. We headed for Bay Port Yachting Center and dropped our jaws at the number of boats in the water here. Being a beautiful Friday afternoon, there were many people out enjoying their boats in the marina. We hitched a ride on the Marina Van for a dinner in town to celebrate our completing the locks at least for awhile.
Miles Day 69- 27
Miles Day 70- 36
Miles Day 71- 37 Total Miles: 2131
Locks Day 69: 4
Locks Day 70: 5
Locks Day 71: 4 Total Locks: 81
States: 9 Countries: 2
It seems like ages since we’ve had hot weather running and who would have thought we would see it after entering Canada. Not to forget our coldest day yet was our crossing into Canada, but it has been nice and hot these last two days.
The locks roll on, the quaint towns roll by, we drove the boat into a bath tub lift yesterday in Petersborough and rode up some 65′ in the air, there were cars driving underneath us it seemed. We drove through the Trent University Campus as well with its many unique and striking buildings some built right into the river. Alas, I have no pictures of these sights because at our last lock of the day the camera was bumped off my belt into the lock as I was reaching for a cable. Luckily it was not our best camera, although the Captain’s favorite, and we only lost the pictures for the day as I had backed them up the night before.
We were stuck between two locks for the first time. This meant we stopped just before 4pm and didn’t start until 10am. We used the morning hours to check the engines good thing because running in the rivers and locks had our water strainers filled with debris. Not enough to stop the water flow for cooling, but enough to make us glad we checked.
Today was probably the most beautiful day yet of the trip, mostly blue skies helped. But the scenery as we left the river system and crossed Stony Lake was a precursor to what we will see in Georgian Bay and the North Channel with lovely granite rock outcroppings and charming cottages perched atop. The navigating was a bit of a challenge with multiple channels and a multitude of rocks just under the water outside the channel. I did get thousands of pictures though.
We made it to Bobcaygeon with a long days run possible with 18 Miles between locks 31 and 32 where we stopped for the night at a late (for the TS) 5pm. We read there was a laundry mat with in 2 blocks, so I made the Captain a deal, he buys dinner out, I’ll do the laundry (again with the no undies?). So we hauled it up the hill, found a sports bar a block away had a beer while the washer ran, one of us ran back and threw it in the dryer, had dinner, then both went back to fold. Bobcaygeon is a charming little town. It seemed to be just waking up for the summer and we enjoyed not having the crowds that I know are coming.
In the morning we walked a block up to the full size grocery store for a limited provisioning. It sure feels good to say. “We have enough to get us home” for a change. I probably bought too much produce, but it looked so good we’ll eat it before crossing back to the states if it’s all we eat for a day or two.
Miles Day 67: 43
Miles Day 68: 37 Total Miles: 2031
Locks Day 67: 6
Locks Day 68: 6 Total Locks: 68
States: 9 Countries: 2
Rejuvenated after our break away from the boat we took advantage of the city showers, returned the car, washed windows in the back of the boat and still made it to Lock 13 by their 10am start. The plan had been to do 13-18 then run the almost 30 miles to overnight at the base of lock 19, ready for their 10 am opening.
That was until the 7 miles between the 16/17 flight lock and lock 18 which had us both longing for a nap.
As we locked through 18 in the center of Hastings, we saw many people eating ice cream from a shop just feet away. We almost made it out of town, but the ice cream won out and around we turned to take the wall in Hastings. Of course we had to have the ice cream, then dinner across the river at Banjo’s. There were dozens of people fishing around the dam and the lock in town. Apparently the area is known for its pickerel (like a Perch, I’m told) fishing. We even saw one caught, but it wasn’t big enough and back it went.
Miles Today: 17 Total Miles: 1951
Locks Today: 6 Total Locks: 56
States: 9 Countries: 2
One of the Captains desires had been to take us to Toronto and show me thr town. When we revised our travel plans to come across the TS Waterway, we thought that dream was lost. That is until the town of Campbellford announced in their boaters information packet that we were a two hour drive from Toronto. A question of our server at lunch gave us a lead on a rental car at a reasonable rate and the plan was set. One night in Toronto, take advantage of the stay two nights, get the third free from the city, and we were off.
The drive allowed us to see more of the country-side we had been traveling through and before too long, we started to see high rises on the west edge of the city.
We left the highway and took surface streets into the city, as we passed through some older neighborhoods we noticed that almost all the houses were duplexes or triplexes. Even more astonishing to us was that in remodeling the units, each individual owner would update their half with seemingly no accounting for what their neighbor had done to the rest of the house. Fascinating.
We didn’t really have an agenda, but being water people we headed for the lake front for a drive by Ontario Place, a waterside attraction Paul remembered from a previous visit. Due to revitalization or the cold overcast day, it didn’t seem like much was going on, so we headed east, back to an area we had passed while trying to escape the gridlock of traffic on Lakeshore Boulevard for lunch.
We had a nice meal and a short walk along the lake front. Then found our hotel. On the agenda was a comedy club and dinner, there were several to choose from. It was a late night for us.
It turned out our hotel was just around the corner from the cities botanical garden which was open to the public, one of us did a quick tour before we picked up the car to find a watch repair shop and a couple of yarn shops. We arrived back to the boat in time to make dinner and call it an early night.
Unfortunately, today’s miles don’t count.
The lock master, knowing we were on our way to lock 8, left the facilities open for us. The Trent Severn is primarily a recreational boating venue, although in talking with the lock masters, it is clear that managing water levels is also constantly on their minds and a responsibility they take seriously. Every lock finds us in conversation with one or more of the lock tenders and without fail, they have been quite cordial.
We saw our first swans today on our short run to the town of Campbellford and had our first lock delay.
When we left 8, the lock master said he had called lock 9 and they should have it open for us, as it came into view, though the docks were closed. So we rigged quickly to tie up at the blue line which is reserved for boats waiting to enter the lock and signals the lock master (there are usually several other areas for tie up and radios are not used). The lockmaster’s assistant soon came down to explain why the doors weren’t opening ( the pump didn’t start, they thought it needed hydraulic luid and were running to the next lock to retrieve some). Sure enough in about 15 minutes we saw the turbulence under the gate that indicated they were emptying the lock for us.
The rest of the locks (3 more) went without incident. 11/12 were my first flight lock. We entered to a 48′ steel wall (which made me wonder if anyone with claustrophobia would be able to do the locks) when this door opened we move immediately into a second lock. This was just a few miles short of the town of Campbellford where we could tie up and have a much needed shower, power, and water. Campbellford is also one of the most convenient locations we have found for provisioning with a grocery and drug store just across the street and a Canadian Tire (like Walmart without food, only better, lots of marine supplies, diesel oil etc) a short walk South. Did I mention the area is beautiful? It seems almost every house has a lovely planting of flowers.
Miles Today: 6 Total Miles: 1934
Locks Today: 5 Total Locks: 51
States: 9 Countries: 2
While the break from the boat had been a great one, it felt good to get back into our routine of getting up and getting going, so that we did. We had one short run in Lake Ontario leaving Kingston and since it could be rough, we wanted to leave early for the calmest waters. That is what we had.
We had been coached in the days run, a good thing as our chart plotter just started showing blue and yellow patches as soon as we hit Canada. The back up on the iPad was a little better covering Lake Ontario into Kingston, but as soon as you head up a river, it is gone. We had anticipated this and added another program to the Captain’s new smartphone which would cover the rivers in Canada. We spent the day getting familiar with the new program and eventually added the same software to the iPad as back up.
We had hoped to fill up with fuel before getting into the TS Waterway and were advised that Belleville would be a good stop. It became clear as we ran that we would also need a pump out desperately. We decided we would stop for the night in Belleville as the locks don’t open until 10am, an early run would put us there in plenty of time. Unfortunately, our call in route to the marina, was answered by a recording stating that they were open Thursday to Sunday. Being Tuesday that wasn’t going to work.
We found a marina another 8 miles with a pump out, but no fuel and a call ( just somewhat manic) found Mike who said he could get us pumped out and tied up for the night. Two out of three, ain’t bad, and when one is a desperately needed pump out, it’s really good. The people of the CFB Yacht Club were all as friendly as Mike, it was a good stop.
The next morning we knew we had some time and only a few miles to the first lock, so after breakfast the Captain hopped into the bilge to check levels before we cast off. We left a little later than usual and made it to the first lock a few minutes before 10am. As a cost cutting measure on the TS the locks near each other are staffed by a mobile crew which moves with the boats. This means they group boats together to move them through, we were grouped with a sailboat, Grenadier, starting with lock 2.
The first 4 locks were a blur, one right after the other with just a few minutes to sit and watch for the next. Between Lock 4 and 5 I made lunch, but we didn’t have a chance to eat it until lock 6. As we left lock 6 the sailboat noticed no water was coming from their cooling system, uh oh. This meant we were on our own for lock 7. We had talked about staying here as there was a convenience store nearby, but with an outside chance of making lock 8 before 3:30 the Captain decided to go for it. We ended the day tied up below lock 8 waiting for the 10 o’clock opening.
Miles Day 61: 63
Miles Day 62: 17 Total Miles: 1928
Locks Day 62: 7 Total Locks: 46 (We are getting pretty good at the up locks with all this practice)
Total States: 9 Total Countries: 2
The alarm rang at 6am, since we had been tied to the city docks and hadn’t been able to reach the electric outlet 12′ above street level to plug in an extension cord, the boat was cold! Paul generously got out from under the covers and started the generator and thus the heaters. I quickly put on 4 layers top and bottom(well top at least) and started bumbling around.
A quick look outside confirmed that we had no fog and the lake looked inviting. We quickly started the coffee and cast off. A look at the NOAA tool for wave heights showed a blob of two footers we would have to go through, with heights decreasing after noon. I think they underestimated this, we saw some 6 foot waves. It also showed they would be beam seas, in other words hitting us straight on the side. When you are sitting high off the water and a six foot wave hits the side of your boat, it can feel like the boat is on its side, hold on!
We did alter our course in the worst of it to take the waves on the back of the boat somewhat, that feels like surfing and is a bit more comfortable. While it was the longest run in highish seas, it never felt dangerous. Of course we tried not to get out of our seats. Oh, and we speeded up to a whole 10mph+ to better keep time with the waves and get it over with sooner. the furniture down below would be in a new arrangement each time we managed to get below.
No wonder many Loopers remark on hating the Great Lakes when they hear that’s where we are from, today was a good day on the lake.
Once in Kingston the Captain went to check in with customs and I tackled the several million fish flies we picked up coming across. Good thing they are weak(water knocks them down and off the boat) because their numbers were daunting. They did however leave stains where I swept them off with the broom, but the wind was whipping and it was none to warm, so cleaning the stains will wait for another day.
After a few hours of rest, our slip mates from Legacy, Rod and Alison picked us up for a visit. I will leave that for the next post.
Miles Today: 54 Total Miles: 1851
Total Locks: 39
Total States: 9 Total Countries: 2
Several hours after we arrived in Kingston we were greeted by our dock mates from Legacy in Fort Myers. In spite of their busy weekend of plans, they had urged us to hurry across and join them.
Saturday night they were hosting the opening cruise for the Kingston Yacht Club, dinner at a B&B in Gananoque in the 1000 Island area of the St Lawrence River and a show, the opening of Driving Miss Daisy, at the local community theater. The meal was among the best, if not the best on our trip so far, and it was great to be able to meet and talk with the other boaters from the Yacht Club. We like community theater, but the production was so well done it is a shame to put it in that category.
We all stayed up way too late catching up and we all paid for it the next day. Paul and I were awestruck at the view the next morning when the sun came up, we thought we had a nice view at our cottage in Oscoda, theirs is drop dead gorgeous.
Rod made us a delicious breakfast and we went sightseeing and in search of the necessities of communication (phone and internet). Those were accomplished fairly quickly allowing time for lunch and a stop at the best stocked chandlery we’ve ever seen, the captain found a switch to fix the windlass and a float needed in the bilge.
That evening, Alison’s brother and his family came over for dinner, another delicious meal and great company. In between all the excitement, we picked their brains about the upcoming trip up the Trent Severn and Georgian Bay as they are bi-seasonal boaters with a sailboat left in Midland, ON for summer sailing in the North Channel and did some laundry.
Alison dropped us back at the boat late the next morning allowing us time to fix the windlass and wander around downtown Kingston. I have to admit, I knew nothing about Kingston before our stop. What a surprise. The city reminded me in many ways of Europe with numerous historic buildings still in use. Quite lovely. We ended our stay with dinner at another Irish pub, where the Captain sampled the Shepard’s Pie (quite good) and I had a local dish Poutine which is French fries and cheese curd covered in gravy. Apparently, this is like biscuits and gravy or grits down South, done right it can be real good, otherwise, quite bad, this time it was great with Guinness gravy, good cheese and braised rib meat.
Miles Today: 0
We had hoped to transit Lake Ontario, a 7-8 hour trip at our speeds first thing in the morning. While the forecast was for rain, the winds and waves looked good. As an aside I looked for and found a great site for monitoring wave predictions on the Great Lakes. Here is the website http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/glcfs/glcfs.php?lake=l&ext=wv&type=F&hr=04. And Lake Ontario for the day:
However, there were a few hiccups in that plan. The first being that the package we arranged to be sent for us to pick up was not at the marina, but back at the post office. The post office opened at 8:30, which is when we started looking for a cab as it was raining cats and dogs. And hour later I was getting ready to don my rain gear and Paul was getting the bike down when we finally got a call back from one of the taxis.
The package in hand, I returned to find the boat running and lines ready to be cast off or almost. We dropped lines and headed out to the river. One look at the lake and the captain made the decision to turn around, we couldn’t see a thing past the mouth of the river. We opted to tie up to the city docks just a short distance from our spot of the night before and hunker down. In the 10 minutes it took for this I was soaked thru! and cold.
Luckily the slow moving front had passed by lunch time allowing us to walk back for more sweet potato fries and down to Rite Aid for a loaf of bread ( you know you’re a cruiser if you grocery shop at convenience stores).
By sunset the skies were clearing and we are again planning to head out first thing tomorrow morning.
Miles Today: 0
As an aside, we received an alert from the NY Canal System in the morning that due to the rain, many of the locks are closed including the last 7 we did yesterday. While we had to wait today, we are good to go tomorrow, I hope the wait in the locks will be short for those stuck on the other side.
Our second day on the Erie was a beautiful day, although it threatened to rain in the morning, it never did and ended up sunny and warm. With an eye on the forecast we agreed to move as long as we could, the forecast was showing a s low moving cold front and calling for 1-2″ of rain Thursday night. Early in the afternoon we passed some inviting docks and quaint looking towns, but we kept going afraid that if we stopped, we would be stuck for who knows how long.
We started with a run up to Lock 13 and ran past some nice looking towns and docks. With the beautiful day and impending weather we agreed to continue until early evening eyeing lock 20 just before Rome as a tie up. There were 3 work barges already tied up so the lockmaster suggested heading to Rome where the city park provided a dock. We arrived about 6pm having traveled 9 locks, up another 153 feet, in about 12 hours. The Rome park was pretty with trees in bloom, lovely green grass, a child’s beach and a small dam, but we didn’t venture from the boat.
The alarm rang at 5:30 the next morning and one of us hadn’t slept well and begged another hour. We came to question whether it was good idea when we got to our first lock and found we had to tie up and wait as there was a boat already in the lock heading east and a canal tug waiting to head west with us. Later that morning we received an alert from the canal system confirming our fears that the rainfall would likely close parts of the canal, it became even more important that we reach Oswego on Lake Ontario and get through the last 11 locks on the Erie and the 7 locks of the Oswego before 5pm when the locks close. Remember we try to only run about 8mph, so 64 miles will be an 8 hour run. Any lock delay could be the difference between making it or sitting while the waters subside.
We didn’t run a single lock by ourselves all day. At lock 23 we were joined by a sports fisher with captain and crew. He too was trying to make Oswego before the gas dock closed at 5pm then on to the Welland Canal. In spite of being able to run faster we were able to join him at the first canal of the Oswego system because he had to wait for divers in the canal to get out before entering. It proved to be a blessing for us that this was the case. The speed limits on the canal in this stretch kept his speed down and we boosted ours to stay close. When we got to the canals that only had cables to attach to which were located several feet below the deck I was positioned on, he would jump down run back thread my line then head back to his boat. I’d like to think it was more than just not wanting us to hold him up as he was also free with advise about the placement of fenders and winds on upcoming locks. In a way it kept us going when the winds kicked up and it became a grueling slog, we were in it together.
We both made it to Oswego Marina just past Lock 8 around 4:30. The winds were gusting around 30 knots and with the day we had, neither Paul nor I had thought to call ahead. Laurie caught our lines and got us tied on the little boat fuel dock anyway. After a brief break we topped up the fuel tanks. The boat was so dirty from the mud on the lines we picked up in the canals and the balls from their contact with the walls that we hooked up the hose, but it soon became clear that just water alone would not be enough, so out came the soap.
There was no question of cooking, it was time to relax, luckily the marina was a short walk from several places and we found a nice one in a refurbished freight house.
Miles Day 55: 61
Miles Day 56: 64 Total Miles: 1797
Locks Day 55: 9
Locks Day 56: 10 Total Locks: 37
Total States: 9
Tot