Orillia to Penetanguishene

  June 29-July 2

Pop the champagne corks- we have finished the Trent Severn Waterway and therefore all 102 Canadian locks on our trip!!  From here on it will be beautiful open water- and rocks of course. Rocks are fine as long as we don't hit any of them in this region of 30,000 islands!

We left Orillia around 7:15 am and made the 9:00 lockage at Couchiching, followed eventually by Swift Rapids, the Big Chute Marine Railway, and the Port Severn locks. 

Big Chute is unique- it allows us boaters to “portage” over land without ever stepping off our boats. 

Next to the Railway

We drove Mara Beel into the railway car and a sling was put underneath us. Our cruising buddies on Sourciae were placed right behind us. 

We had to wait for this boat to come up from the lower side.

We were moved along a railway track, lifted out of the water, carried over a road, and a waterfall, and then carefully placed back into the water 60 feet below.

The boat traveling over the road

And back into the water on the other side

Our turn- Sourciae is loaded in behind Mara Beel

This thing looks way too much like a roller coaster for boats.

Looking ahead from our bow

The “Oh s*** "moment

What an amazing experience! 

From here we moved on a bit to the Georgian Bay and Penetanguishene, home of our Looper friends Jeff and Susan. We spent the Canada Day long weekend here in Harbor West Marina. This is the biggest summer holiday here, and is just as busy as the 4^thof July is in the States. 

Trenton to Peterborough

Trenton to Peterborough

I have been posting less since we have been away from Internet connectivity most of the week, so I’m catching up now. 

Tuesday, June 19 - We had an easy 72-mile ride from Kingston to Trenton NO LOCKS! We left early in the morning, made a quick stop in Belleville to buy Volvo oil, and arrived at Trenton shortly after noon. We had our oil changed shortly after we arrived and defrosted our tiny freezer. Trent Port Marina has the most luxurious shower rooms we have encountered anywhere! They are recently remodeled and very upscale- nicer than my shower at home! 

We walked to a nearby grocery store to pick up some fresh produce and had dinner at a sushi restaurant. We like grocery store sushi and the rolls we make ourselves, but this was a different animal. We tried to select a few things that resembled our favorites until the server pointed out that our choice was rolled in raw fish eggs. We opted out of that one and picked something less authentic. It was not as good as Publix sushi or homemade sushi. I guess our palates are not all that adventurous.

We pulled out of Trenton the next morning, Wednesday, June 20, and entered the Trent-Severn Waterway. We look forward (not) to another 45-lock obstacle course in the next 2 weeks or so.

We were still on spring hours, meaning the locks operate from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. We met up with 2 Canadian boats at Trenton Lock (lock 1)- Lukx with Iwona and Markin, and Saoirse (Irish for "freedom") with Glenda and Doug. We stayed together for the next 2 days, lock by lock. In many places the speed limit is 6.2 mph, so it is slow going. We reached the lower side of Percy Reach, lock 8, by 4:30 p.m., too late to transit.  Doug and Glenda anchored out while we and Lukx  spent a pleasant evening and night tied to the lock wall. There’s a park-like area around the lock, and restrooms. The lock itself is in a very rural area.

Thursday, June 22- We were more than ready for the 10 a.m. lock opening. We cleared 10 locks in 4.5 hours and covered a whopping 25 miles today. The 3 of us spent the night on the lower wall of Lock 17 at Hastings. There’s a small village here, and we had a nice walk after grilling burgers for supper. Every village has at least one ice cream shop featuring the famous Kawartha ice cream. We haven’t tried the infamous butter tarts, but this ice cream is memorable!

Preparing the lock for us

Friday June 22- Hooray for the arrival of summer lock hours! 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on week days and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends. We only had 2 locks today, separated by 40 miles. The 40 miles was another speed limited zone for the most part. 

Just past the second lock, kids were having fun on an abandoned bridge, seemingly unaware that large boats need to pass through.

We arrived in Peterborough around 2:30 to hugs from our friends Anne and Bruce on Sea Biscuit. We met these long-time boaters at the Looper Rendezvous in October 2010 as we were standing in line to pick up our registration packets. We get together whenever possible, since they often winter in Florida. We have been looking forward to this meeting ever since we met. Their land home is in Belleville, but they live on their boat here in Peterborough in the summer. We’ve been traveling since May 5, so familiar faces are a great comfort to us. We have a lot of catching up to do. 

We went to an outdoor blues concert this evening, right on the banks of the water. The audience included many boats rafted up together, people in the outdoor bar, and pedestrians. Great fun!

Saturday June 23- Time to celebrate- It’s our 45^thanniversary! Where has the time gone??

Dinner at Tre with Anne and Bruce

It’s a perfect time to stay put for a couple days. Weekends here are jam-packed with events. Today there is a kayak paddle from lock to lock heading north. There is an excursion boat that takes people through the next lock and back several times a day. Tomorrow there will be another kayak thing, when they will pack the lock with as many kayaks as they can cram into the chamber. We want no part of negotiating those things, so we are thrilled that we can spend time with Bruce and Anne. Summer is short here, and it seems that weekends are packed with activities to maximize the warm days.

Canoe museum

This gentleman, Russ Parker, built this ultra light  canoe with a Dacron skin. We wanted to buy it, but it would not fit on the top of Mara Beel.

Riding the Rideau

Wednesday June 13 - Friday June 15

As we left Ottawa and continued up the Rideau Canal system, glorious sunshine was replaced by drizzle, thunderstorms and plummeting temps- a good two days to travel in our snug little tug. We spent Thursday night at Hurst Marina in Manotick, Ontario, in a rain storm. We had hoped to do our laundry, but their only washing machine was out of order. Another Ranger Tug pulled in next to us, but we weren't able to visit much with Dennis and Peggy on "3 Cheers," as we left very early the next morning.

The Rideau is made navigable by locks- many, many locks. Lots of locks. On Thursday we traveled all of 16 miles and went through 8 of the historic hand-cranked locks. As I've said, the lock workers are all very friendly and helpful. They always ask where we are headed and then call ahead to let the next lock operators know we're on the way so the lock can be ready for us. Sometimes a bridge must be opened for us as well- a common occurrence. But we were not quite prepared for this "bridge"!


What???

This did not look passable, but yet it had to be.....

Soon two men showed up and- unbelievably - attached two trolling motors to the bridge. As the small motors worked, one man pulled on a rope to swing the bridge open. Crazy!

Attaching 2 trolling motors to the "bridge"

The novelty of the picturesque locks has worn off now, and we have many, many more ahead.

Thursday night we tied to the wall on Merrickville Pond, just above the Merrickville set of locks. I took off on a walk and found a nail salon and decided to have a spur of the moment pedicure- a great decision! We met two other local boats here and traveled part of the way with them on Friday. More locks- a total of eight for us.

The sunshine returned on Friday, perfect weather. We stopped in Rideau Ferry Harbor for a pumpout and fuel. I am puzzled by the Canadian insistence on keeping their waterways clean (understandable) but yet pumpout facilities are few and far between. Many marinas do not offer fuel, especially diesel, or pumpout service. We have a small boat with small tanks- 100 gallons of diesel (held 600 on our former boat) and 40 gallons in our holding tank- so we have to be intentional about where and when we stop for these things. To add insult to injury, the charge for our pumpout yesterday was $25.

We are currently in Westport, another cute little village. Eight "le boats" are also here. Le boat is  a European company that rents boats to people who want to cruise the Rideau. The people are given basic instructions, but may or may not have any boating experience. They pay $5000 a week to do this! The boats here are carrying foreign journalists who are experiencing the Rideau on le boats and will write about their experiences. The 44 foot model has 4 cabins and is designed for 4 couples without much privacy. The boats hold 400 gallons of water, and the current occupants use it all it a few hours- they don't realize that water usage on a boat is different than at home. In comparison, we hold 40 gallons, which can last us 4-7 days depending on how we use it. Theses boats are new, but have no chart plotter, radio, depth finder, etc. We have no idea how the renters navigate! Le boats are equipped with a governor limiting their speed to 6 mph, and have built in fenders all around the hull. Our policy is to stay away from these boats, much like rental houseboats on the Mississippi.

Today, June 16, is chore day. Laundry, groceries, refilling our propane tank, cleaning an engine filter, baking a batch of breakfast muffins, etc. Laundry is a .4 mile walk each way, as is the grocery store. We did go out for lunch. Fun times!

Part of the le boat fleet

Showers are in the Visitor Center a few blocks away- $1 for 2 minutes, $2 for minutes- and no way to regulate the temperature. Give me a break! We both opted for showers on the boat!

A Loonie is a $1 coin (has a loon on it) A townie is a $2 coin.

Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue and Montebello

Saturday, June 9

Our first hurdle to clear after leaving the Montreal Yacht Club was two large locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway. We tied up at the waiting dock at the St. Lambert lock and climbed up the stairs to call the lock master  on the very special yellow telephone to let him know we were there and wanting to go through. We waited about 1 1/2 hours for the St. Lambert lock until a freighter exited. We were then able to lock through with seven other pleasure craft, tying up shoulder to shoulder.

We are just in front of these boats.

 

It all went smoothly. Next up was the Cote Sainte Catherine Lock, another on the St. Lawrence. Both St. Lambert and Cote St. Catherine charge $25 Canadian to pass through, which we paid online.This also went well- no more locks this day, and we soon turned off the St. Lawrence and on to the Ottawa River, or Outaouais as it is called in French. That is a lot of vowels!

Our dockage for the night was on the lock wall at Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, which is a really happening place! Restaurants line the walkway, and on a Saturday night the village was rocking with live music and boaters partying. A pleasant change from our many quiet nights.

On the wall at Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue

Boats line the narrow waterway below the dock, 2 abreast on both sides.

We had a good dinner at the Klondike Restaurant, which we chose based on the strength of its free Wifi. 

Sunday June 10

We had a leisurely morning since the lock opens at 9 a.m., and we were 5 minutes away. Three of us locked through together. St. Anne lock is operated by Parks Canada, as are the rest of the locks we will encounter. These are all covered by our seasonal lock pass.

Carillon Lock gate

Next up, The Carillon lock, another lock that has a floating dock inside to tie to. This is Canada's largest lock, and it lifted us 64 feet in 20 minutes, with 20 millions liters of water. During the lockage we were allowed to get out of our boats and walk on the dock and visit with the other boaters and the lock workers- who are college students. No life jackets required.

Inside the lock- going up!

Our dockage for the night is at Chateau Montebello, a luxurious resort on the Ottawa River. It has indoor and outdoor pools, tennis, horses, hiking, canoeing, biking, fine dining, and in the winter, curling, horse drawn sled rides, cross country skiing.... and the list goes on. Mark was disappointed that curling was not available.

Chateau Montebello Lodge, built in the shape of a 6-pointed star out of logs hauled from British Columbia.

The huge fireplace dwarfs Mark.

The indoor pool- not shown are the 2 hot tubs.

On the hiking trail

Granary at Manior Papineau

Adjacent to the resort is the Manior Papineau, an historic estate built in the 1840's. We didn't take the house tour.

We ate an elegant French dinner at the Montebello restaurant and took advantage of the hot tub to cap our evening. This is probably the only hot tub we will find on the rest of our trip!

Tomorrow we will head on to Ottawa, Canada's capital, so this is our last night in Quebec. We have been pleasantly surprised at the friendliness of the people we've  met (of course they were all boaters) and the fact that nearly everyone we interacted with was bilingual. It's been fun Au revoir, Quebec.

Chambly to Montreal

June 6- a long, 88 mile day to Montreal, a bit stressed out by the huge St. Lawrence Seaway and dealing with the French language!

We left Chambly around 0630 and continued north. The Richelieu River is scenic and bordered by tiny villages on both sides, with names like St.-Charles-sur-Richelieu, St-Marc-sur-Richelieu, St. Anoine-sur-Richelieu, St-Denis-sur-Richelieu---- you get the idea. I believe that sur-Richelieu means "on the lower Richelieu."

The churches in Quebec nearly all have silver steeples, like this one in St-Antoine.

I don't know the reason for the silver steeples.

We had one more lock for the day, at St-Ours. We arrived in time for the first lockage of the day at 0900. This lock was much larger than yesterday's and has a floating dock in it that we tied to. We were the only boat in the lock. It is still early in the season here, so boating is not fully underway, especially on cold, cloudy week days.

We entered the St. Lawrence at 10:15 and met half a dozen ocean going freighters.

The Algoseas passing us.

We chose to take the small craft channel to avoid the strong current and large ships. We entered at Lanoraie and exited at Langueuil, across the river from Montreal- about 27-30 miles. We added fuel at Port de plaisance Real-Bouvier since diesel may be scarce for a while. We paid $1.50 Canadian per liter. The Canadian dollar is worth .77 U.S. right now, so that worked out to $4.33 U.S. per gallon-- not too bad.

The current on the St. Lawrence here is 5-6 knots, and we are headed upstream. Yikes!

Current against the marker

Party boat

We are staying at the Yacht Club of Montreal- very plush and right in Old Town. They even provide fluffy towels in the showers- a welcome change from our thin but quick drying microfiber towels. We have a couple days here to explore the city. I read that Montreal has more restaurants per capita than anywhere else in the world!

Mallets Bay, VT to Chambly, Quebec

On Tuesday June 5th we left Mallets Bay, VT at 0700, topped off our fuel at Gaines Marina near Rouses Point, NY, and easily cleared customs a short time later. The agents did not come aboard and only asked if we carried weapons or tobacco. Piece of cake!

We arrived at the entrance of the Chambly Canal at Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu in plenty of time for the 1:30 p.m. lockage.  They are currently doing 2 lockages a day until summer officially arrives. These locks are tiny! The ladies running the operation carefully arranged 4 of us, a 40’ boat, a 35’ boat, our 27’ boat and a pontoon boat into the chamber.  The fifth boat had to wait another day to get through. The locks are about 24’ wide and 100’ long. The operators crank the gates open and closed by hand after handing each boat 2 lines to hang on to.

Discussing the lockage procedure with the lady in charge

Locks 9 and 8 were about 10 miles apart, and the speed limit throughout the entire canal is 6.2 mph. The canal is very narrow, and we stayed in single file all the way. The pontoon left us after the first lock and the rest of us continued.

We were second in line, and these two followed us in and out of the locks.

The lock tenders drove the route, stopping to open several 3’ high bridges along the way. What a hoot!

These locks are small!

Locks 7, 6, 5 and 4 were close together, a few tenths of a mile between each.  Another set of lock tenders took over, driving golf cart-like vehicles between the locks. All spoke excellent English and were very helpful.

The waterway is extremely narrow 

Locks 3, 2 and 1 were really crazy! Each one opened directly into the next one, like stairs. Amazing 19th century technology, considering these locks are operating just as they were in the 1840’s.

Each lock has a little house like this one.

We finished the lockages around 5:15 and tied up to the wall just outside lock 1. There was no power, but we didn’t need any. We purchased both a lock pass and a mooring pass for the season before we started our trip, rather than paying for each event separately.

Looking back at the gates of lock 1

View from the top of the locks 1-2-3 and the Bassin Chambly

We walked around the town and Fort Chambly after dinner. I was asleep before 9 p.m.

Chambly Library

Mark at Fort Chambly

Our little tug and the Bassin Chambly

Champlain Canal Locks

May 30- we left the Hudson River at Fort Edward and entered the man-made section of the Champlain Canal. We transited locks 5, 6, 7 and 8 going up in elevation while 9, 11 and 12 lowered us. (There is no lock 10) We also went through our first Guard Gate. 

Leaving our first lock on a gorgeous morning

A Guard Gate. Looks like a guillotine.

The biggest waves we saw this morning were created by a flock of Canada geese taking off. Barely a ripple showed otherwise.

A mirror-like reflection

A fixer upper??

We shared lock 12- the final lock on this waterway- with 2 Canadian sailboats. Both had their masts stepped (taken down and placed on wooden supports on their decks). Masts must be removed to allow the sailboats to pass under the fixed bridges. 

Sailboat leaving Whitehall, NY

Beautiful scenery heading toward Lake Champlain 

Fort Ticonderoga

Fort Ticonderoga (formerly Fort Carillon) is a star-shaped fort built by the French, 1755-1757, during the French and Indian War.

Cable ferry to Fort Ticonderoga

 There are several cable ferries crossing the waterway around here. These ferries move by pulling themselves along a steel cable. The cable lies on the bottom of the lake until the ferry’s progress pulls it up to the surface. We gave this ferry a wide berth. 

The tour boat Carillon returning from Ticonderoga.

Champlain Monument and Memorial Lighthouse

The Champlain Monument and memorial lighthouse commemorates the 300th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain's discovery of Lake Champlain. The bronze statue is of Champlain, a fellow Frenchman, and a Huron native. It was a gift from the French government.

We are currently in Westport, NY, waiting out strong winds on the Lake- hoping to cross over to Burlington, VT, early tomorrow. Winds and waves are too intense for a crossing of the "broad lake".