Chapter 69: Still on the Trent-Severn

Log 69
Still on the Trent-Severn

5:30 AM
Wednesday, July 26, 2000
Deer Bay

Day 87

Ok I think I spoke to soon. I was saying that the Trent-Severn reminded me (actually all of us) of the Illinois River. Well in places is did, and still does, but for the last couple of days it has changed dramatically, and it’s now living up to its reputation of “natures gift to boaters”.
The first part of the Trent-Severn is like weeds connected by water, and locks. It was unbelievable. I have been cleaning out my engine strainers 3 times a day because they get all clogged up, and I’m afraid the engines will overheat. In many places it is like a driveway down a narrow channel of weeds. I’m not talking about weeds on the side of the channel; I’m talking about weeds in the water, and under the water. The water is very clear, so they must be able to grow because they can get light, but they are definitely a nuisance.
We have gone through 30 locks now, in a little over 115 miles. Most of the locks are easy, and most of them expect you when you get there, because the last lockmaster called ahead and told them you were coming. They average between 9 feet lift to 30 feet so far, but the most dramatic was the one at Peterborough. It is a little hard to describe but I’ll try. Picture two huge metal tubs of water sitting side by side, with a tower in the middle of them. One is 65 feet in the air, at the level of the water above, and the other is in the water below. As you approach the lock they lower the gate on the lower one so we can drive in. As we did this you could see a boat driving in the huge tub of water above. Once we got in you tie the boat to a rail, so it won’t move. The next thing that happens is they lift the gates to keep the water in, and you are now floating in a tub of water. In order to raise the lower one, they fill the tub on top with enough water to make it heavier than the lower one, and all of a sudden we start to rise in the air, while floating in this tub of water. Half way to the top you pass the other tub on the way down, and in about 2 to 3 minutes you are on top. 65 feet higher than you were. They open the front gate, and you drive out of the tub, and into the river above. Amazing. Terry and I were saying could you imagine the guy who first thought about designing that thing. People were saying, “You want to do WHAT?”
One of the things that you notice here is how friendly everyone is. I mean everyone. They seem happy to see you, and all to happy to help if they can. The lockmasters are all smiling, and they make locking through easy, and a pleasure. (We should transfer a few of these to the Illinois locks) Most of the locks have two people in them. One is full time, and the other is usually a student just working for the summer. Oh yea. I forgot to tell you, most all of the lock doors are operated manually. They are huge wooden doors with an arm on them that has teeth on it. This arm is then connected to, and through, the side of lock. This arm is then connected to a gear that fits into these teeth, and when the gear is turned it moves the arm back and forth. So…..if the lockmaster wants the doors opened two people (one on each side) grab these pipes (which are attached to the gears) sticking out of the ground, and push these pipes as they walk around in circles. Which turns the gear, which makes the teeth move the arm, which opens the doors. Does this make any sense? (It takes an average of 12 complete circles to open a door) These folks are doing all of this work, and still smiling.

Starting yesterday morning the scenery on the Trent-Severn seemed to change, and by afternoon is was dramatically different, and some of the neatest waters I have ever been in. The channel winds around hundreds of islands as it makes its way between the locks. If you have ever seen “On Golden Pond” you have an idea of what we are seeing, but with a lot more islands. Most of these islands are very small, and most have houses on them. It is amazing to see these homes, and trying to figure out how in the world they built them. In some cases the home takes up the entire island. All you see is a home built on a rock, with a garage built on the water for the boat. And as I say the channel winds it’s way through these, and in some cases between two islands that are no more than a couple of boat widths wide.

The weather has been near perfect. When we got on the boat last Friday evening, a storm has just passed through, and it turned clear, and sunny. It has been that way ever since. The early mornings are a little cool, (mid 50’s) but without any clouds, when the sun comes up it warms things up in a hurry. We normally start the day out with the bimini top down, and by mid day we need to put it up because it is too hot.

This morning we are anchored in Deer Bay. It is a beautiful medium sized bay just off of the main channel. We got here about 5:30 last night. As soon as we did, everyone (except me) went swimming, and used the bay to take a bath in. After that we all took a dinghy ride to explore the bay, and then Terry and I then took the dinghy to try to find Walter. (Remember the fish in “On Golden Pond”?) After a lot of casting, and only one small bass, we came back to the boat for some dinner, and a quite evening of relaxing as we gently swung around on our anchor line.

Today…
We need to head out of here about 7:45 because the locks open at 8:30. We will try to get as far as we can, but it is hard to judge just how far that will be. We usually don’t even make plans for the night until after lunch sometime because you just can’t tell.
The weather looks like it will be great today, but then we may be in for some rain the next couple of days.
I’ll keep you posted…

BK