Of course, we were still going through locks every few miles and the locks were complete with the same gorgeous parks drawing crowds to watch the action. We met so many locals and tourists who were full of questions wondering how we got our boat into Canada from North Carolina. This was one of my favorite families oldest daughter had a hundred questions for me as we made our way through a flight of locks. She walked away so enthralled with the boat and our trip saying, "I'm gonna do that one day." I don't doubt her for a moment - she was quite an impressive young lady.
As we neared our next stop, Bobcaygeon, the houses grew nicer and nicer,
and the area became more and more populated. We learned that it was the
Canadian Civic Holiday - something similar to our Labor Day. So, space on lock walls
was expected to be hard to come by during the long holiday weekend.
Somehow in the midst of all these folks, SeaGlide was lucky enough to get a space on the lock wall right in the middle of downtown Bobcaygeon. No space was available for our buddy boats as they locked through a little before us.
We were warned to be careful if we had to lock through during the holiday as houseboat renters were not required to have any experience boating and were known to break free during locking or run into other boats in the close quarters. We didn't have to lock through with any renters, but we decided to stay on the wall for a couple of days and watch the action. We were not disappointed as boats and people were everywhere - in fact, some boats actually wound up horizontal inside the lock!
Bobcaygeon is known for Bigley's Shoe Store, which carries over 40,000 pairs of shoes. Bigley's must own half the town as it also has several clothing stores. As luck would have it, their once a year sale known as Midnight Madness was planned for the following day, Aug 3. The public streets shut down and entertainment provided as all the stores in the downtown area remained open until midnight.
The event was set up as a draw for every member of the family. Multi-generational families showed up all shopping together as they enjoyed food and entertainment for every member of the family. We were quite impressed with the gathering - no drinking involved, just good clean fun for everyone.
The next day we hiked to the Kwartha Settlers Village for a good dose of local area history.
We pulled out of Bobcaygeon in route to the Kirkfield Lift Lock - the sister lock to the Peterborough Lift Lock. We went through Sturgeon Lake, Fenelon Falls, and Rosedale (our last upbound lock). After Rosedale we went into Balsam Lake, which is the highest point on the Trent-Severn. From this point on we will be locking down versus up.
Sturgeon Lake
Fennelon Falls
A misplaced GA Bulldog.
More narrow channels
especially with oncoming traffic.
Balsam Lake.
The Kirkfield Lift Lock.
Entering the bathtub.
The view from the top.
Bucket List.
Pazza Bella.
Spiritus showed back up on the scene.
Nightfall over the Kirkfield Lock Wall.
The next day we decided to get an early start as the narrow, shallow channel required us to go slowly. We took the Trent into Cana Lake and passed by the shallow 410 red mark showing only 3.8' of depth. As SeaGlide drafts 4.6' the Captain kept it slow, and we were able to ease through the mud bottom. The surroundings were extraordinary with the low-lying fog and birds, plus the clouds reflecting in the water.
The shallow water allows the growth of weeds to the extent that we stopped
after the last swing bridge to clear the strainers.
We went through the Hole in the Wall Bridge
with a little room to spare on each side.
We went through several locks in isolated farming areas.
The channel finally opened up when we reached Lake Simcoe.
Then we went through the Atherly Narrows known for the
Objibway tribes fishing weirs. We pulled into a marina there for a pumpout and
spotted another North Pacific just like SeaGlide. Her name was Polar Bear, and she hailed from Toronto; however, the owners were not on board.
We tucked in for the night at the Port of Orillia Marina where a local boater reviewed the charts with us and made suggestions for our upcoming trip into the Georgian Bay.
Everyone left the marina at different times, and we were the last in our group to leave.
We passed another "bird island,"
and the water seemed to get even more clear.
We ended up catching up to everyone as a railroad bridge was slow to open.
We did, however, have several boats between us and our buddies.
The railroad bridge eventually opened, and we moved on.
Passed lots of recent storm damage.
We finally made our way to the last lock before the Big Chute.
Our buddies, however, were all ahead of us. We just decided to call it a day
and stay on the lock wall to make use of a perfect camp spot.
and stay on the lock wall to make use of a perfect camp spot.
Staying on the upper lock wall was a couple we met in their 70s that were canoeing the entire length of the Trent Severn. They packed all their gear with them and set up camp. We had fun trading stories with them. We also met a French couple on a sailboat that stayed on the lower lock wall along with us. The lady was most taken with Amos and tried her best to speak English with us. Again, they were fascinated with the concept of the Great Loop and had tons of questions for us.
The next morning we got underway on what would be our last day on the Trent Severn Waterway.
We passed by this house reminding of ours on Potato Branch and
this cabin named Rocklyn, which is so similar to my nieces name, Lochlyn.
We arrived at the Big Chute in time to see Pazza Bella preparing to enter the lock.
The "lock" is actually a marine railway that transports boats over land inside a railway car.
The boats enter the car and are held steady by slings.
Traffic is then stopped on the roadway as the railroad car crosses.
Once on the other side, the railway car goes downhill
and splashes the boat on the other side.
Then the car returns for the next load. This is a picture
of the original railway car that has now been replaced.
Next, its Barefoot'n's turn.
And finally SeaGlide enters...
The railway car is actually underwater here as we drove onto the slings.
Here you can see the railway car and slings beneath us.
SeaGlide gets strapped up,
travels across the road,
and proceeds downhill
The view from the top.
A look back up the hill.
And then its....
splash down!
Next, the straps are released,
and we're on our merry way.
We lock through the final lock on the system with 25 mph winds. BayPort Marina where we have reservations for the night sent a guide over to meet us at the lock and lead us across Severn Sound and Midland Bay. The winds were very hard, and we were met with white caps while trying to navigate the narrow channel through the Sound. There was a weather advisory out, and we heard a mayday call of a capsized sailboat - all persons overboard were rescued. It made for a harrowing experience.
We were behind Pazza Bella as she navigated the narrow channel and
was getting blown toward the rocks.
was getting blown toward the rocks.
SeaGlide's Captain did an excellent job despite my nervousness...
You can see how narrow the channel is here - not much room for error.
Several locals told us they wouldn't even try it on such a windy day.
Our guide assured us we would do okay, and he was right!
Lots of folks on the sidelines watching the show though!
We followed the guide through the sound and bay
and were happy to end the day with a beautiful sunset.
Tomorrow the adventure continues as we make our way to the Georgian Bay.
Looking forward to no more locks until we reach Chicago!
