Its all about the Locks

Friday, June 20

The first lock in the Trent-Severn was scheduled to be open at 9 a.m. and we were ready and waiting at 8:45 after the short cruise from the marina. We watched them put up the flag and the lock still didn’t open. Then a train came by, right above the gate – maybe they were waiting for that because when it was gone the gates opened and we went in, the only boat there.

Lock 1, Trent Severn waterway. Gates closed, train whizzing by!

At the top of Lock 1 - John is coming back from buying our season's pass -
one lock down, 44 to go!

After that we easily glided through to each lock, which was open and waiting for us. We took the cable at mid cleat and rose up through number 6. It was a short mile or two stretch between the locks and on the last 3 the same crew drove to each one to let us through.

Most of the locks have one hydraulic gate at the bottom
and a hand-cranked one at the top.

There is a nice park at lock 6 where we tied up to the wall at about noon, just in time for lunch. We both dozed for a while – so important to keep rested – and then walked over the bridge into the nearby town of Frankford. There was not much there, although they did have one stop light, a small grocery and we found the library where we could check email.
 

After our walk we are glad to get back to our floating home

This is Canada, after all, and we saw flocks of geese at almost every lock.
They are considered a bit of a nuisance -
this is only part of the large group we saw.
 

When we got back to the canal there were two other boats there, one was another Mainship headed east, and later on, a Lagoon catamaran came through and tied up. Finally, after we thought the lock had closed up came a 27 ft. Albin, TA TA, from British Columbia. They were also fellow loopers who had trailered their boat from B.C. to Lake Ontario. They are really adventurers and even plan to go to the Bahamas this winter! They will probably leave us in their dust as we drag our feet a bit for the next week waiting for our son to arrive in Toronto. He will be joining us for 5 days, and we are really looking forward to that.

The lockmaster is working overtime as he opens the gate for
the Albin TaTa with British Columbia natives Roger and Mary on board

Captain's notes: June 20

Departed: Fraser Marina, Trenton 8:25 a.m.
Locked through 1 thru 6
Engine hours: 1.9 hours
Actual hours: 3 hours 35 min
Arrived: Upper wall of lock 6, Frankford, Ontario 12 noon

Week Four: Saturday, June 21

Today starts our fourth week of traveling and the time is flying by. We are taking it easy for a few days because we don’t need to get to Peterborough for another week, and we set off west again after breakfast. This stretch was some of the nicest scenery we have seen so far on a fairly wide part of the Trenton River. There were fishermen out in full force on a Saturday morning along the marshy areas. Soon we approached little communities with lots of homes and summer camps.

Early morning view
 

We had to be careful to follow the channel because it was quite shallow and you could see where large stones had been pulled out of the way. It was a beautiful day with just a cool breeze and the vistas changed around every corner. We are in farm country and saw lots of open, mowed fields and some rolling hills.

Catamaran following us into Lock 7
 

The catamaran had followed us out of our mooring spot and we were both in lock 7, Glen Ross, although no one could have fit in beside it. The captain asked if he could pass us so we let him by as we pulled out of the lock and he sped off. When we got to Lock 8, called Percy Reach, he had already gone through and when we got to the top we pulled over for the day. It was a quiet and secluded spot. No power and no water but that was fine with us – no cost either.

Approaching Lock 8 - water is emptying out

Inside Lock 8 - everything was covered with moss - it is noisy with the 
water leaking in the doors until the water fills up half way

This was one of the prettiest locks we have seen with well kept grounds and large expanses of green lawn. An information sign reminded me that the locks are all filled by gravity, with the high water above the lock let in, when needed, by opening valves to fill the chamber and lift us up. Simple but ingenious engineering.

Serenity tied up at the lock wall in Percy Reach
 

We had just finished lunch when the lock master, Lyle, came by and said he was going to the Empire Cheese Factory store to get some cheese curds and invited us along. We were up for that, so we climbed into his truck and off we went through the country-side. The store was in the middle of nowhere, but people were there buying things up so we joined right in, getting plain curds, garlic curds and several kinds of cheddar. Lyle was a great guide and a bit of a character. It’s always good to have local input and an ample supply of cheese!

Later on we watched the two Grand Banks trawlers, Mar-Kat and Bluegrass, who were with us on the Oswego, in Picton and Trenton at Fraser Marina, finally lock through. They had been waiting for a part for repairs and just left Trenton this morning. It didn’t take them long to catch up with us and pass us on their way to Campbellford, our next stop.

Grand Banks, Bluegrass, entering Lock 8

This was a great place to spend the afternoon, take a walk and enjoy the longest time of daylight of the year. Happy Summer Solstice! We love these extended dusks with light until about 9:30 but it is bittersweet because we know they will get shorter as the summer goes on.


Sunset at Percy Reach, about 8:45 p.m.

Captain’s Notes, June 21

Departed: Lock 6, Frankford, Ont.
Locked through 7 & 8
Engine hours: 3.2 hours
Actual hours: 3 hours 30 min
Traveled: 15.7 nautical miles, (17.8 statute miles)
Arrived: Upper wall of lock 8, Percy Reach, 11:45 a.m.

Sunday, June 22

The days are starting to run into each other, especially since we are usually in one place in the morning and another in the afternoon. At least we are still on the same boat!



This red triangle means "Don't hit this rock!"

Today we came through 4 locks with nothing remarkable except the last two, which were called a chute, or flight lock because they were right together and when you leave one lock you are actually entering the next. This set lifted us a total of 48 feet, then we had to wait for a swing bridge to open.

This looks like a piece of art!
It is actually the metal gate in between
locks 11 & 12 with a water stain, 48 feet high
 

From there it was a short distance to the town of Campbellford where we tied up at the town wall which provided water and power…and that all important Wi-Fi.

Tree-lined channel into Campbellford
 

We took a good walk and located all the important places: the chocolate factory, grocery store, library and the local bakery which has a great reputation. Most were closed today, but we did get some chocolate and there is always tomorrow.

Tonight we are treating ourselves to dinner out at nearby Capers Restaurant to celebrate what we call our half anniversary. We were married on December 22, the winter solstice, and we like to mark the half year point in June on the summer solstice. By the way, it has been 44 + years ... and they said it wouldn’t last!

Celebrating 44 1/2 years! John's Hawaiian shirt has been with us
almost 30 of those years - it's a classic and so is he!

 
Captain’s Log: June 22

Departed: Upper wall of lock 8, Percy Reach 8:40 a.m.
Locked thru locks 9 - 12
Engine hours: 1.4 hours
Actual hours: 2 hours 50 min
Arrived: Campbellford, Ont. 11:30
Wx: Clear, calm - nice!