Overnight at Lakefield Lock 26
44°25’11.2080″N, 78°16’14.1852″W
What3Words: ///conga.caring.secretly

Catherine writes:

We were up at 7:30 for a quick tea/coffee and to head across Little Lake to the Peterborough Marina to get the holding tank pumped out. The marina website and their phone message said that they opened at 8:00. We arrived at 8:45 but were informed that they didn’t open until 10:00, in keeping with the changes in the lock opening times.

I sent a quick text message to Sue to update them we would have to meet them later. We took advantage of the wait time and walked over to the No Frills to get a few more supplies. When we got back shortly after 9:00 the office was open and the staff person was able to complete the pump out, all part of the glamour of boating.

We went back across Little Lake to dock at Lock 20, tied up to the mooring wall and walked to the Canoe Museum. Sue and Peter were already there and enjoyed a latte and a muffin with them. When we got back to the boat I went to the lockmaster’s office to let them know we were ready to lock through whenever convenient for them. The staff were very apologetic but said it would probably have to wait about an hour because the water level through the lift lock was low, possibly from weeds restricting the flow of water. They had to clean the screens before allowing boat traffic through.

We sat at a picnic table swapping travel stories (“gamming”) and enjoying the beautiful September sunshine while waiting for the locks to begin operations.

Cath, Sue and Peter gamming while Wally did the dishes

The gates to Lock 20 began to open and we followed a cabin cruiser into the lock.

Sue and Peter aboard Belisama ready for the lift lock

From there we went down a short canal to the lift lock and entered the tank with the other boat. I found it much less scary going up than going down. I just looked straight ahead at the wall.

Sue and Peter stayed up on the flybridge and enjoyed the view as well as the experience. Once the lift was completed, we were able to tie up briefly on the wall and waved goodbye to them as they walked back down to the Canoe Museum to pick up their car.

We made it to the top of the lift lock 🙂

It was a spectacular fall day, with warm sunshine and brilliant blue sky, calm water all the way through Locks 22 – 26 – Lakefield. One unique thing we saw were remote controlled model sailboats having a race around some small buoys that were set up to create a race course. It reminded us of the model sailboats we saw in the parks in Paris.

Remote controlled sailboat regatta – looks like fun!

Swing bridge en route to Trent University

Approaching Trent University Campus – very beautiful location with lots of waterside spots for students to hang out and relax on a nice day

Canoeing peacefully along the Trent River – no fuel tank issues for them!

We got through Lock 26 at Lakefield just before closing time and moored for the night. They had shore power spots available which was a bonus. Finally, it was not windy, and Wally was able to barbecue peppers and shrimp skewers for supper. We had a long chat with Emily in Paris, went for a walk and then worked on the blog.

We are trying to figure out the logistics of getting to Peterborough and then to Orillia to get the car. Our summer adventure is coming to an end which makes us feel a bit sad especially when the weather has been so glorious. Rain is predicted for the entire weekend so that may accelerate our plans to return home.

Tomorrow we head for Burleigh Falls.

Bye for now!