Dawson Boating: Canals, Locks and Bridges, Oh My!

7-15-13

Well....today will be a sad day. The part of the trip that we have talked about and explained to so many people, The Rideau and the Trent-Severn Waterway, will be behind us. We have completed around 100 locks. The canals and locks are part of the Canada Parks System. Connecting towns, rivers, and lakes, we have experienced much and met many friendly and open Canadians. We bought a season pass which means that we could tie up at any lock for the night and be ready to lock through in the morning. We could then get off the boat and bike or hike for exercise or get supplies, and we could also use their bathroom facilities. This translates to less holding tank pump-outs which is a charge in Canada, even as much as $25 .

We would definitely do this part of the trip again. For locals trying to squeeze in fun on a weekend, it can be frustrating to have to wait for a lock to fill. But for us, we got to talk to the lock masters and other boaters around us and enjoy the mostly beautiful park-like setting. One person I met in a lock said, "I remember you, I took a picture of you and your boat locking through in Ottowa!" I gave honey to one lockmaster that I had bought at a farmers market so he gave me HOMEMADE MAPLE SYRUP. Did you know that it takes forty gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup? He has a big kettle in his driveway that he heats with wood and just keeps pouring in the sap!! Yummy! Geoff and I make blueberry pancakes on a regular basis.

Of course, like anything government run, the lock system doesn't pay for itself. There is current controversy about raising the fees. This system was originally built for commercial reasons but now is basically used for pleasure boaters. However, it is not just functional, it is historic, artistic, and recreational. How do you put a price on all of that? So hours have been shortened and lock tenders occasionally run more than one lock so boaters may need to wait longer while tenders drive to the next lock.

The locks are amazing, many hand cranked to open the doors or the vents to let the water drain. There is the huge Peterborough Lift built and engineered in 1896. Your boat is lifted in a "bucket" of water while the other "bucket" of boats and water go down. Check it out online. I believe I read there are 160 dams on these waters in Ontario.

Ahhhh, the weather. It has been cold and rainy up until about two weeks ago! Now IT IS HOT!! We cannot complain though. As you travel up the Intracoastal and end up in Waterford, New York, a choice is made whether to take the Erie Canal or head north as Geoff and I did. The poor folks who chose the Erie have been stuck INSIDE a lock (for their safety) due to flooding. They have been there about a month and are lovingly calling it, for example, "Lock 11 Yacht club". So Geoff and I feel very lucky and blessed by all the wonders we have seen and though we may have been a little moldy the sun is curing us now.......right as we enter Georgian Bay with the most clear and swimmable water. YAHOO!!!!

Just a quick note to say that we were recently joined on the boat by our friends Judy and Mark and they made it home without a hitch.....so if anyone is thinking that they are interested in joining us you can ask them how they were treated or if they were tortured in any way! Let us know when you might meet us and we will see if it can work.

Carillon lock-65 foot lift!! That's Geoff in the picture.

Bridge on Ottawa canal

Homemade boat with us in Ottawa lock. This man is from Nova Scotia and was on the Erie. Got out while he could and trailered his boat to Kingston to travel the Rideau.