Buckhorn Yacht Harbour
44°32’43.9224″N, 78°21’3.5568″W
What3words: ///butter.flail.loiter

We left Burleigh Falls around 10:00am. The next lock was Lovesick Lake, which is a beautiful spot, very isolated with no road access. Staff for this lock have to drive a boat over from Burleigh Falls Lock in the morning and return at night. We made a note that this is another place that would be lovely to stay at next year.

Area Perspective – Burleigh Falls, Lovesick Lake, Buckhorn Yacht Harbour Marina – Click anywhere on the image to enlarge

The passage from Lovesick Lake to Buckhorn is tricky in places so watching the navigational markers was critical. The water is very shallow on each side of these little islands with lots of rocks just below the surface! We kept reminding each other – red right return!

Red right return, red right return!

It wasn’t busy at Buckhorn Lock 31, so we were able to motor right in. Our last lock of the season was easy and anti-climactic! It was only a short jaunt from the lock to the Buckhorn Yacht Harbour marina, where we arrived at 12:20 pm. We tied up on the wall behind a beautifully restored Chris Craft. This boat looked like it just came out of the show room! Hopefully Belisama will look this good someday soon. Right now I tell people that Belisama is a “100 footer” – meaning that if you are standing 100 feet away she looks really good!

Restored Chris Craft at Buckhorn Yacht Harbour

I met with Peter in the afternoon to discuss haul out, winterization and projects for improving Belisama. Cath began organizing and packing for the trip home. We had a “clean out the fridge” supper over which we reminisced about the summer, with mixed feelings about leaving.

Tomorrow we begin to unload Belisama for the winter.

Cheers!

Another Overnight at Burleigh Falls Lock 28, Upper Level
44°33’32.3388″N, 78°12’31.0212″W
What3Words: ///unselfish.hothouse.person

Catherine writes:

We were off to a slow start this morning doing a few chores. My friend Joanne found out that the Burleigh Falls Inn was closed for a private function so she recommended we go to the Lovesick Lake Restaurant instead.

We looked the restaurant’s location up on Google Maps which indicated it would be a half hour walk. But we could see on the map that there was a short cut across the parking lot to the highway and then a 5-minute walk across the bridge to the restaurant.

Burleigh Falls Area Perspective – Google Maps – click anywhere on the image to enlarge

We chose the right day to go there because they were closing for the season the next day. It was a homey and cozy place with delicious food and excellent customer service.

The rapids below Burleigh Falls Dam across the road from the Lovesick Lake Restaurant – click anywhere on the image to enlarge

Joanne and Randy met us at the restaurant and we had a lovely catchup over lunch. We told them about some of our recent boating adventures, including the Nutty Bean Café in Lakefield. Joanne said that the café was actually the home of earlier ancestors of hers – the Sherins – who owned that building and a few other properties on the same street. I had commented on the wonderful front porch on that building and wondered what life would have been like for the people who lived there – small world!

Joanne and Randy invited us to come and spend the afternoon with them at their home on Stoney Lake which we readily accepted. After a couple of short stops for supplies, we arrived at their lovely home on the water, steeped in family history and beautifully landscaped. We enjoyed a peaceful afternoon on their dock drinking wine and sharing stories.

At Joanne and Randy’s on Stoney Lake

One of the nicest afternoons that we have had this summer. Their place on Stoney Lake looks across the water to Hells Gate passage that we had gone through the day before on our way to Burleigh Falls lock.

Looking towards Hell’s Gate on Stoney Lake – click anywhere on the image to enlarge

They drove us back to the lock and we had decided to stay there for another night. Tomorrow we will go through the last two locks – Lovesick Lake and Buckhorn and will arrive at Buckhorn Yacht Harbour Marina in the early afternoon. Then our boating adventure for this summer comes to an end and the packing up begins!

Bye for now

Overnight at Burleigh Falls Lock 28, Upper Level
44°33’32.3388″N, 78°12’31.0212″W
What3Words: ///unselfish.hothouse.person

Catherine writes:

We were surprised when we woke up to find there were six other boats moored at Lakefield Lock with us. When we arrived the other day we were the only ones on the mooring wall for several hours. Wally asked the lock staff if we could stay another night but the limit was two nights in this location so we would have to move on.

It was a lovely morning, not nearly as cold as it has been and we did not need the heater in the boat. We walked over the bridge into town to go to the Nutty Bean Café where they made a fabulous latte, scone and smoked salmon on a bagel. Wish we could find something like this at home!

The Nutty Bean Cafe in Lakefield – great atmosphere, coffee and eats – wish we had something like this in London

Osprey hunting near our mooring in Lakefield

I took Wally on the longer route home by some historic houses tucked away on small streets near the lock that I thought he would enjoy seeing.

Beautiful heritage house in Lakefield near our mooring

We left the lock at 11:00 am headed for Young’s Point, where we arrived at 12:30 noon. There wasn’t much area to tie up in, and since it was such a beautiful day, we decided to carry on to Burleigh Falls.

Gulls hanging out en route to Young’s Point

From Young’s Point, a sharp turn to starboard brought us into Clear Lake where the landscape opened up. Wally could run the engines at a higher speed for several kilometers with the shoreline on each side well away from us so the wake we were generating was not a problem. I noted that the charts indicated that this area is also still called the Otonabee River!

Parks Canada staff maintaining navigation markers – thank you!

The landscape changed back to Canadian Shield again through stunning rocky outcrops and small islands, many with cottages on them. Passing into Stoney Lake was challenging for its narrow openings and convoluted channels around the islands and rocks. The channel is very well marked, and we made it through the ominous sounding “Hell’s Gate” passage with no problem.

We arrived at Burleigh Falls Lock 28 around 1:00 pm and decided to lock through. This was a huge lock, with a lift of 24 feet. Originally it was a double lock 28 and 29 but was turned into a single in 1968 so there is no more Lock 29.

View from Burleigh Falls lock lower level mooring wall

Waiting our turn to enter the lock at Burleigh Falls

We were able to find a prime mooring spot on the upper lock wall beside the beautiful granite shoreline. Wally watched the boats come through the lock – one houseboat had a hot tub on top of it!

Hot-tub houseboat – I wonder if I could get a hot tub on Belisama 🙂

Later in the afternoon the Kawartha Voyageur came through the lock again, heading west like us.

Kawartha Voyageur preparing to exit Burleigh Falls lock – bow nose stays up until the lock gates are fully opened!

We also saw another water snake with its head poking up above the water surface in the lock channel. Any thoughts I had of swimming here were abandoned even though I know he/she would likely skedaddle once it saw me.

Water snake casually swims past Belisama

I worked on making templates for the front window coverings using an old sheet. With Wally’s help and a lot of painter’s tape, I’ve got these finished so I can use them to make the real things in the winter.

Wally ran the generator for about an hour so we could cook some pasta for supper. We talked about whether to stay here or go to Lovesick Lock tomorrow. Plans were made to meet with our friends Joanne and Randy for lunch so looking forward to seeing them again.

Sue and Peter have very generously offered to drive us to Orillia to get the car on Monday. The plan originally was to get a ride to Peterborough to rent a car, but their kind offer will make our lives so much easier. We want to get to Buckhorn Yacht Harbour on Sunday to get a start of unloading the boat in preparation for going home.

Bye for now!

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

We decided to spend another night at Lakefield. This is a very quiet and pretty spot plus the ability to connect to shore power for a very reasonable cost ($10/day) is another incentive.

I spent some more time working on the blog and then shifted over to doing some research on navigation software for the laptop that can utilize Navionics brand charts. When I first started travelling aboard our Nauticat motorsailer “Ananda” I discovered a marine navigation software program from Norway called “TIKI Navigator”. It was relatively inexpensive and used Navionics charts. It was also very simple to understand and to make the most of what it had to offer.

TIKI Navionics Gold – Marine Navigation Software

I used TIKI from 2010 until 2022 when we sold Santosha. Their website is still active so I purchased new Navionics charts and then tried to buy a licensed version of TIKI Navigator – but there is something wrong with their website and also with the person/people who operate it. I can download a trial copy of the software and the website accepts payment for a license, but then they don’t follow up on the purchase and send a license/activation code. I tried several times to reach them but have had no success. Fortunately PayPal has refunded our money so now we will have to find an alternative software.

Catherine went for a walk into the village of Lakefield to check things out and then she spent some more time working on the Sunbrella window coverings. The front windows of the boat are oddly shaped and it’s tricky trying to set up a pattern to work from. This is also something that is difficult to work on unless you are at the boat. It’s fine to take all kinds of measurements and then work on the coverings at home – but because of all the odd shapes and the fact that the window frames protrude almost an inch from the window glass – that makes measuring and cutting that much more complicated. Oh well, I am confident that she will get it done nicely. When she is sewing I try to stay out of the way and be supportive. When I am working on the engines the roles are reversed! Pink and blue jobs!

Belisama’s front window coverings – angles and protrusions everywhere!

Catherine told me that she found a very nice café in the village that is within easy walking distance from the boat – even for me! We will go there tomorrow morning for coffee and a light breakfast before casting off.

Catherine also found several beautiful heritage homes and lovely gardens in the village – including the home of Canadian author Margaret Laurence. She lived in Lakefield from the early 1970’s until her death in 1987. If you look closely at the photo you will see to the right of front porch a stone angel in the garden, as homage to her iconic work “The Stone Angel.”

Margaret Laurence’s House in Lakefield – click anywhere in the image to enlarge it

Tomorrow we head for Young’s Point or Burleigh Falls – final decision not made quite yet. Our summer cruise is coming to an end. That makes us a bit sad but we are also looking forward to getting back home, sleeping in our own bed, having a shower in a bathroom that hasn’t been used by dozens before us and to not have to worry about fuel tanks and toilet tank pump outs.

Cheers!

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!