FRI, DAY 56, DEP INDIAN BAY 10:45  ARR. HENRY’S 12:00.  DEP. HENRY’S 2:00 ARR. PORT RAUSON 3:30
AM RAIN SHOWERS, PM SUN W CLOUDS, WIND 10-15SW.
D. 23.0sm/930.2

We timed our departure so we could stop at the world famous HENRY’S Fried Fish Rest. for lunch.  The main menu consists of battered fried, or pan fried pickerel, whitefish, or perch.  All of it excellent, and served with fries and coleslaw for $15.95 to $18.95.  Famous is not an exaggeration.  There is a constant parade of float planes, dinghies, runabouts, and yachts stopping by for both lunch and dinner, with slips for about 30 boats for overnight mooring.    The ride up the main channel to Port Rauson is about 8 miles off the main boat channel was very pretty.  Small lakes connected by narrow natural channels between many large and small granite boulders, along tree covered granite shores interrupted by occasional cottages. It requires very careful attention to buoys and markers to stay in the channel and avoid rocks.   The harbor is a federal reserve for boats, with no cottages on its shores.  It’s about the size of Waquiot Bay but that’s where the similarity ends.  There are no beaches, only rocky and high granite shores. The water is also much deeper, 30+ feet almost right up to the shore, and of course, it’s fresh.  We see about 30 boats anchored there.  The interesting thing about the local boaters is that they seem to prefer express cruisers in the 30’ to 35’ size.  They install extra inverters and batteries, and they all have very nice RIBs with min. 30hp motors.  It seems their preferred activity is anchoring out over the weekend and using the dinghy to explore, fish, run to the store, etc.  We anchored in about 30’ of water and settled down for the afternoon. I’m always nervous about being at anchor overnight, but even with 15kn winds we were very comfortable and the anchor alarm never went off.   About 9PM, I went off, and when I awoke the next morning, we were still anchored in the same spot, which is the way we like it.   

ONE ROCK PER HOUSE

RUGGED COASTLINE IN MAIN CHANNEL

APPROACHING HENRY';S

PAT & JOE AT THE FAMOUS HENRY'S

THE LUNCH CROWD AT HENRY'S

SKINNY CHANNEL ENROUTE TO PORT RAUSON BAY

HIDDEN ENTRANCE BETWEEN ROCKS

PENETANG TO INDIAN BAY

DAY 55 THURS. JULY 28, 2011
DEP. BEACON BAY MARINA 12:25, PENETANG, ONT ARR. INDIAN HARBOR ANCH.3:15
CLOUDY, HUMID, NO SUN, WIND CALM.
D. 16sn\m/907.2

After a morning charting session we departed Beacon Bay to anchor in Indian Harbor where we met Sharon & Ken from Dockers Inn and Jean and Brian Orr from Spirit of Whitby. The anchorages was nice with 4 other boats there, unfortunately it apparently also served as some sort of short cut off the main channel as we had a lot of small runabouts zipping thru creating a lot of small wakes and noise. While there I wanted to make sure the generator raw water strainer was clean, so I turned off the thru hull, cleaned the strainer, and forgot to open the seacock. The inevitable happened. Pat started the generator for tea and didn’t check the genset outflow and we burned up the raw water pump impeller. I told Pat to never start the genset without checking for water flow, and proceeded to replace the impeller. All OK, another lesson learned! We had Happy Hour aboard Dockers Inn and made plans to travel to Port Rauson Bay together the next day. After dark the boat traffic died down and we spent a comfortable night at anchor. Brian called in the AM and  
needed some 110v electric to recharge his dead batteries, so we rafted up to help him.

BOULDERS EVERYWHERE

 

AT BEACON BAY MARINA

DAY 53 TUES. JULY 26, 2011
VERY WINDY AND COOL ALL DAY
DEPART OJIBWA BAY 11:25  Arr. Beacon Bay Marina 1:00 (Penetanguishene, Ont.)
D 9.2 sm / 939.4
Day 54 WED. JULY 27, 2011

We cruised from Obibway Bay in very windy conditions, but the waves were not more then 1 to 3’ because there was very little fetch.  I had a great deal of difficulty putting Glory days into my assigned slip and found an easier one and pulled into it.  This boat is such a big sail in any kind of strong wind, I just cannot get control of it.  I need to practice before I wreck something.  The people at Beacon Bay are wonderful!  They had a wine & cheese social for the Loopers and about 18 people attended.  The next am they had a session on Georgian Bay charting showing us the highlights of the bay.  Later they shuttled us to the local stores, and then hosted a steak BBQ for Loopers.  They really gave us first class treatment and the prices for the slip rental came out to about $120 for 2 nights including all that plus very personal service. I am very impressed and would go back in a minute.

DAY 55 THURS. JULY 28, 2011

AT BEACON BAY MARINA

WINE AND CHEESE AT BEACON BAY, PENETANGUISHENE, ONT.

ANNE & PAT (SCARECROW) AT PENETANG MUSEUM

JEAN ORR AND MUSEUM DIRECTOR, PENETANG, ONT

FOUR DAYS AT OJIBWAY BAY

DAYS 49, FRI. 50, SAT 51, SUN 52, MON.
WEATHER HAZY, HOT, HUMID, T-STORMS COLD, CALM, WIND

Mon., we are still at Ojibway Bay on Beausoleil Island in Ontario CA.  We planned on staying 2 days, but our travel companions wanted to anchor out at Warren I around the eastern shore of the island and we were feeling lazy and tired and decided to stay and meet up with them on Sun.  On Sun, another boat came in and said there was no room at the anchorage, Frying Pan Harbor, so we stayed over until Mon.  On Mon, we awoke to rain with later clearing and decided to go to Beacon Bay Marina where we have reservations for Tues. and Wed for a Looper get together.   Jean and Brian texted that they were hiking over to see us so we stayed and that is why we are still here.  Tomorrow, we leave for sure.  In any case thing haven’t been dull I spite of the fact that we are on an island that is a National Park with the only amenities being 2 out houses, hers & his.

Sat. we dinghy over to the South Bay Cove Marina for lunch.  As nice as the Canadians are, put them in a small boat and all the rules go out the door.  We are 4 in an 11’ inflatable and boats ranging in size from 16’ bass boats to 35’ express cruisers are zooming all around us.  Even in “No Wake” zones they don’t slow down!  I can’t believe we aren’t swamped as we take several wakes over the bow.  We finally get to the marina and have a great lunch at a very upscale restaurant in a very beautiful Yacht Club in the middle of nowhere.  After lunch and a laundry stop, we endure the 1+ hr. dinghy ride back to Ojibway bay and the security of our boats.

Sun. we and  Jean Orr go for a short hike then look forward to an uneventful rest.  Unfortunately, Mother Nature has other plans.  When we get back from the hike Pat decides to make use of the ladies outhouse.  As she is exiting a black bear is walking by, no more than 10’ away.  Needless to say she is startled, (as is the bear) and does the only thing she can do, she SCREAMS, then shuts herself into the outhouse.  Had this happened 10 mins. earlier we would have encountered this bear on the hiking trail.  Fortunately, this bear is more startled than Pat and keeps on going, probably more frightened than Pat.  One of our friends grabs his camera and takes the attached picture, proof positive, that this is not B.S. (Bear Sh..).  After all the excitement and the numerous retelling of the bear story we decide to dinghy over to see Honey Harbor.  One of our new friends, Carol, concerned we might get lost, also decides to go to Honey harbor on the pretense that she needed to buy something.  She refused to go with us, instead taking her own dinghy and showing us the way, than giving us a guided tour of the tiny town and leading us back.  What a wonderful person! 

TUES. 02:00 AM

Sound asleep and Pat wakes up with a start.  The CO detector is beeping!  Well, we know there is no CO because nothing is running, but I do know the alarms will beep when the house batteries get low.  So I get up and switch to the other house battery and the alarm goes off.  Thank goodness, back to sleep.  04:00 AM the alarm goes off again!  This means the other battery is low and we will not be able to start the engine until the batteries are recharged.  The reason that batteries are low is that we couldn’t run the generator last night because the intake was plugged with weeds.  Last night I cleaned the sea strainer and that didn’t solve the problem, so I thought when we get to the marina in Penetang I would clean the thru hull, I didn’t anticipate the batteries running low.  So, this morning at 07:00 I remove the hose, open the seacock, and nothing comes thru.  After a few mins. poking with a coat hanger the water come gushing in, I reconnect everything, start the genset, and AMEN!  Now we can recharge the batteries and be on the way.

PAT'S BEAR

DELICIOUS FRIED

BELIEVE IT OR NOT, 15' OF WATER!

MISSED A MARKER

GOOD BYE OJIBWAY BAY FRIENDS

HONEY HARBOR

THE END OF THE TRENT SEVERN WATERWAY

DAY 47 JULY 20, 2011
LOCK #43, #44 THE BIG CHUTE, #45.
DEP LOCK #43 SWIFT RAPIDS 08:35, ARR. BIG CHUTE 10:07, ARR LOCK #45 12:30
D. 16SM./ 839.8

Two major events today!  One is THE BIG CHUTE, the other is THE END OF THE TRENT SEVERN WW!!!

The scenery is beautiful along the entire 16 miles we travel today, but these 2 events overshadow it all.  The big chute is really an engineering marvel which I will attempt to simplify, but the pictures speak for themselves.  Basically you pull your boat onto a specially designed RR car.  Straps rise from the floor and secure the boat so it doesn’t move.  When the boats are secure, the RR car is pulled by cables out of the water, over a hill across 600’ of land, down a hill and submerged on the other side.  The security straps are retracted, your boat floats, you start your engines and off you go.  The pictures of Glory Days in the “CHUTE” are courtesy of Jean & Brian Orr, wonderful friends and world class travelers.

The second event is a real accomplishment.  We entered the TSWW at 09:27 AM on July 3, and locked thru the final lock this morning at 09:30 on July21, 18 days, 240 statute miles and 44 locks later. What an experience!  We travelled most of the way with Maureen & Peter Mezie aboard their 36’ Monk trawler Dudden Pilot and could not have had better travelling companions.  We made some mistakes, had some really good times, saw some beautiful scenery, worked hard and learned a lot.  And, as a tribute to our love and dedication to each other, are still married.  What an accomplishment! 

GLORY DAYS IN BEING CARRIED OVER THE ROAD



GLORY DAYS IN THE BIG CHUTE

PAT & JOE IN FRONT OF "LITTLE CHUTE" THE FIRST CHUTE



MAUREEN, PETER & PAT COOLING IT IN THE HEAT WAVE AT LOCK#45

DAY 48, JULY 21, 2011

DEP LOCK 45 09:00  ARR. MIDLAND ONT  11:15

 

The pictures below were taken as we left Midway Town marina for Objibway Bay.  The first is the cruise ship we had to make room fo.  The second is a mural depicting the history of midway.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



DAY 46, TUES. JULY 19, 2011
 COOL/OVERCAST EARLY AM, HHH LATE AM/PM L60/H90
DEP. ORRILLA 08:10 ARR. LOCK #43 SWIFT RAPIDS 1:00
D. 26.3/

We awoke this am to see the sun a bright orange ball on the eastern horizon.  Just one of those days you know will turn out to be Hazy Hot & Humid.  It starts out cool, but doesn’t disappoint.  Today’s cruise is a mixture of lakes, locks, canals, rivers, cuts, bays, channels, and chutes. I didn’t know there could be so many different designations for a body of water, let alone travel them in the same day.  We start out crossing Lake Couchiching, a 10 m. ride which brings us to the Severn River and Canal. We enter Couchiching Lock (#42) and get lowered 21’.  From there we enter Sparrow Lake and cruise north for 3m. into Porllock Channel, McLean Bay, and Sparrow Lake Chute.  The scenery is beautiful.  The Chute is very narrow, but fortunately short as it opens to a small bay, then enters McDonalds Cut, which also widens and then narrows to the Ragged Rapids where we get a boost from the current.  Then it’s on to the top of Lock #43 where we tie up for the day at 1:00.  It sounds easy, but the constant diligence at the helm is very tiring and one can take in only so much beautiful scenery in one day.  Did I mention the RR swing bridge which the guide books say is open except when a train is coming?  Well this one wasn’t.  We looked up and saw several men in hard hats pondering.  As we sat there idling, holding our position in the current, they pondered!  After what seemed to be an eternity of pondering, we heard what sounded like a very sick motor start up, pick up some speed, and then die.  How long are we going to be here?  Fortunately, they took my advice and sprayed the whole thing with WD40, then the motor started and the bridge slowly creaked open.   You can see from the pictures how beautiful the area really is.  After lunch we took a swim and met a couple who were nearing the end of their 2 week trip from Trenton, Ont. To Port Severn, Ont., in their canoe!  It did have a 15 hp motor, and was fully rigged for such a trip, but to see a couple in their 60’s doing this in a canoe was too much.  They camp out every night, and carry 2 bikes to replenish supplies.  They met at forest ranger school, got married, and live in a small town 600 miles north of Toronto, where he works as a specialist in replenishing forests and natural resources.  Some of the people we meet are truly amazing.  Speaking of people, Brian & Jean from Spirit of Whitby are here and we all get together for Happy Hour at 5:30.  Tomorrow am we go thru the Swift Rapids lock and make the biggest drop in altitude of all the locks on the TSWW, 47’.  Then it’s on to the big one….. THE BIG CHUTE.  Stay tuned.

THE BALKY RR BRIDGE

ANOTHER NARROW CUT

JAN & JEFF DOING THE TSWW IN THEIR CANOE

THE PAUSE THAT REFRESHES

TIED UP FOR THE NIGHT

WE CROSS WAKES WITH THE ORR'S AGAIN
L-R JEAN, PAT, MAUREEN, PETER, JAN, JEFF, & BRIAN

THE BOTTOM OF THE 47' DROP

 

LOCK #39 TO PORT OF ORILLIA

DAY 43, SAT. JULY 16, 2011
L54 H86 AM COOL CLEAR DRY, PM VERY WARM & SUNNY
DEP. LOCK #39 PORTAGE 8:40  ARR PORT OF ORILLIA, ONT. 12:10
D. 22.5sm/798.1

Today we cross Lake Simcoe, the largest Lake on the TSWW,  but first we have to go thru 3 locks, nos. 39, 40, & 41.  Lake Simcoe is 20 m. long, and 16m. wide and is named for Sir John Simcoe, the first Lt. Gov. of Upper Canada.  It has several large marinas and resorts, and appears to be a very popular vacation area for locals.  The guide books say you must wait for the right weather conditions because the waves can reach 8’ in a storm.  Fortunately for us, the wind is calm and the Lake is flat.  We only have to cross the top part, a distance of about 10 m.  The trip is very nice, and except for some missing buoys, uneventful.  We enter the Narrows leading us into Lake Couchiching and turn left to the Orillia Municipal Marina where we are met by 2 capable dock boys who help us secure the boats. Marinas here are very inexpensive compared to the Cape.  It cost $63 per night for the first 2 nights, and the third night is free.  And, that includes hydro (electric). There is room for about 200 boats here and since it is the weekend, the place is jumping.  There is a Scottish Festival all weekend, a beach, downtown very nearby, and lots of restaurants, stores, etc.

DAY 44 SUN. JULY17, 2011
AT ORILLIA.

Very warm, boat chores, beach time, relax.  We meet our friends Jean & Brian Orr from Spirit of Whitby for coffee at the Mariposa Market and catch up on their side trip to Niagara Falls.  PM, dinner with Maureen & Peter, our friends from Dudden Pilot to plan the next few days travel.

D45 MON. JULY 18, 2011
AT ORILLIA.

Restocking the pantry.  Good stores and shopping, may not see this for awhile.

 

 

BOAT TRAFFIC IN THE NARROWS

OPENING THE GATE AT PORTAGE

TOP OF LOCK #39 AS WE PULL IN

DUDDEN PILOT CROSSING A CALM L. SIMCOE

A TRYING DAY ENDS WELL

 DAY 42, FRI. JULY 15, 2011

VERY COOL AM, VERY WARM PM CLEAR, SUNNY, DRY. L59 H85
DEP. FENELON FALLS 08:00 ARR. LOCK ABOVE #39 PORTAGE 2:30
D. 25.4 sm/775.6.

Every day is good, but some are more difficult than others.Today was one of the difficult ones.We left Fenlon Falls on time anticipating a long day, and we got one.We crossed Carson lake, very pretty, went around Grand Isle, also pretty, then came upon the fearsome Trent Canal.This canal is so skinny they have to use a thin pencil to show it on a chart.It is almost impossible for 2 boats to pass each other in some of the canal, and it is impossible in most of the canal.The sign at the entrance says to make a securite' call before entering to make sure there are no boats in there coming in your direction.We did this and got no response so the 2 boats I was travelling with, Bombay, and Dudden Pilot entered. I laid back a bit and very soon after they entered they encountered 3 boats in the 30’ to 40’ range coming at them.I don’t know how they did it, but they managed to pass.I waited for them to exit before I went in, and we were all grateful for that.The pictures don’t do it justice. My guess is this canal is about 20’ wide because I didn’t have 5’ on either side of me.What’s more, when you look down on the sides all you see is shale.Depth is around 6’, but some spots showed less than 4’ on the DF.This goes on for about 2, 5mi sections. In between is a shallow weed choked lake with narrow channels called Canal Lake. Eventually we come upon the famous Kirkland Lock.This is like the Peterboro Lock in that it is 2 large chambers into which you drive your boat, and the whole thing goes up or down.See Pics.Kirkland is also where we start locking down since we first entered the TSWW, and now the buoys are opposite, green on right. After Kirkland is the Talbot R. (not related to Talbot’s stores) which is pretty scenic, and short.Then it’s a series of 6 locks and canals over the next 5 mi. We spoke with several lockmasters and decided to spend the night at the top of lock #39. We are looking forward to the stop, and it is only a little less than a mile away.Again, the fates intervene.Just about as we are to enter the canal leading to the lock, we get a call from the lockmaster. Please wiat until the tour boat exits the canal before entering.So for 20 mins. we have to hold our position in a narrow channel trying not to go aground, or get too close to the shore.This was the most tiring part of the day. However, all’s well that ends well.We are safely tied to the wall in a beautiful little park about to have 5:00 happy hour with our friends Maureen & Peter.Hopefully, we won’t have any intruders tonight!



OUR PRIVATE PARK AT TOP OF PORTAGE LOCK #39

SIGN REQUESTING SECURITE' CALL IN TRENT CANAL

REASON FOR SECURITE' CALL

SIDES OF THE CHANNEL

HYDRAULIC PISTON IN KIRKWOOD LOCK

HOLE IN WALL BRIDGE

WEEDS ON SIDES OF CHANNEL.  NASTY, BUT BETTER THAN ROCKS!

 

BOBCAGEON ONT. TO FENELON FALLS ONT.

 

DAY 40 WED JULY 13, 2011
AT BOBCAGEON
DAY 41 THURS July 14, 2011
EARLY AM COOL EARLY PM VERY WARM L63 H86
DEP BOBCAGEON 08:10, ARR FENELON FALLS LOCK #32 11:00AM
D 13.8SM /750.1

Last night when the wind died down we turned the GLORY DAYS around to face the right direction for leaving. A passerby stopped to help who is a fellow boater and is the Director of Nuclear Waste Mgm’t. for Ontario Power. Needless to say a conversation about US nuclear energy pursued.
The trip to Fenelon Falls (FF) was as beautiful as the rest. Sunny skies, sparkling lakes, pretty cottages, etc. and of course the ubiquitous lock. The “wall” we had to tie up to turned out to be brand new, this year. We had water and electric ($24) and were in the middle of town. Since we were early, and it was Wed., the first order of business was laundry. We lugged the laundry to the Laundromat, started the washers and headed to Kawartha Coffee for wifi. Well, this was the nicest coffee shop I have ever seen. Tables, couches, overstuffed arm chairs, and lots of people. Not a hectic place, but a place where the locals meet in the am for coffee and conversation. The butter tarts (my first) were outstanding. Anyway, I spend about 3 hours there posting blogs while Pat dries and folds. She has a conversation with a vacationing local and they offer her a ride back to the boat in return for a tour. Later we go for a walk to visit the museum, which is a pretty good one, and then to view the falls. Here we witness the epitome of frustration. There is a young lad of about 15 trying to untangle the bird’s nest on his reel. When I ask what he is fishing for he points to a Muskie swimming back and forth in front of him about 10 yards out.

After a mediocre dinner at the Lake House Rest., I walk to lakeshore to photograph the sunset. Not much of a sunset, but I spot a fisherman pulling a boat at the launch ramp, and figure that’s always good for some entertainment, so I walk over just as he pulls the enormous fish off the boat. Turns out to be a Muskie of about 20 lbs. He said it was his first one so he was happy. We were happy, and tired so we turned in at 10PM which is an hour later than usual, but it was still light out.



TRENT R. JUST BEFORE LOCK 32, FENELON FALLS

WATERFRONT COTTAGES FOR RENT

YOU CAN FIGURE THIS ONE OUT

THIS MUSKIE KEPT CIRCLING THE KID WITH THE SNAGGED REEL

YOU CAN PROBABLY FIGURE THIS ONE OUT TOO

THIS ONE DIDN'T GET AWAY

BOBCAGEON OR BUST



BOBCAGEON, ONT
We seem to have this locking down pretty good now.  No panic, no problems.  We go thru Buckhorn lock thru Buckhorn L. Gannon Narrows, thru Pigeon L. and into Bobcageon lock.  Here’s where the problem with the broken lock at Lovesick L. haunts us.  Because of the delay at Lovesick lock there is no room for another boat at the Bobcageon lock.  I should say, there is room for another boat if only the smaller boats that are tied up could move a little closer together.  Whenever things go wrong, there is usually more than one event that contributes to the problem.  Our second thing is houseboats. It seems this week is a big week for Canadians to take their holiday.  All of a sudden there are houseboats everywhere, and, as we are approaching the lock, one gets between us and Dudden Pilot.  He is not only going very slow, he is zigzagging from one side of the channel to the other making it impossible for us to overtake him.  We decide to go thru the lock and call ahead to the next marina and they are full.  So is the one after that.  Our friends on the Dudden Pilot call to report (they got the last space on the wall at the lock) boats are still backed up.  We decide to turn around and take a chance another spot will open up.  We tie up at the “blue line”  (the rule is you only tie up at the blue line when you are ready to lock thru) and wait for the lock to open when several boaters we met at other locks put their heads together and figure out how to make room  for us at the wall.  Sure enough, they get some small boats to move a bit, and we are able to get the Glory Days mostly behind the blue line.  We are secure for the night, and so grateful we host a happy hour for our new Canadian friends.  Thanks to Bob & Peggy aboard “Spirit of the Wind, Vil & Louise aboard Pilgrim, and Maureen & Peter aboard Dudden Pilot.    Bob brings a bottle of his home made Chardonnay, and several bottles of his homemade beer.  It’s how he beats the high cost of beer & wine in Canada.  Tomorrow we layover here to do laundry, and hope to get some wifi to post these blogs.  Every day is an adventure!

SOME BEAUTIFUL LAKESIDE PROPERTIES

DANGER

OUR CANADIAN FRIENDS
BEER & WINE MAKER BOB AND ARTIST WIFE BETTY