Day 104 - Are we back in the Pacific NW?

It was a beautiful morning before we arose as our friends on True North III saw.  They snapped this picture of us as they left Buckhorn lock.  When we left a short time later the sun was fully up but our hands were busy trying to get us off the wall that I didn't have time for pictures.  We had to back off the wall and the current to the dam was so strong is sucked us against the concrete barriers.  Thank goodness our fenders protected the boat!  Bob pulled forward again and backed out again at more of an angle and as much power as he could manage.  Success!  Rough way to start a morning but the scenery ahead made it a much better day :)

We almost felt like we were back the the NW!  The evergreen trees, the rocky islands, the beauty!

Lots of houses on their own private island.

 Lots of narrow passages between islands

This fabulous little Anglican church - only open July and August - all are welcome!  They have their own boat dock for attendees.

 It's important to stay between the navigational buoys to keep you off the rocks.

Love the pretty foot bridge to their private "rock"

This must have been a lovely home in its day.

Mother-in-law cabin on the rock?

 Beautiful twin waterfalls 

 Guest cottage or???

So many unusual homes

Magic follows us through a narrow cut.

 I love this house over their two boat garage!

We stopped at Lovesick Lock - the most photographed lock on the waterway and the only lock on an island!  Several looper friends were already here and we had a short visit before moving on.

We begin to see lots of houseboats that are vacation rentals.  The people who rent them get very little training and so the boats are often referred to as "bumper boats" or similar terms describing the awkward situations they get into.  We watched one boat crash into the dock, had one nearly crash into us, another nearly crash into another Looper boat, one try to under a bridge that was too low, and on and on......

Toni viewing the beautiful granite on Lovesick island.

 The lockmasters here also love to garden.

The lock master adjusting the dam next to Lovesick Lock.

Leaving the island we see more beautiful homes....

Most homes have these chairs out by the water - many different colors but always the same style!

A wonderful way to spend the afternoon - the famous Kawartha Ice Cream - yum!

Docked at Lock #31 Wall - Buckhorn Lock - 6/26/17

Day 103 - Lock 27

After such a nice day yesterday was it wrong to hope for a repeat?  Oh well, just more adventures, right?  Last night Randy and Bob dove under our boats to check the propellers and both found lots of weeds wrapped around them.  They cleaned them all off but we had been warned that there were more weeds ahead.

Randy and Toni are divers and have all their equipment with them.  He has a 50' hose from the regulator to the tank so they didn't have to carry the tank down with them.  Worked great!

Bob doesn't have a wet suit but we did buy him a mask and he borrowed the regulator and tank.  He said the water was not bad at all.

We got underway around 8:00 and it really was pretty out.

We caught up with Endeavor about half way to the first lock of the day.

The scenery is more and more like Puget Sound.

About this time our port engine decided to overheat.  We made it to the lock and stopped there while Bob and Randy changed our second impeller.  Endeavor went on ahead. They successfully got it changed but, altho it is not running hot, it's not quite right (amount of water expelled in the exhaust is much less than normal) and we will stop and have a mechanic look at it on Tuesday.  We had to make a decision then about whether to go on.  Endeavor called and said the currents were really bad ahead and they may close the locks.  We talked to the lock masters who called ahead and said if we got any more significant rain they would probably close but were OK for now.  We decided to move ahead before more rain came!  It was a beautiful ride even though the current around the locks was swift.  Bob is much more knowledgeable now and handled it beautifully.

 Combining a picnic, campfire (on the cement), and fishing!

This guy is fishing for his picnic!

The lock we stayed at to replace the impeller.  

We all wouldn't fit in the lock together so I got to take pictures of Magic and Endeavor.

The lock masters are in hot competition with Lock 23 for the most beautiful garden. Notice the 150 representing the 150th anniversary of Canada

They are training summer help - all relaxing while they wait for our boat to rise.

Ready to move on - this cruise boat is coming towards us.  The canal is very narrow here and we were very concerned about getting around.

We held our breath while Magic squeaked by!

 The canal was incredibly narrow and beautiful here. The most similar to the canals in Wales we've seen on this trip.

Someone was very creative

I think we are in vacation land, Canada - so many vacation homes, house boats, and beaches.  I think its a bit chilly to swim but that didn't stop these brave souls.

A local resort

Not sure how many of the homes around are vacation or year round, but there are some beauties!

The speed limit is mostly 10 KPH on the Trent Severn Waterway and is well marked with speed limit signs.  How many cars can see their speed limit sign bobbing around in the current?

We cleared our last lock at 5:30 and finally caught up with Endeavor and True North III.  We got an absolute drenching going through the lock as a huge storm went through.  Luckily we missed the earlier storm that came through with 45 mile an hour winds!  A bit of rain (all right - more than a bit) never hurt anyone.  :)  The lock walls were nearly full so we had to go out in the bay and wait until a boat left the wall to enter the lock.  The wall is right next to the dam and the current is pretty vicious.  We are both tired from our long day and very grateful to be docked.

Our friends on True North III took this picture as we get ready to dock.  The yellow bumpers on the concrete blocks in the right corner are the barriers to the dam.  Too close for comfort!

Docked at Lock 27 - Young's Point 6/25/17

Day 102 - Peterborough Lift Lock

Good morning, Sunshine!!!

A beautiful day to do the Peterborough Lift Lock.  We crossed Rice Lake first thing in the morning and we couldn't have asked for a smoother crossing.  This lake is very shallow and can get quite bumpy in windy weather.  As it was Saturday. all the water sports people were out in force.  Lots of speed boats, kayaks, and even our first water skier!

Nobody was using it but this unique water toy looked interesting.

More young people out jumping off bridges

Even sandy beaches to play on!

Beautiful scenery abounds!

When we arrived at Lock 20, we discovered that today was the day of the Lock 'n Paddle - the 2nd annual challenge to see how many boats can fill the tubs in the lift lock at Lock 21.  We arrived at lock 20 at 1:00 which was when the event was occurring so we tied up at the bottom of the lock and waited for the flood of canoes and kayaks to come down river.  It wasn't quite as impressive as expected as many boats were pulled out of the water before our lock but there were still a good number that came through the lock.

The event was a success.  They broke the record by squeezing 328 boats (canoes and kayaks) into the two trays of the lock.  I wish we were close enough to see it but it was still fun watching the little boats come down the river.

Then it was our turn!  The lock looks huge from the river.  

This lock was opened in 1904, took 8 years to build and is still the tallest lift lock in the world (65' lift).  What you see in the picture is the right side tray in the raised position and the left hand tray lowered. The lift is hydraulically controlled. 1 cubic foot of water (130 tons) added to the up side and in a teeter totter type effect, the extra weight carries it down and pushes the other one up.  From the bottom the trays don't look very large, but we had 8 canoes/kayaks, 3 speed boats, Magic and ourselves in the tray.  

A wall materializes from under the water across the back of the tray and we begin our surprisingly fast (about two minutes) ascent.  We pass the other tray going down and suddenly the ground is a long way down!

When we reach the top the forward wall sinks below the water line and disappears and we are free to continue our journey.  We tie up to the wall outside the lock and watch the next group of boats enter the tray for their journey down.  It appears they are sailing off the edge of the world!   

Here is a video of our friends coming up with the video sped up 8X.

We then walk down to tour the visitors center at the halfway point.  Such an interesting day!