Day #363 – Penetanguishene, ON

Last night Bay Moorings Marina threw a lovely wine and cheese reception for all of the Loopers who had shown up for the Rendezvous.  There were 11 boats here and we had a great time.

Bob and Charlotte joined us aboard Good News and we always have agreat time and a lot of laughs when we are together.  They are great boat guests.

Terry and Sue from Great Britain were here as well and we always enjoy their company.

Fun was had by all and we were appreciative for the hospitality they provided.  Some one decided to thank them in their own unique way.  Hope they still left a tip.

This morning they offered a planning meeting for getting around safely in the Georgian Bay.  The rocks here are not very forgiving.

After the meeting Andy and Bob had their own meeting as Bob has boated here all of his life and is a wealth of local knowledge.

Then they drove us for our necessary errands…West Marine, the grocery store, the hardware store and…

We came back, put it all away and headed out to lunch at a local spot on the water that Bob and Charlotte knew about.  It was called Dock Lunch and they said as many boats as were there this summer, equally as many snowmobiles are there in the winter.

Their specialty is poutine which is french fries with cheese curd and chicken gravy.   Very Canadian, eh?

Bob and Charlotte left and went back to their cottage.  They are expecting many guests, including us, this weekend on their island.  It is a holiday weekend and should be a little crazy on the water.

Tonight Bay Moorings is holding a “Canadian Barbque” for all of us.  Not sure what to expect, hope it isn’t Canada goose.

Day #362 – Penetanguishene, ON

This morning was all about The Big Chute, otherwise known as Lock #44 on the Trent-Severn waterway.

It is a marine railway that lifts you up and over the land and lets you out on the other side.  Sounds simple, made me nervous. Last night we moved over from our dock to be first on the “blue line” to lock through right as they opened at 8:30.  They called one boat before us as they were smaller and loaded them first.

When they called for us we motored in and it took some adjusting, but we were finally in and on our slings.  Our bow sprit was hanging over the top of the boat in front of us.

They started up and we were moving.  I will try and show the succession of how this monster works.

The lower the carriage into the water…

then they load the boats onto straps…

note on the larger boats how the stern hangs out over the platform…

up and over…

and before we knew it, we were floating out on the other side.

These lockmasters know what they are doing and do it well.  This one commented, “It never rains at the Big Chute.”  I beg to differ as it rained last night, but then he wasn’t on duty.

The morning was spent twisting and turning through narrow channels

with tons of current.

When we completed Lock #45 at Port Severn we exited and were through the Trent-Severn and into Georgian Bay at 10:30. The current was huge as we exited.  It was like a slalom course in places.

We completed the 240 miles and over 40 locks, two of which were lift locks and one being the railway lift.  It was an experience that we are glad to have had.  Lots of work switching fenders and navigating tight areas so, we are glad to be through and out onto more open water in the Georgian Bay.

We had a beautiful ride to Penetanguishene and the sun came out for us.  We arrived at Bay Moorings Marina and took on 200 liters of fuel.  Price today 99 cents per liter.  We are happily docked and looking forward to our mini Looper Reunion.   The other good news is that we beat the storm.