In the morning at the top of lock 38.

Since the locks open at 9 and we stayed on top of lock 38, we started later than usual today. We passed through locks 38 through 41, altogether covering only 2 ½ miles, after which we entered Lake Simcoe. We have been locking down since the Kirkfield lift lock (36), so our highest navigation was between locks 35 and 36 in Balsam Lake at 841 feet. We locked up from Lake Ontario at 243 feet. We’ll go back down to the Georgian Bay, part of Lake Huron at 581 feet.

Paul took pictures at lock 38. Sue holds lines in front and Sharon in back. With no guests I do the back.

The ladies release the lines and we’re ready to leave the lock. Attendant stands beside the manual valve opener.

The ladies rest after a job well done. I’ll pull up to the wall on the right to pick up Paul.

Simcoe is the largest lake on the Trent-Severn system, about 15 miles across in any direction. It can get pretty rough, and several boaters we met in the last few days said winds on Simcoe were expected to pick up this afternoon.

Some were waiting to go later, but we got through the four locks by about noon and decided to plunge onward. The winds were blowing around 15 mph as we got out on the lake, and seemed to pick up a bit in the hour and a half as we crossed, but the wave height never did seem to get very high. I thought it was 1 ½ feet. Sue, down below thought about 3 feet with water sometime splashing to the tops of the salon windows. Anyway the depth was good and we crossed without incident.

We entered the harbor at the north end and went on maybe a half mile to Bridge Port Marina to pump out. The channel narrows down there and Active Captain, which I was looking at more since the narrow channel experience, said the currents past this marina can be more than 10 knots, around the top speed of Star Gazer. This only happens when rains hit Simcoe, however.

I angled strongly into the dock and used the thruster and engines, and just kept sailing on past! Turns out the current, while no 10 knots, was still pretty strong today. The channel seemed wide enough to take our length, so I opposed the engines and applied a lot of power to turn in a hurry, gave a strong push to get momentum straight into the dock and then used more power to turn another 90 degrees to hit the dock sideways. There were plenty of dockhands to catch our lines, and plenty of us on board to throw them, so we got into the dock in a hurry that time.

We did the necessaries and had several dockhands brace our starboard back corner, let the current help turn the boat back around, and we were off into the much smaller Lake Couchiching. A hard left turn and two more miles and we arrived at Port of Orillia Marina in downtown Orillia, thankfully well out of all that current.

The Main street of Orillia is right off our Marina.

One day is enough to finish the Trent-Severn, including the Big Chute marine railway, and reach Georgian Bay. We’ll stay here at least another day to learn a bit more about where we will be going.

Sue and Sharon over a box of water that is 59 feet above the water below.

Today was our first day running with Sharon and Paul. We ran 8 miles through Sturgeon Lake, looking at the varied and colorful mix of vacation lake homes and docks. We entered a narrow channel passing close to homes and groups of kids swimming in the 82 degree water to get to the lock at Fenelon falls, where we stopped for lunch yesterday.

Tessa at Centre Point marina, where we stayed in Bobcaygeon, called before we got into the lock to say we forgot our power splitter on the dock. One of her workers would drive it to us, so we rose 26 feet and then tied up on the wall past the lock. We met some other loopers staying there and had a good time waiting. The guy with our splitter showed up almost too soon, and we untied and were off to navigate around Grand Island in the middle of Balsam Lake.

After rising 26 feet, getting ready to leave lock 34 at Fenelon Falls. We tied up to wait for our splitter between the houseboat and white trawler dead ahead on the right wall. We just fit in between them.

On the other side of Balsam Lake we entered the Trent Canal, which runs straight and very narrow for two miles. Active Captain does not mark much in Canada, but I checked later and it does mark this. There was also a sign on the way in saying the same thing, so I gave a Securite call on the radio as we plunged in. I got no answer, and we met only a very small aluminum deck boat which went to the edge as we went by in the channel center.

The channel was blasted from granite. Looking down I could see the granite edge of the shallow areas before they dropped off. It was simply not wide enough to pass anyone, and just touching that edge would be bad. This was considerably worse than the Rockpile in South Carolina. Rental houseboats and others with no radios use this channel as well. If we had met someone, all we could do is come to a dead stop and hope they could do the same. Then we would have to use ropes and fenders to slide past each other very slowly, so that if we did scrape we could get only scars on the hull rather than a hole. We took this at idle speed.

In the Trent Canal. The deep part does not extend to the edge. You can see shallow granite shelves on each side.

We passed through a very tightly marked and shallow (we hit bottom once) channel in the small Mitchell Lake and then it was back into another very narrow two mile channel that ended opening out to lock 36, the Kirkfield lift lock. This time we were locking down and first in, getting a front row seat at the outer edge of the lift lock box. We quickly dropped 59 feet as the box to our right side rose the same.

Looking back as we left the Kirkfield lift lock. Daisy, behind us, is docked in front of us tonight.

After that we entered ¾ mile more of narrow blasted out channel where we finally did hear a securite call from another 50 foot boat coming the other way. I answered that and they waited while we and the boat behind us came out of the channel.

This year we lucked out and did not meet anyone. We’ll come this way next year, and I’m trying to figure out how to be more certain of securing a good passage through this area. So far no ideas.

As we passed through lock 37 we asked the lockmaster to check where we could stay. He got us a spot above the next lock, 38, where we stopped at about 3:30 for the night. We were with friends. A number of other boaters who we had met a few times already, several while waiting for that splitter, were there sitting under the trees in the park.

Swimming off of our boat at the top of lock 38.

The water was 82 degrees, so we all sat on life jackets and floated around. Paul went in last so he could take a picture. Afterwards Paul barbecued some great hamburgers.

With the lock master for lock 32, the busiest lock on the Trent-Severn system.

Today I got our rental car in Lindsay in the morning, visited an optometrist to check on my glasses prescription and stopped by lock 33, which is in Lindsay and off our route, just to see it. The lock 32 master, who was able to squeeze me in yesterday, was visiting there and I got to talk to him a bit more. All the employees in the canal system do a great job. I told him that and that as much as I appreciate my locking vacation being financed by the Canadian taxpayer, I do believe in user fees paying the freight and that they should raise their rates.

Finally I drove to the Toronto airport to get Sharon and Paul. Sue stayed and arranged the boat for Sharon and Paul’s arrival. She got the better deal. Toronto traffic was the worst I have been in anywhere for quite awhile, and that was at 3 in the afternoon. Toronto is the largest city in Canada by far and I’m really glad to be out of there.

At the restaurant on the river at Fenelon Falls. The canal and locks are on the other side of the powerhouse.

We kept the rental car for Tuesday so the four of us could look around the area. We toured Bobcaygeon, which was a nice little tourist town, and stocked up our groceries and a supermarket there. Paul and I also ran into the lock master again and talked more. We then drove over to Fenelon Falls. Lock 34 that we’ll rise 26 feet in early Wednesday is there as well as a restaurant that overlooks the falls beside the small powerhouse where we ate lunch. With our car touring ended we dropped the women at the boat and Paul and I drove into Lindsay to drop off the car.

While in Lindsay on Monday I ran into Ron Foster who learned I could use a ride to Bobcaygeon this afternoon late. He had to make the same run and would make it at the right time, so that’s how Paul and I got back to the boat. The weather up here has been outstanding, and today was just another example of that, which maybe inspired Ron to invite us out on his boat for a tour of northern Pigeon Lake.

Ron Foster at his home before our evening cruise.

We saw where the town luminaries lived along the lakeshore and learned a bit about the history and geography of the area. Ron was born here and lived most of his young and older life here. It was warm right into the twilight with a three quarter moon lighting our way. We got back to Ron’s island and home at dark, being entertained by following someone apparently learning to drive a large rental houseboat going almost into the shore on one side and then the other on the way back into the harbor.

One of the Bobcaygeon water front homes we saw on our evening cruise.

Ron dropped us back at our boat and we had a quick small dinner and went to bed. Big day tomorrow. Quite a few locks.

Now that Paul is back, he is reassuming position of official voyage photographer. Most pictures are his.

Top of lock 30. Didn’t get up till about 8, but there was still a fog that changed to a good weather day.

Sunday with great weather in the middle of the short Canadian boating season, how bad can the crowds get? Being the only one out in the wilderness is great, but while maybe not something for every day, we had a great time out with the crowds.

We went through two large lakes with thousands of islands, most very small. Many would have a single vacation home. We saw one large enough to have several, still well spaced apart. Many just had a boat or two pulled up and tents pitched. Most had no people. Canadians getting away from it all. I’ve not seen anything like this in the US. If the people in California ever find out about this the summer population here will double and all those other islands will have someone camping on them as well.

Two houseboats, probably rentals, tied up at a small island.

Today we went through locks 31 and 32. In 31 we had more boats with us than usual. The last lock was a surprise. We entered a crowded narrow channel that suddenly became more crowded and narrower. We had to reverse the engines and stop a couple of times as smaller boats moved about. When we came to a bend in the channel we discovered the lock 32 gate a few hundred feet ahead with boats tied to the lock wall’s blue line on both sides. I wasn’t expecting that lock yet. Some boats on the walls behind the blue line were just hanging out while others might be waiting to get into the lock also. The concrete walls were completely full before and behind us. We could not go forward. Backing up was not an option because the channel, with boats lining both sides was way too narrow. Anyway there were boats coming behind me.

The folks on the trawler to our left realized this and called out for us to raft (tie up side to side) to them. We both had our locking fenders out, so we squished together nicely. I moved sideways into them and Sue passed them a bow and a stern line. The boats behind us just had to wait. There were boats in the lock that would be coming our way, and we all had to give them room to pass.

We rafted with the trawler nose to us on the right, just beyond the three runabouts. Space shows left just beyond the houseboat ahead in channel center. It took that. Rocks in front of the trawler. No tying there.

Since we were tied I jumped down to our neighbor’s deck, got off and ran up the wall to the lock. I informed the lockmaster of our presence and size, since he would not see me tied up on the “blue line” area before the lock gate. He would call for me on the PA system if I was to enter this time. He thought I might make it since this lock was larger than most others.

When the lock finally opened the boats had to leave slowly because they had just a foot or two clearance on each side in several areas, one of which was where we were. Once they were clear we untied and moved out to the channel center while boats ahead of us started for the lock. We then slowly followed. We heard the lockmaster direct several boats into their positions after which he called out “52 foot cruiser enter and tie up left”, so in we went.

How to get to our marina? Take a hard right around the marker left of the two guys fishing at the right.

Our marina was just a mile beyond the lock. I had called earlier and found one of the workers there has to drive into Lindsay in the morning to drop off her car for repair. I’ll go in with her and pick up the rental car I’ve reserved for the Toronto airport run to get Sharon and Paul.

Our trip started crossing Little Lake in a few minutes and waiting for Lock 20.

Sharon and Paul are coming to join us again, so we had to decide how we are going to connect with them when they come in to Toronto airport and we are out in the middle of nowhere north of that. I did find Lindsay where we can rent a car, but while we will pass right by Lindsay, the closest place we can dock a boat our size is 15 miles away. We’ll think of something. All we have to do is get near Lindsay, which should be an easy 2 day trip on the canal.

It’s good Sharon and Paul are coming before we leave the Trent-Severn for the Georgian Bay and North Channel area of Lake Huron, which is really in the middle of nowhere.

Hard to get the right picture, but it was quite a ride.

This morning we left Peterborough Marina and will travel Saturday and Sunday to reach Bobcaygeon which is near Lindsay. We crossed Little Lake to lock 20 and had to wait awhile before Rachel could let us through. Since it was a weekend they had another person to open the swing bridge as we approached it. Within a few minutes we sailed into the lift lock with one other boat behind us, the back gate came up and us and the water underneath us rose 65 feet.

We then passed Trent University which sits on both sides of the canal north of Peterborough. It is relatively new and so had no older buildings we could see. These days it seems when university types and architects get together nothing good comes of it, but it was at least interesting to sail past.

Touched trees both sides sometimes in the passage just after lock 22. What if I had met another boat here?

We were significantly delayed at locks 20 and 22, and I was beginning to wonder how long this trip, which was to end with us staying atop lock 30, would take. Fortunately we sailed right into nearly all the other locks, until we finally came to number 30, the Lovesick lock. It is so tucked back into the trees in the side of one of the bays of Lovesick Lake that I still sailed past it even though it appears correctly on the chart.

It was the weekend and the walls on each side below and above Lovesick were full of many boats of various size. Even a jet ski was staying the night. The people had pitched tents on the grass and the fire pit was active. What a party. We could see all this because lock 30 does not rise more than a few feet.

My deckhand used the umbrella for the sun while she held lines today. This is from later when it rained.

I asked the lockmaster where we could stay, and he went over and talked to everyone. Boats moved around as we rode up the lock, and there was a nice 60’ long spot on the left wall. We got help with our lines, tied up, and a couple of small boats that left came back. One tucked in nicely under our bow. The other found a spot and we were all good.

Then some of the children came up and wanted a tour of the boat. That’s Sue’s department, so I went and talked with some of the other boaters.

The lift lock and its museum to the right of this photo were the goal of my walk.

Peterborough is a town of about 80,000 and is the largest city on the Trent-Severn canal. It has a great downtown where we spent the day yesterday. George street is the major shopping/restaurant street. Several cross streets have a lot of businesses going both ways of George. Most all the buildings are older and in great shape. This is a great town to spend a few days in, which is just what we’re doing.

Rail swing bridge which I passed after the road swing bridge which was upstream from lock 20.

Locks 20 and 21, the famous lift lock, are right in the city. This morning I took a forty minute walk from our marina to the lift lock. I wanted to see it in action before we took our ride. A foot bridge crosses from the marina to a walking path to lock 20. That was closed for repairs so I took the railroad bridge next to it. At the swing bridge across the canal above lock 20 I talked with Rachel, the lockmaster for 20. She had just let three boats out of the lock and rode her bicycle to the bridge and was opening that. She figures she has cycled her lock 3000 times since she started work. Most lockmasters are young, maybe working their way through college?

Canadian geese were all along the path to the lift lock. Most peaceable, but one tried to take me on.

I then walked along the parkway to lock 21. I watched the lock cycle once and visited the museum there.

Looking down George Street in Peterborough

Today we ran 14.5 miles to lock 18 at Hastings. Some of the Hastings main street area along the river looked really nice. We definitely will stop there, if only for a few hours, next time through.

Looking down from top at middle gate between locks 16 & 17 before we left for Hastings and Peterborough

We continued 18 miles through Rice Lake which was formed by the dam at Hastings, and then 27 miles up a very narrow winding channel to lock 19 in Peterborough. Locks 20 and 21, the famous lift lock, are also in Peterborough. I’ve been waiting to see that lift lock.

Sue was not too impressed with the scenery our first day on the canal. Much more so the second day, and today it was great. A lot of the country we are zigzagging through is about a two hour drive from Toronto, so we see a lot of summer homes. These are less spectacular and older than what Americans build along the rivers and ICW, but very nice, and overall seem a more pleasant and spread out. Much of the difference is probably because few would want to spend the winter, or even late fall or early spring here.

The weather remains really good. Sunny but breezy. Depending on our direction, which in this canal changes often and drastically, we put on and take off our jackets. Not enough wind to blow us about when approaching the locks, however.

After passing lock 19 we took a sharp left through Little Lake to Peterborough Marina where we topped up fuel, pumped out (finally) and will stay awhile.

Evening concert in the next door park just back of the marina office. Lots of food vendors too.

We arrived on a Wednesday, and every Wednesday and Saturday there is a concert in the park, which is next to the marina. It was not our kind of music, so we didn’t hang around that area long.

Passing through Campbellford, ON

We continued into the Trent-Severn today and are now tied on the wall above locks 16/17. There are 44 locks in the entire system. Although they are not evenly spaced, that still gives an idea of how far we’ve come. These last two locks are part of the same “flight lock” system where the gate in between the two locks is shared. These two are just a hundred yards from lock 15, so we went upward quite a lot (76’) in a hurry.

Outside our first flight lock, 11/12 at Ranney Falls. Note turbulence in front from water dumping from near lock.

In lock 11. The middle gate of a flight lock is very tall. You can see my deckhand below. She works hard.

We stopped here at about 3 PM. No shore power and it’s hot, so we’re running the genset so the AC can run. We like the wilderness, but not too much wilderness.

There has been much less rain for us in Canada than on the Erie. Every lawn we saw along the Erie was completely green, and they have way too much grass for me to believe anyone has sprinkler systems. It’s pretty green here in Canada also, but I do see just a bit of brown at times, although nothing like in California or North Idaho. The weather has been good overall. A bit of wind comes up after noon, but it’s warm enough so that is not a problem.

A number of locks have low swing road bridges operated by the lock master. Lock gates open, then the bridge.

That bit of wind was off the wall when we tied up today, so I maneuvered up to the wall while Sue threw a loop of line over the post on the wall and secured it back on the boat so I could leave the controls and help her. I made several trips up and down while we learned a lot. We finally got things good enough that I could jump onto the wall without worrying that Sue and the boat would take off without me. Once there I secured some other lines she threw to me and we were fine.

Wind can really push our boat hard. Human strength alone is not nearly enough to pull it in with even a light wind against you. Once we had a couple if lines out I could pull it in with techniques other boaters had taught us.

It’s nice being out alone about 500 feet up from the upper gate. There is one house by that gate with no one home. Nothing else so it’s very quiet here. According to our map Healy falls is nearby, but is very small with maybe maybe three streets. Can’t see it from here. We had a nice dinner on the sundeck in back and will turn in early.

Leaving Picton Harbour Monday morning.

We were off early the next morning to Trenton. Forty miles and four hours later we arrived. We stopped at Fraser Park marina for a pump out and their system, which they thought was up, was down. There is no other pump out facility for a few days into the canal, which we thought strange for an area which is “no discharge”. Fortunately we are prepared for such things, but 95% of the boats out there are not. Wonder how they handle a situation like this? I can guess.

We pressed on up the channel. I checked my favorite app, Active Captain, that knows everything about anything along US waterways and found it was surprisingly lacking regarding Canada. It did not show where the locks were, let alone their phone numbers and call frequencies. When we got to what I thought might be the first lock gate for the famous canal it seemed that we took a wrong turn and had come to a unused gate on an abandoned section of the canal.

The lock looked old and abandoned first because all these locks are old, built in the 1800’s. In most locks the gates are still hand operated. Second, all that is visible when approaching lock 1 from below are the old timber lock gates and train bridge over. Also the bright yellow painted rails on top of the gate were not there. I guess the lockmaster crossed at the upper gates. Also the lockmaster’s building was set back and not visible. Unfortunately I was too puzzled to take a picture. It was rather forbidding.

We tied up to a concrete wall in front of the gate and I ran up the stairs beside it to see if it was abandoned or what. I found the lockmaster getting ready to open the gate for us. I talked with her and found out how things work. You don’t call ahead, you just show up. They’re watching for you and will open the gate when possible. Once you’re in they come and ask you how far you’re going and call ahead to tell the next lock of your arrival. The other locks can then be waiting for us with open gates, assuming other traffic does not interfere. It did not for us so we smoothly transited locks 1 through 6, most of which were within a mile of each other.

We’ve risen in this lock and they are manually opening the gates in front of us.

There are tie ups along the wall above each lock. The one above lock 6 has shore power so that’s where we sit now. The waterway here is higher than the surrounding area grassy berm on each side. On the other side of the berm is a park for the city of Frankford. I walked into the park and across the bridge into Frankford, but it was 5:30 before I got there and everything, which was not much, was closed and deserted. It’s and old town with a small downtown area. It isn’t large enough to have a new area with chain stores further out.

Star Gazer across the berm from Frankford City Park

On the other side of the berm we had a peaceful night to ourselves in the remote wilderness.

Looking out from Picton Harbour Park Marina our first night in Canada.

We had returned to the boat from our road trip and a quick trip south at 2 AM Saturday (July 18) morning. We got to bed at 3, so we spent what was left of Saturday with a bit of shopping to top off supplies. No telling what will be available in Canada, and the Trent Severn canal does not hit any larger towns except for Trenton and Peterborough, and they’re not too big anyway. Are there Walmart’s and Aldi’s (our usual markets) in Canada? We don’t know, so we’re not taking any chances.

Sunday morning we ran 50 miles across Lake Ontario in 5 hours and then spent another hour in a channel leading toward Trenton ON where the canal starts. We stopped in at Picton Harbour Park Marina. Picton ON is a very small town, like nearly all other towns around this area. We did not get into town, but just spent the night.

Ten miles up the waterway with no bridges so far. This small ferry is the only one we saw.

The girl at the marina told me how to register with the authorities. I just called them on the phone and answered a few questions about guns, alcohol and what kind of meat we had on board and where we bought it. The they gave me a number to write down and that was that. We could have had a weapons cache or a few terrorists down below and would have gotten in no problem. I suppose terrorists normally don’t sneak from the US to Canada. We’ll see what happens when we come back into the US.

Tomorrow morning we will continue along this winding channel, turn in at Trenton ON, enter the canal and see how far we can get by 2 or 3 PM.