July 27, 2009

Well, hello, I think......Internet access, as promised, is spotty here---here, being the remote Rawson's Bay near the Moon River (not wider than a mile, by any stretch of the imagination.) in the Georgian Bay. Tuesday morning we pulled away from Rawley's Resort and exited our last TSW lock. It was a bit exciting, as the exit canal is very long and narrow, and the current from the dam next door very swift and swirly. But exit we did, and off we went to Penetanguishine. Penetanguishine. How fun is that name? Does anyone know, is that the town Julie Christie represented to Warren Beatty in Heaven Can Wait back in the '70's? Sure sounds familiar to me. In any case, this cute little village on the Severn Bay was the site of the Looper's seminar. Tuesday evening we (there were about 16 Looping boats, so 30-some folks) were treated to a wine and cheese reception (with photo on the deck), and on Wednesday, a great bar-b-que dinner with power point presentation about the waters we are about to enter. Wed. afternoon, free taxi service was provided into town, and I took advantage. Spent a few relaxing hours just wandering about in the shopping centers—not buying, just browsing. Thursday was a wonderful day to sleep in. It poured buckets all morning and a good part of the afternoon. We took full advantage and topped the day with a double feature movie night—Pink Panther 2 with Steve Martin, and Slumdog Millionaire. Talk about opposite ends of the spectrum.... Some of the boats were underway, and on Friday morning there was a bit of a queue at the pumpout. In this part of Canada, it is good to take advantage of an opportunity to get the septic tank emptied whenever you can. The granite upon which the area is built makes sewage removal a challenge—the marinas have to have it hauled away, too, so many of them simply don't provide the service. Too costly and inconvenient. We'd paid $14.50 for our most recent pumpout, so were happy to find that this time it was included in the marina fees. So many things to think about. Oh the life of the boater! Another thing we had to think about was the water that was accumulating on the engine room floor. Now, water should be outside the boat, and any water inside is definitely supposed to be contained—not sloshing about in unexpected places. Fred's sluething determined that it was the galley hot water pipe (under the kitchen sink) that had quite literally blown a gasket. As the water ran under the floor of the kitchen cupboards, we didn't notice it until it was deep enuf to make the leap over the sill (through the pathway for pipes and wires) into the engine room, thence along the sloping wall to the bilge. Sheesh. Once the problem was located, and a non-leaking replacement for the broken pipe installed, the issue was drying out the floors under the cabinet floors. So the bed became the pantry with all bins of foodstuffs stashed there, and the cupboards got to have their floors lifted and the excess water sopped up. With the portable heater in place, at 10:20 Friday morning we were underway with a planned destination. We'd been very impressed with Rawley Resort, and knew that Barry and Liz owned another marina not far away, so that was where we were headed. As it turned out, we were glad to have chosen a short day (we were tied up at South Bay Resort by 12:30) as this was our orientation to navigating the Small Boat Channel and brief was good. The way is clearly marked by buoys, and the chart has a lovely red line to follow, and the challenge is simply to verify that what you see in the water is a match for what is on the chart and navigation screen. In short, the constant question is “Is this where we are?” Wrong turns are easy, and somehow the disclaimer that 'most of the rocks have been marked' just doesn't settle well. It is very clear that a lot of rocks lie just below the surface of the water---waiting to grab at the bottom of the boat! South Bay Cove Marina exceeded our expectations. It's well established and we spoke with folks who have kept their boats there for 15 years. The funniest thing was discovering that we were a 1 hour and 15 minute drive from Toronto! Boondocks? Only by water. Looking at extended charts, we discovered that we're only about 20 miles from the Chute—(Marine Railway at Lock #44) north and west, but we travelled west, south, west, north and east to get here. Although South Bay Cove (north of Honey Harbour) is a tad off the beaten path of the Great Loop, it was a wonderful marina and we enjoyed our stay. Saturday we retraced our track to the Small Boat Channel and in about 4-1/2 hours tied up at Henry's Fish Restaurant on Frying Pan Island. It's an institution on the Channel and we had an 'all you can eat' dinner of fish and chips. Yum. Sunday morning we found the deck littered with what we learned are shad flies—large critters with gossamer wings attached to a long (1-2 inch) body. Apparantly they live for 24 hours, then provide food for the fish. I had to help the ones on the boat along—they didn't seem to be aware that they belonged in the water. Uffda. We again left the beaten track to join CAROLYN ANN in the Rawson's Bay. They've been anchored in this beautiful quiet setting for a couple of days. When we arrived and I stepped out on deck to prepare Knute for anchoring, the rain began. We circled for about 10 minutes, rain stopped. Anchor deployed. Rain began. For 5 hours it poured. Perfect for reading and sleeping. We took advantage! When the sun came out again, Fred put the dinghy down and we had a quick ride---it's been a very long time! At 6 pm Joe and Punk dinghyed over to sip wine, munch on goodies and chat, and the latter part of our evening was devoted to rebuilding the kitchen cabinets. Monday: grey, rainy, windy and cold. We remain at anchor and will be back next week—it actually may be next week before this posts, depends on the vagaries of computing! Be well, and keep in touch. Fred and Linda

July 20, 2009

After Fenelon Falls (Lock #34) we crossed Cameron Lake to Rosedale (Lock 35). This is our last 'locking up'. We've been elevated 598 feet since we left Trenton. Ahead of us—a 260 foot drop (9 locks and the Chute) to Georgian Bay. Note of interest: Balsom Lake (just past Rosedale) is reported to be the highest point in the world (840+ feet above sea level) that a boat can reach from the sea under its own power. A.s we exited Balsam Lake, we entered a very long slow zone. The Trent Canal is a skinny cut—too narrow for two boats to pass easily. Imagine our dismay when a houseboat rounded the corner ahead. In these waters, houseboats are mostly rented, and the renters often have little or no boating experience. The rental boats are not equipped with radios (or other basic equipment) so calling them on the radio wasn't an option. Fred hailed them using our outside speaker and in no uncertain terms advised them to pull as far to the right as possible and stop until we'd squeaked by. They did so, and then had to pass CAROLYN ANN. Joe had found a wide spot (a relative term) and snugged his boat into the trees, next to a rock ledge. He and Punk held tree branches with boat hooks to keep out of harm's way. It worked and we all moved on to Mitchell Lake without further incident. A fun thing about Mitchell Lake was the highway running along the side of the lake. Next stop, Kirkfield and our second lift lock. (You recall that Peterborough was the first—and only other!) This one is only 45 feet high, and had a serious wind at the top--where, of course, we stopped to check things out! We entered the 'pan' with CAROLYN ANN and again marveled at the endurance of this simple technology. Kirkfield is built of steel, not concrete, but is no less of an amazing structure. We tied up for the night at the bottom, more than ready to call it a day. The next lake in this chain called the Kapartha Lakes is Canal Lake. It was created when the Canal flooded a stream—but only the narrow central channel is safe for navigation. The recommendation is to go “Dead Slow” through the 'Hole in the Wall' bridge at the end of the lake. Downed trees and branches (deadheads) are known to collect here just below the surface. happily, we saw none. We're still in cottage country, and the 'cottages' are becoming larger and more elaborate as we progress. A golf course has been built alongside the canal. From here to Lake Simco, the largest lake in the Canal, there are 5 locks, one right after the other. Bolsover, Talbot, Portage, Thorah and Gamebridge. Lake Simco has a reputation for becoming rough in a hurry when the wind blows, but it looked pretty calm as we exited the last lock, so we made the sharp turn into the Lake, and went about 3 miles along the shore to Beaverton. Cute little town with a nice marina where we spent a relaxing evening with Joe and Punk. Next morning, Fred got the Go-Pet down and I rode into town to pick up some fresh fruits and veggies, before we headed across the Lake (calm as a bathtub) to the Atherley Narrows. We were in luck as the traffic was minimal on a Wednesday afternoon so we were able to keep the rocky ledges at bay. Lake Couchiching (kooch' a ching) is ten shallow miles long, with the last two miles nicknamed the “bowling alley”. Guess why. Lock #42 was uneventful and we moved into the Severn River to Swift Rapids. The Severn River runs through red and grey granite walls cut by glaciers and this area is so remote that the locktenders at Lock #43 come to work by boat. This is the highest regular lift lock in the TSW—47 feet. It is relatively new (1965) and was built to replace a marine railway, which had been built as a cost saving measure in 1919. A pair of intentional leak spouts in the very tall lock gote provide water for any fish that happen to get caught in that little well. Thoughtful of them, I'd say. It was a tad spooky at the bottom of the lock but the gates did finally open and once again, we were on our way. What is a Marine Railway, you may ask? We found out at the Big Chute. It is hard to imagine that it was a cost saver to build this 'train' that lifts your boat out of the water, drives it over the road, and then slowly descends 57' to deposit the boat (or boats) in the water on the other side. However, blasting through granite is neither easy nor inexpensive, so this Marine Railway, known as the "Big Chute" survives. Fred and I photographed CAROLYN ANN as she took her carnival ride (it feels a bit like a small ferris wheel!), and then Joe and Punk did the same for us. One difference, Joe made friends with the Police officers whose OPP (remember, the Ontario Provincial Police?) boat rode thru the Chute with CA. So at photo time, Joe accepted an offer to take pix from the OPP boat in the channel facing us as we eased down that 57' slope. People are great, aren't they? The OPP also escorted CA through the next little skinny water place where it is recommended that you blow your horn as you approach the turns...We'd gone straight on as we exited the Chute, so missed this helper. Happily, we met no one. By now we were only 1.5 miles from Port Severn, the end of the TSW. We opted to stop at the Rawley Resort and Marina, a historical spot which fell into disrepair. Liz and Barry have done a beautiful restoration. They tore the old Resort down to the foundation and rebuilt the same exterior with a thoroughly modern interior. Beautiful job.The piano bar in the dining room adds a very nice touch. The docks are brand new, also, and while protected, we had a great view of the lock and the River. Using the loaned vehicle, I spent Friday afternoon visiting the Shrine of the Martyrs in Midland, stopped a Art in the Park in Penetanguishene (our next stop) and replenished the larder for the days ahead. Other than that, we did some ship's work, read daily newspapers, did some crossword and soduku puzzles, swam in the pool and enjoyed watching the steady stream of boats passing through the last lock in the Trent-Severn. The reason for our long stay is a two day seminar for 'Loopers' being held in Penetanguishene. So that is our next stop, as we move into Lake Huron's Georgian Bay and the North Channel. We'll be back in a week (internet connections providing) to update. Be well, keep smiling and make each moment count! Linda and Fred PS--Two of our daughters spent the weekend sportfishing in the Gulf off the coast of New Orleans. They sent this photo of the 'Not So Big One That DIDN'T Get Away!' Looks pretty good sized to me! Way to go, Jen and Kris........

early a.m. July 16, 2009 My day!

Hi all, Computer wins. The awful formatting with broken paragraphs and weird spacing does not show up where it can be edited--all looks fine there, so I'm stumped as to how to clean it up. any suggestions would be welcomed........... As a fyi---soon we'll be entering Georgian Bay, and word is that cell phone towers are few and far between---as are towns and people! Our transmissions may be interrupted. Plan A is to catch up with you all next week, and you know about plans--what good are they if they can't be changed? Linda

July 13, 2009

OK, it is really July 14, and I know and acknowledge. I'm late, again! oops. On Tuesday it was time to move on from Hastings, and after Fred got a haircut and I mailed some mail, that is what we did. We followed a windy, twisty route to Rice Lake. Didn't see any wild rice growing along the edges (and wouldn't have ventured out of the channel to pick it if we had) but it is for the wild rice that this lake is named. From the lake we slipped into the Otonabee River, and Trent Canal---sometimes the Canal is the river, other spots have been dug out so the two are separate. The twisty, windy-ness now has the added feature of rocky edges. The landscape changed from rolling hills to outcroppings that are mostly pink rocks--made even more pink by the intermittant rain--the wetter the rock, the more pink. Crossing the lake we caught up with our Oswego friends Ron and Margi aboard MEANDER, and Joe and Punk's Rideau lockmates, Jack and Pia aboard STILL BUSY. By 5:30 we'd all joined Joe and Punk from CAROLYN ANN at a picnic table beside the lock wall for Happy Hour. The town is Peterborough--home of the world's highest lift lock. It seem that at the turn of the century (the one before the one we were here to celebrate) plans were afoot to build three regular locks at Peterborough where the river made a sharp, steep drop. A local engineer had just returned from a trip to England and Belgium, where he'd studied the very latest technology--lift locks. He was able to convince the 'powers that be' that one lift lock would be a better investment, and by July 9, 1904 his dream had become a reality. The lock's mechanism couldn't be more simple. Two rectangular pans, 140X34 feet, each holding about 130,000 gallons of water, have gates on their short ends to drop down and allow boats to enter and leave the pan. The weight of the boats is not an issue, as (we all know) boats displace water in an amount equal to their tonnage. What DOES make a difference is the extra one foot (130 tons) of water in the upper pan. Open the closed water hydraulic system and that extra weight causes the 7-1/2 foot diameter piston supporting that pan to slowly ride down, while pushing the opposite pan an equal distance (65 feet) into the air. Amazing. We spent nuch of Wednesday afternoon with Rob, the lockmaster, who was very generous about answering questions and showing us all the features of the lock. He also agreed to photograph our two N-37's in the lock together. That evening we walked across town--Peterborough has a population of about 80,000---to Karma's Thai restaurant. There was an outdoor concert by the lake and we were disappointed to learn that this year the weekly fireworks display has been dropped. Bummer. Late Thursday morning we took our ride in the lift lock, were duly photographed, and moved on. Lock, lock, lock, lock lock. A run of 5 brought us to the village of Lakefield and we rode into the Marina, tied up and headed for the ice cream. Hoot mon! Amber scooped very generous single dip cones right at the Marina office! YOUNG AMERICA needed some attention, so we power washed her decks and polished her windows and Fred painted the inside of the 'basement' door with two coats of shellac based paint with a slow drying top coat. The ugly oil stain is gone! Lakefield has a beautiful farm market and a Home Hardware Store close by, so of course we stayed an extra day! Another run of five locks in rapid succession--and a section of the canal called Hell's Gate. No rushing currents here as one finds in the East River of NY, but a well marked rocky passage. End of the line was Bobcageon, where CAROLYNN ANN, MEANDER and STILL BUSY were all tied to the lock wall. We found a spot too, and then helped one of the helpless houseboats to tie up. Happy hour at the picnic table ensued, and a good time was had by all! The houseboaters partied till the wee small hours, and were apologetic in the a.m. I walked about the town a bit before we loosed our lines and headed out. The houseboat moved into our spot in a heartbeat! Funny. As we went along on a chilly (58 degrees) Sunday morning, crossing Sturgeon Lake (who knows how it got that name, no Sturgeon has been caught there!) and nearing Fenelon Falls, Joe called us on the VHF radio. Although we couldn't see CAROLYN ANN, they'd spotted us! It seems that a gentleman who'd completed the Great Loop in 1994 saw Joe pass by his home dock, obviously in search of a place to tie up for the night. Norm, the homeowner, hailed Joe and offered to have CA raft to Norm's 42' Hatteras for the night. As they were tying up, Joe saw us coming and Norm extended the invitation by 16 feet. So we rafted to Joe who was rafted to Norm who was tied to the concrete dock he'd built years ago --a very tricky project! Norm and Barb joined Joe and Punk and Fred and I at dinner overlooking Fenelon Falls on Sunday evening, and that rounded out our week! Hope yours was spectacular! Be well, Linda and Fred

July 6, 2009

Happy July! This week we celebrated July the first (Canada Day) as well as July the fourth (independence Day)! Sing ho! Last Sunday as we crossed the eastern end of Lake Ontario we detoured a bit to pass close by the buoy that marks the entrance to the St. Lawrence Seaway. This amazing body of water is actually the conduit that carries the waters of all the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. Needless to say, the River is huge, and the currents are swift and strong. We were pretty literally swept into Clayton, NY where we tied up at the City Marina and walked about the waterfront, following our collective nose to the local Pizza parlor. Yum. Clayton is a great jumping off point for a tour of the Thousand Islands (there are actually closer to 1800 Islands, according to a count done jointly by the US and Canada). Some islands are merely an outcropping with a tree or two, most are privately owned and have homes—or castles. We spent Monday morning at the Antique Boat Museum where a highlight was LA DUCHESSE, the very elegant 9 bedroom houseboat built for Mr. And Mrs. Boldt—whose castle on Heart Island is one of the most famous stops in the area. The castle has a long stoty attached to it. Monday afternoon we headed northwest across the St. Lawrence and around 3, met up with CAROLYN ANN—Joe and Kathy (Punk) Pica, in Kingston, Ontario. Fred got us through Customs without incident. Our Marina was the Portsmouth Olympic Harbour, created for the 1976 Montreal Olympics. The marina is shrouded by the one of the seven Penitentiaries in Kingston—and this one has a museum. Interesting to see the history of crime and punishment in the Provinces. We spent Tuesday checking out the City, and on Wednesday, July 1 were ready to celebrate Canada Day. The parade was well attended, if short, but the atmosphere was great—nearly everyone wore red and the streets were packed with happy people. In the late afternoon we took the bus to Ft. Henry where the college students who work at the Fort for the summer put on a Fife and Drum show with a unit of Redcoats showing off their military maneuvers. We watched the show from the ramparts of the Fort and the view of Kingston harbor was worth the trip! The Golden Helmet Motorcycle Brigade of the OPP (Ontario Provincial Police) put on a show, and the evening was rounded out with Bagpipes and Highland Dancers—and then fireworks. Outside the Fort, the hillside was covered with folks who came for the Fort's fireworks followed immediately across the harbor by the City fireworks display. Pretty neat. 'Twas also interesting to locate the cab we had to call to get us home, as the buses were on Holiday and only ran until 7pm. The cab driver, bless him, was 'racking up karma' in the heavy traffic by being genial and courteous! That, too, was a treat. Thursday morning our two boat convoy headed for Trenton ON, and the beginning of the amazing Trent-Severn Waterway. The 240 miles of rivers, lakes, waterfalls and rapids between Lake Ontario and the Georgian Bay section of Lake Huron have, since 1920, been connected into a single passage. No commercial traffic uses this Waterway, and, to quote the Great Lakes Waterway Guide, it “is a favorite of recreational boaters”. 43 or 44 locks (depending on how you count them) will raise and lower us using a variety of methods. Unlike the hydraulic Erie and Oswego Canal locks, most of the TSW locks are hand operated by the locktenders—permanant employees and college students spending the summer cranking the gates open and closed. There will be more lock surprises described as they occur........... From Kingston, we followed the Bay of Quinte through Telegraph Narrows to Smith Cove where we dropped Knute into the clear, clean water. The grass and rocks down there are readily visible. Chomp! Knute was happy and we rocked gently in place until morning. We arrived at Lock #1 in Trenton around 11 am Friday, and were greeted by a waterfall coming OVER the lock gates. Not what is expected! It is a rule that the water is to stay lower than the walls and gates of the lock. Seems there was a problem with floating trees jamming the dam mechanism (that is not a swear) so the water in the lock, high from all the recent rain, couldn't be lowered. Took a couple of hours, but soon the deed was done and at 1:45 three of the boats waiting with us locked through, and when the water was again lowered, CAROLYN ANN and YA entered. In these locks Fred and I each grab one of the cables that are affixed at the top and bottom and spaced about every 12 feet along the 152 foot long lock wall. Just loop a line on and hold on fore and aft as the water takes us up 25 feet or so. And so it went with Locks 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. By 5:15 pm we were atop (that means out of) Lock 6 and tied up at the Frankford lock wall. The town of Frankford is the only town along the entire waterway to supply 'hydro' (electric power to us Yanks). When they added it, the town found that a whole lot more boaters stopped at their wall and visited the town! We headed straight for the Chinese Buffet, and a fine time was had by all. Unfortunately, the bridge heights won't accommodate our big American flagpole, so we celebrated the 4th of July without flying the big flag this year. The countryside we're passing through is beautiful, and it was again great to see so many folks out enjoying the warm weather (they don't get many weeks of it up here) and the fishing. At Lock #9 a family was grilling chicken on the lock wall (yes, it was in a cooker...). Smelled so good we were tempted to tie up and join them! Locks #11-12 are called a “flight”. The gate is 48' high, and when you leave #11 you pass directly into #12. Dave, the lockmaster used a bullhorn to talk to us from his great height (only lockmasters at the first and last locks of the TSW use the VHF radio—inside, they all speak, shout or use the bullhorn). We stopped in Campbellford, after Lock #13 to top off the diesel fuel tanks. Word is that Donna Jo and Nancy have the lowest prices along the Waterway--$.94.9/litre. That is about double the $1.89/gallon we paid back near Albany, but it is what it is. Uffda. It was 7:10 when we exited #15 and we were pooped! Fred and I did take a walk after about an hour---wanted to check out the music coming from the other side of the water. Was a group of kids in a garage, doing pre-birthday party music—we were invited to the party, (declined graciously) which lasted until the wee small hours. It sounded as if a good time was had by all! Sunday we had a short run—only a single lock and a flight and then we were tied up and off to see Hastings Falls! Joe, Punk and Rocky took the waterside walk, while Fred and I followed the road to the bridge, to the road, to the trail, to the single lane through the woods, to the Falls (with cars parked in the lot—they took the shortcut, evidently). The 'Falls' turned out to be a 10-15' spillway—the lockmaster insisted that the water height is way down due to work being done on the power plant. ok. So it wasn't Niagara. It was the Hastings Falls. We enjoyed a picnic on the lock wall, and then powered up and headed to Hastings, just above Lock #18. The ride, about 17 lock-free miles, was twisty and beautiful and crowded with both boaters and cement pilings—a remnant of the old days of logging in the area. Hastings is an adorable little town with 2 trafic lights. We are less than 2 blocks from post office, grocery store, old fashioned hardware store, and best of all, just across the street, Ice Cream! Today, Monday, was a lay day, and we all enjoyed wandering around, relaxing and fixing things (like the flat tire on the Go-Pet), and watching passers by do a double take as they notice the almost twin boats tied to the wall. CAROLYN ANN has a flying bridge up top. We don't. Tomorrow we're off to Petersborough and big doin's. Tune in next week for the update! Until then, be well, and keep smiling! Fred and Linda