Day 149 - Lock Weary: Peterborough to Lower Buckhorn Lake

It was going to be another long day of locks.  By 9:20 am we were at the pump-out and cruised over to Lock 20 ten minutes later.  There was a boat in the lock so we had to wait on the wall next to the lock.  By the time the gates opened, 3 other boats tied up with us and another was on his way.  The lockmaster wanted all of us in at the same time.  We went in first on the starboard side and had to go all the way to the front so another larger boat could fit behind us; I grabbed the line and pulled us in, but an engine died on the Captain and the stern swung out before he could grab the line.  Three boats were loading in on the port and now our bow was heading towards a ladder at the front of the lock.  I tried to keep us off with the boat hook but we did touch in a couple places on the rub rail.  We were so used to moving through the locks by ourselves and suddenly we were packed in like a subway train at rush hour.  It was the start of a holiday weekend, so I suppose it was to be expected.  What a way to start the day!

 

 

The next 6 locks were close together and we travelled with our “group” through all of them. Luckily there were no further incidents although my hands and arms were tired from holding the boat in at the more turbulent front of the locks.  Each lock took 20-25 minutes as they had to fill them more slowly with the full load. 

Lock 21 deserves a special mention.  Lock 21 is the Peterborough Lift Lock and it operates differently from the rest of the locks.  Instead of the boats going up (or down) in a lock chamber, the whole lock chamber goes up (or down).  The two lock chambers are connected hydraulically so that when one goes down, the other goes up.  To make the upper lock go down, they add 1 foot of water (weighing 144 tons) to the chamber. The number, size and weight of boats in each chamber does not matter because boats displace their weight in water.  The extra weight from the 1 foot of water makes the top lock drop and forces the lower chamber (which is lighter) to rise.  Quite an engineering accomplishment for 1896.  There are only a few lift locks in the world (one more of which is on the Trent-Severn Waterway) and the Peterborough Lift Lock is the tallest – lifting (or lowering) boats 65 feet.

The area along this section of the Trent-Severn Waterway was still rural, with cottages and homes on the river.  Trent University is located just prior to Lock 22 and the rowing team was preparing to launch as we went by.  The cattle pastures meet the water at Lock 24.  I saw several young calves amongst the cows. 

We went through the Lakefield Lock, #26 at 2:00 pm and this was the last one for the group of 3 that had been with us all day.  A marina and RV park with a swimming beach were just beyond the lock.  We were entering Katchewanooka Lake, the first of the Kawartha Lakes that run for the next 70 miles, connected by locks.  Small watercraft of all types buzzed around us as it was a hot, sunny day.  An osprey nest was visible at the top of a tree on one of the small islands.

 

 

Clear Lake was next, after Lock 27.  Although we were not the only boat in the lock, the others were very small.  Captain Randy did not have to put us up to the front gates which made things easier all the way around.  The beauty of the Kawartha region with its granite cliffs and numerous rocky islands was breathtaking.  The granite is leftover from the Precambrian Canadian Shield, formed by glaciers.  St. Peter’s-On-The-Rock Anglican Church was built on an island in 1914 and still holds services in July and August.  The church sits in a narrow, twisty channel called Hell’s Gate.  It was very tricky picking our way through here.

A small cruise boat, the Kawartha Spirit, toured passengers through the area.  We took a sharp turn to the port, past a pretty falls, to the next lock at Burleigh Falls, Lock 28.  Lock 28 is a fairly new lock and it replaced two older locks so now there is no Lock 29.  A couple miles later we arrived at Lock 30, the last lock of the day for us – yay!  This lock is at Lovesick Lake (or is it Locksick Lake?) and is on an island.  Lock attendants have to take a boat to work.  It is a popular tie-up spot for boaters with barbecue grills and picnic tables.  As the lock lifted us, I could see a large houseboat tied up at the exit.  Houseboats are available for rent to cruise the lakes; this one was filled with a group of young people who voiced their admiration for our boat as we went by them.

 

 

It was now 5:00 pm and we were lock-weary.  In another 5 miles was Buckhorn and we thought about tying to the lock wall there as the marinas were too shallow for us.  The Captain was tired and concerned that the wall would be full as it was a holiday weekend.  A small marina was ahead of us to port and I called to check on availability and depth.  Many slips were open as the occupants were out on the lakes for the weekend and the depth was ok, so we docked at Reach Harbor in lower Buckhorn Lake at 5:30 pm.  Captain Randy was very happy to relax with his cocktail after a long, trying day!  There was no town so we ate on board, chatting with our boat neighbors, enjoying this idyllic setting.