End of Season Haulout, Remembering Friends

  The end of our boating season always seems to come too quickly and this year was no different, made poignant with the loss of old friends.

 As most of you know, it was a bit of a whirlwind for us when we searched for, purchased and ultimately brought our new-to-us Sea Ray 370 Sundancer back at the beginning of this year. Given all the literal running around - sometimes between two countries - plus all the upgrades I worked on throughout May and June and it's no wonder time flew by so quickly.

 All that aside, it was an adventure and I'm happy to have had the opportunity to do it, but it's still hard to put the boat away for the winter. But as the old saying goes "There's always next year". Hopefully so.

 Irrespective of my ever growing list of small(ish) projects I am looking at for the Spring, we're going to make sure to spend as much time aboard in 2023. Having very recently lost a couple of good friends from our earlier boating days, it once again brings home how incredibly precious our days on the water are. Going forward, I'll do my best to dedicate new memories to our old friends who sadly will only be with us in spirit.

 Don't worry, I'll be sure to hoist a drink in their honour. Making the most of our time. . .

 As for myself, it was been a long three months of pondering my next moves on various social media platforms. This past summer brought an incredible number of folks who were eager to approach us during our extended cruise as they "Just wanted say Hi". There's no problem with that and I've always appreciated the positive feedback and well wishes, but this year it became was somewhat overwhelming at times, with sometimes three, four, five or more (!!) folks approaching us at a marina or at a lock on any given day. Again, I always appreciate hearing how much the videos and boating tips are enjoyed, and I am grateful that so many continue to be inspired by my ramblings.

 Keeping in mind that if you see us out on the water, we are there on OUR days off. Despite the perception that some have that we are on the boat 24/7, non stop, I actually do have a job and work full time, making OUR time aboard and relaxing very precious. Hopefully in the future we can look forward to just a simple smile and wave when out on OUR cruising days. . .?

 With that in mind, I've decided to stay off of Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the foreseeable future with my efforts mostly concentrated to YouTube. This Blog will be more of filling in the blanks kind of affair, so to speak. Each time I review the video clips I captured, I get to thinking that I wish I had included more boring details ;-) With lots on my mind when it comes to boating, this Blog should help me to share more fun, projects as well as other insights from our boating life. 

 That all said, let's get to the latest - and long awaited - video, taken during our end-of-season haul out;

:-)

.

Trent Severn Waterway Seasonal Closing for 2022

  Sadly, this coming October 10th will mark the final day of the 2022 navigation season on the lovely Trent Severn Waterway. It certainly was a challenging year for the system, with closures to to high spring waters, ongoing staffing issues at the Big Chute and finally the breakdown of the Kirkfield Lift Lock. 

 The navigation season - the time when boats are able to pass through the locks and use the facilities (washrooms, etc.) - runs from the end of May through to October each year. For a full listing of dates and hours, take a look at the Parks Canada site, here. That site will be updated sometime over the off season, usually by late winter, to give specific dates for the upcoming 2023 season.

 Hopefully, many if those issues can be rectified before the 2023 season rolls around. As we always say in the boating world - there's always next year 😀 

Kirkfield Lift Lock Resumes 'Restricted' Operations

Lock #36 - the Kirkfield Lift Lock - of the Trent Severn Waterway (TSW) holds a unique distinction as being the 2nd highest lock of its type in the world, only surpassed by the Peterborough Lift Lock (Lock #21 of the TSW).

 Unfortunately, this lock suffered an unexpected and serious mechanical failure back on September 2/22 and had been out of service since that time. Although there's no details as to what the failure might have been, there is a short video taken by an on-land visitor during the event. The clip is less than 30 seconds in duration, but one can clearly see water rushing over the sides of the north chamber while the cruise boat 'Kawartha Voyageur' was being lifted up. 

 Here's the video from the incident;

 

 

Clearly, there was water entering that chamber when it wasn't supposed to be!

 When one passes through this lock (as well as the Peterborough Lift Lock), the chambers are made water tight by way of gates that open or close at the top and bottom sides of both chambers, so that excess water doesn't enter, nor escape from the chambers during transit. When the lift or lowering has been completed, the appropriate gate is opened to allow for the boats to exit or enter the chambers. A pretty straightforward practice that we've experienced many times over the past 15 years, all without incident. Seemed to be a very safe and well though out approach on the engineering side, but on this day something went very wrong.

Here's a video from our own up-bound passage (filmed July/22) through the lock that should illustrate how the system works. Note the gate dropping down toward the end of the video. That allows us (the boat) to exit the chamber - and relieving that watertight seal;

Now this is purely speculation on my part, but I'd hazard a guess that perhaps some debris got stuck in the upper gate which allowed the water to go through. Either that, or there was a loss of control for the mechanism that holds/locks that gate in place.
Luckily, the lock staff were able to lower the chamber so that the Kawartha Voyageur could be safely brought down and allow the passengers to exit the boat. Fortunately there were no injuries or damage to the boat immediately reported.

Here's an overhead view of the lock I took when visiting back in 2018;

Now that the Parks Canada crews have been able to do some preliminary repairs, it has been announced that 'modified lockages' will resume on September 26th. Parks Canada announced the following:
" . . .the Lift Lock has been approved to offer limited, single-chamber lockages to vessels returning to their home ports that cannot be trailered. These modified lockages will be conducted beginning on Monday, September 26, 2022, and delays experienced by boaters will vary depending on the position of the Lift Lock chambers when the boater arrives. Boaters (and pets) will be asked to disembark their vessels while the transfer is underway. Still, access to washroom facilities and shelter (in the case of inclement weather) will be made available. Vessels going up will experience a lockage time of approximately six (6) hours, while downbound vessels will experience a lockage time of approximately 30 minutes. . ."
The full article can be found HERE.

Hopefully the full repairs can be completed before the start of the 2023 navigation season. Will be nice to visit this spot again next year;

Goodbye to Summer '22 🥺

Hard to believe that this gorgeous summer is coming to an end already. But just like every year, it comes too quickly.

 The good news is that we still have a couple more weekends before the dreaded haulout happens, so we hope for decent weather to close out this season.

Boating To Florida?

 A question came to me the other day about whether we have ever considered taking our current boat - or any boat for that matter - south to Florida for the winters. Given the fact that live aboard our boat for the summer months, it seemed logical to this person that we just fired up the engines when it got cold and pointed it south towards the palm trees and sandy beaches. . . Here is my reply.


Yes, we currently call 'Boogaboo IV' home from May to October and love the lifestyle. It's a bit of effort to make happen, as I still work full time in my own contracting business and have to commute daily to and from the boat. The good part of that is I get to travel mostly through country roads, so it's quite scenic. As for taking her to Florida, we have discussed that possibility, but not any time soon. Again, I have a business to run for now and being away toooooooo long, or having to commute back and forth to Ontario throughout the process is not something I would entertain at this point.

That said, we are unsure as to which way the fickle winds of fate may send us as we travel through this plane of existence. Ultimately, we would love to be able to step off the boat at the end of the season and head south for the ensuing six months until the boating season resumes the following spring and that is something I am working towards. To that end, I have just released my first, feature length travel video 'Cruising The Trent Severn Waterway'.

 One other option we toyed with was to buy a second boat to keep in Florida, but the overall costs currently make that prohibitive, but something we may revisit down the road. Despite the life of Riley that many folks may perceive from my endless postings, we are like most of the rest of the working world; car payments, a mortgage and all the rest that comes with every day living. The one major difference is that we have made a solid decision to live more on our own terms and take advantage of the good days as much as we can. With my MS diagnosis a few years ago, we learned quickly that good health is precious and not to be taken for granted. We have worked contentiously to reverse my condition and a huge part of that has been stress reduction and, like I said, living life on our terms - even if it does mean maxing out the old credit card once in awhile ;-)

 Laughing at ones' self is also paramount to a healthy life, so thanks you for recognizing that. I stopped taking myself too seriously awhile back and that helps to lighten the load, so to speak. As for the lovely deck hands you mentioned you've spotted some of in my videos, I'm not sure on their availability, apart from my own Anchor Girl. She's got her hands full with taking care of me and the MAJOR reason I am working at making our lives more fun. And that, is the funnest part for me . . .

:-)

Red Right Return - Navigation Buoys, Day Markers and More

 I'm often asked some interesting questions through my YouTube videos and, more often than not, I take a simple query and reply with half of a book. So, rather than simply leaving those interactions on YouTube, I figured I could share it with you all, here on the Blog. . .

 Here was today's question; ". . for a subscriber/boating newbie here; I noticed in your lake travels, there are these red and green buoys, to which you always pass between them .. why is this and what is their purpose?"

 The long and short of the Red & Green markers is to indicate where safe water is. As one cannot 'see' how deep a given area of a lake, river or canal might be, the buoys (floating) or day beacons (land based) indicate the edge of a safe way for navigation. Used in conjunction with marine charts (paper or digital), mariners can safely pass through an area where the water is shallower than what is otherwise encountered in a given area.

 That said, different boats need different depths to pass through a waterway without risking running aground and that's where the charts come in. The captain of even the smallest boat must be aware of how much draft their vessel draws - how deep in the water it sits - as well as other factors that might determine what a safe depth might be for navigating.

 For example, our current boat 'Boogaboo IV' draws approximately 40" of water, with an average load. Load refers to all the weight on the boat, including the boat itself, plus other considerations such as fuel, water, passengers, gear, food and yes, even beer ;-) As well, that draft (the depth of the boat in the water, not the beer on tap) will be greatly affected by sea conditions. If we were travelling though rough water, our boat could begin to pitch up and down, making the average depth of water we were travelling through vary considerably, depending if we were on the crest or bottom of each wave. So, if we were travelling through water with only 4 feet of depth and it was wavy, we could bounce up and down enough to touch bottom. And that's not a good thing! Also, if a passing boat were to throw off a large wake (it happens all the time), we could (and do) get bounced around.

 For all of the above reasons, it is imperative one knows where they are and can relate to their proximity to danger, as well as changing sea conditions. And that's where those red and green markers come in.

 So, why red and green, you ask? I'll tell you. In North America, as well as other parts of the world, we follow the Red-Right-Return system of telling us which is the safe side of a given marker. In MOST cases, heading upstream (against the current), the red marker is kept to the starboard, or right, side of the boat. When heading in the opposite direction, the opposite is true and one would then keep the green markers on their starboard side.

 Confused? Don't worry, it gets better. When going through areas such as Georgian Bay, that all goes out the window. Throw in other 'Aids To Navigation' such as yellow Cardinal Buoys, black (or red) and white Fairway Markers, Red/Green/Red OR Green/Red/Green Bifurcation Markers and (sometimes) land based Range Markers and you will soon realize that there's lots to learn about boating for the serious cruiser!

 Unfortunately, many boaters are blissfully unaware of what many of these things mean - or the meaning behind them

 I should really start a video series on how to learn these things and how they are put in to practice to help folks out. There is also something called 'The Rules Of The Road', which plainly lays out who has the right-of-way when on the water. Sadly and frustratingly, there are many, many boaters who don't have a clue what that means, or how to employ the rules to maintain safety. Here is a quick video I posted last summer after I got ticked off by someone who was in the aforementioned column of not knowing;

 I hope my long winded overview on this helps you better understand what goes on. If not, at least it may inspire to you learn a bit more. . . And now you also know why I put this off until I had a bit more free time ;-)

Spring Boat Canvas Cleaning

We took advantage of a sunny and dry day yesterday to remove and thoroughly clean the canvas over our cockpit area. Late last season, we noticed that mold was starting to grow on the underside, but the year ended up being rainy most weekends so we were unable to tackle the cleaning job at that time.

Mold on underside of boat canvas.

It took us three hours to remove, scrub, dry and waterproof all of the cockpit canvas. A mild solution of bleach and Tide laundry soap does the trick on the Sunbrella canvas material.

Washing canvas.

'Boogaboo' looked partially naked with it's top off. Last summer we were able to perform the same task on the flybridge canvas and it has been mould free ever since.

Cockpit canvas removed.

 I took a bunch video during this project and hope to have something posted to my YouTube Channel in the near future, so keep an eye out for that.

 Our plan is to do each section on rotating years - flybridge again next summer, and so forth. Hopefully that will keep the disgusting mould at bay - but not on any of the bays we visit ;-)

:-)

Writing a Book, One Brick at a Time

For those of you who have been following this Blog or my YouTube channel for the past few years, you will have already seen the posts from our grand adventure when we purchased 'Boogaboo IV', back in 2010. Well, after retelling many highlights of that experience over the ensuing years, I have been inspired to put it all together in the form of a book. Yup, you heard right - I'm writing a book.

(Actually, I'm in the midst of writing two books, but the other one has a much deeper, personal resonance to it which I'll delve into more in a future post.)

Referring to that event as a grand adventure isn't mere hype. It was truly a milestones that would mark a turning point in our lives - not only in terms of our boating travels, but in our whole outlook on life and what we CAN do as a couple - and survive it intact!!

In Michigan with our soon-to-be 'Boogaboo IV'.

  Survival was the key to the whole story. And the whole story is a whole lot more than can be properly conveyed through mere Blog posts, hence the book. Survival, as you will learn, has many connotations and will be used in the context of this story to relate to not only surviving a voyage of nearly 700 miles, but also that of mental, emotional and yes, marriage survival! Perhaps 'ordeal' might have been a more descriptive term ;-)

Applying the name on the transom before leaving Michigan, making it 'Ours' :-)

 So, what the heck do bricks have to do with it all, you surely must be asking yourself? Read on . . .

 As I am going on about my day, especially when I am involved in physical labour (which is most work days, in my contracting businesses) I feel that my mind is somehow released and that more far reaching thoughts and inspirations come to me, most especially when I am working alone. Take this weekend, for example. As part of our preparations to move onto the boat full time, we had to make some changes to the house and I was basically pushing a paint brush and roller for hours at a time. Put on some good music & it gives me time to think.

 And think, I do. Lots of it! As I continually point out to my lovely Anchor Girl, I could fill five more lifetimes with all the thoughts, aspirations and inspirations that come to me. But that's OK, because I firmly know that when this current plain of existence ends, I (we) will continue on with a much higher propose, so ultimately, I got lots of time :-)

 But I digress. Back to the bricks!

 I find it amazing how thoughts seem to come to me out of the blue, then only to be reinforced, or revisited a short time later by that same 'spark' being presented to me in another context. Almost like it's trying to show me something. . .

 Case in point (and finally getting to the darned bricks!); As part of my free thinking moments yesterday, I was reflecting on one of the 14,286.419 pieces of seemingly useless information floating around my head, that being a fact I recalled that Winston Churchill (former Prime Minister of England & 20th Century icon) would spend a great deal of time working at his estate, Chartwell, doing - you guessed it - bricklaying!

 From many accounts, Sir Winston derived a similar mental escape through building walls, fences and other brick structures that seemed to clear the way for inspirations to flow freely. His bricks, my paint brush. Or drywall trowel, or whatever the tool du jour happens to be. Perhaps it was through this release that Mr. Churchill found the abundant inspiration to write more than 50 volumes in his time.

 Do I have 50 books in me? Dunno. Two years ago, I would have scoffed at the idea of me writing ONE book, let alone two! But here I am, knee deep into it and finding that writing and me seem to have a long suppressed destiny.  I hope that you will look forward to reading about our boating adventure - and more. I will promise you that I'm going to do my best to keep you entertained, and more importantly - inspired!

 Quickly getting back to the connections between these thoughts that seem to come out of nowhere. Yesterday I was thinking and jotting my notes to share with you about our Mr. Churchill and his bricklaying release. Today, I was looking at a web site (boating related, no less) published by someone we know but haven't haven't talked to in too many years and what pops up? A photo of a boat with the name 'Chartwell', along with a caricature of Winston Churchill on the transom, produced by this very person!

 Was this a coincidence? No sir. Just one more sign that our new path, book, rekindled relationships and so much more yet to be discovered destinies are meant all to be. And I'm grateful for that & the forces that are moving us along this path :-)

:-)

Summer Boat Cruise 2013 - Glorious Stay at Lakefield Lock

For the 2013 boating vacation voyage, this would be the farthest 'away' we were to go, Lakefield Lock - Lock #26 of the Trent Severn Waterway (TSW). I was hoping to travel to Peterborough, but with the shorter hours of operation and the fact that our usual time off work was cut back back by almost a third this year, so we decided this was it.

 Not that I am sad that we didn't get any farther, on the contrary, despite have ventured to all of the areas we saw on prior trips, this was like seeing much of it for the first time. That was as a result of our ability to stay at a number of the locks for days at a time. Having the built in generator on the boat sure gives us so much more freedom to go where we wish, while maintaining most of the comforts we would enjoy tied to our dock at home.

Like most of the other locks, this one provides a peaceful and secure setting to tie up for a night or two. As you can see in this shot, I turned Boogaboo to have the bow facing 'back home', right at the end of the wall. This allowed us easy egress when we decided to leave, as well as a good view downstream to all the comings and goings while the lock was operating.

Tie up wall at the Lakefield Lock.

Video: A really nice clip of our short run over to the Lock. Another peaceful, sunny day on the water - complete with a notable docking manoeuvre at the end ;-)


Our view from the back of the boat, looking towards the lock;

Pretty view.

Sunshine, and lots of green;

Lock #26 of the Trent Severn Waterway, at Lakefield, Ontario.

The lock chamber, looking downstream, of course. There are rumours (reported to us more than once) that this lock has the BIGGEST spiders of any along the TSW. Anchor Girl was thrilled to hear that the first time we passed through here ;-)

Be wary of the Spiders . . ..

Video: One of the few dinghy rides we took on this trip saw us heading back into the village to grab more food (natch) and BEER :-)


After the big workout from our dinghy ride, it was getting to be cocktail time. A favourite spot for us to enjoy a cool drink is sitting on our folding lounge chairs, propped on the swim platform, feet up on the floating dingy;

Watching the world go by . . .

Evening of the second day and the joint had filled up. It was nice to wander and talk to the other boaters, discussing the TSW issues;

A full house.

Our spot on the wall. Nice;

Looking forward to going back here.

Cool shot across the port side deck, complete with funky lens flare;

Shine a little sunshine on me :-)

Video: Before heading off, we walked over to the local grocery store for MORE food & I took this clip of the local walking trail, which passed right beside our mooring;


The ending shot form the video was taken overlooking the control dam, just ahead of the lock. I was able to also snap a neat still photo of the big Chris Craft riding by;

A view of top and bottom.

The next segment sees us heading back to Young's Point and some time with our host to catch up and swap stories.

:-)

Spring Thaw - Finally!

 After the worst winter in recent memory, Mother Nature has finally looked at the calendar and started the warming part of Spring. Ahhhh, that's nice :-)

 We took a drive up to the boat twice in the past week to check on things and it's so nice to see open water again! Nothing much on Lake Simcoe right now, but many rivers have begun to open up and flow again. Here's a pic I took where the Trent Severn Waterway enters Lake Simcoe, at Gamebridge;

Open water again :-)

 Not only is the snow and ice fading fast, but it was so nice to see the wild critters out again as well. On Sunday alone, we spotted deer, wild turkeys, lots of little creatures and tons of geese - although they aren't that pleasant to have around the marina. . . The most encouraging to see once again flying around and claiming their nests was the Osprey, returned from their southern wintering grounds.


 All of the above says that once again we are moving inexorably towards another great season on the water. Soon be time to head onto the Trent Severn Waterway and take it all in :-)

Swing bridge on the Trent Severn Waterway.

:-)

Summer 2013 Boat Cruise - Islandview Resort, Young's Point

After a seven hour run from Fenelon Falls (including five locks), we find ourselves at another favourite place to stay for a couple of days, that being the Islandview Resort in Young's Point. Even though we were travelling for most of the day, it a great one to be on the water and we drove at an easy, relaxed pace for the most part.


We have spent a number of our getaways here and over the years the owner, Kieth has become a friend that we look forward to seeing each time we return.

Islandview Resort and Marina in Young's Point.

Located right along the main Small Craft Route, all the boats going through here have to pass right in front of the docks, making for some prime boat watching. Unfortunately, with the reduced hours in the navigation season, traffic was down quite a bit when we visited.

The gas dock at Islandview Resort.

The resort also has a good restaurant, complete with outside patio that overlooks the waterway.

Old Mill Restaurant patio.

Video: A look around at Islandview


Video: A quick mop down of Boogaboo before heading off to our next destination


As you saw in the video, we arrived to sunshine at Lakefield Marina, but by late afternoon the skies turned stormy.

Passing thunder clouds at Lakefield Marina.

Here me with the BBQ set up on the dock, hoping that the rain will stay off until dinner.

BBQ on the dock at Lakefield.

The very lovely Anchor Girl relaxes while waiting for dinner.

My beautiful First Mate.

Walking back from yet another food shopping trip ;-)

 The next morning we were off again, this time to the farthest east we would get on this trip - and another new place to stay. But first, one quick look at the marina on a sunny morning;

A sunny morning at Lakefield Marina.

:-)

Spring Thaw - Finally!!

 After a very long (!!) and bitter (!!!) winter, Anchor Girl and I took a drive up to visit our beloved 'Boogaboo' to check on how it fared the cold, wind and snow. The good news is that it appeared to have survived nicely :-)

 The sorta down side was that there had been lots of settling under the wood pile supports, making it somewhat unsafe being aboard. Good or bad, I did get a chance to climb up to have a look around in the engine room - before I discovered the settling issue. Unfortunately, I was unable to do my final measuring for the replacement waste-water replacement holding tank. Next weekend I will do that, for sure, as the marina contacted me today to confirm that they have shimmed the blocking to make in once again safe to board the boat.

:-)

Summer 2013 Boat Cruise - Fenelon Falls, Bobcaygeon & Buckhorn

This time we leave Fenelon Falls and head south and east to our next destination of Young's Point.

 The morning was beautifully calm when we departed.

Fenelon Falls railway swing bridge.

An easy one this morning, as we had zero wind and only one other boat to go through the lock with.

Heading towards the top side of the lock.

Video of us leaving the tie up wall and heading to and down-bound through the Fenelon Falls Lock;


After exiting the lock, we are into the picturesque Fenelon River which, in turn, took us into Sturgeon Lake. At the far east end is the village of Bobcaygeon and this marina - Centre Point Landing - is on the north shore, just before town when heading in from the east.

Center Point Landing Marina

Approaching the Bobcaygeon Lock, one sees the unmistakable 'Bigley's' store for ladies fashions with it's bright pink roof, located immediately beside the lock chamber. Bobcaygeon has the distinction of being the site of the very first lock along what was to become the Trent Severn Waterway, having the first one built way back in 1833.

Approaching the top side of Bobcaygeon Lock.

After getting a pump-out at Gordon Yacht Harbour and continuing east, we passed through Pigeon Lake, which becomes Buckhorn Lake (Upper) at a spot called Gannon Narrows.

Gannon Narrows Bridge.

At the far east end of Upper Buckhorn Lake sits the hamlet of Buckhorn and the Buckhorn Lock, which drops us down into Lower Buckhorn Lake. Phew, that's a lot of Buckhorns :-)

Exiting the bottom side of Buckhorn Lock.

These guys were occupying a nest/perch just past the lock.

One of the many Osprey nests to be seen along the Trent Severn Waterway.

Crossing Lower Buckhorn Lake we saw a number of these rental houseboats. One must be wary of these slow moving, heavy vessels, more likely than not to be piloted by a less than experienced captain. Can make for some 'interesting' stories ;-)

Rental houseboat on Lower Buckhorn Lake.

Another lake and another lock. This time it's Lovesick Lock, with the shortest 'lift' of any of the locks on the system. At only 3.5' it usually only takes a few minutes to get through, but with the shenanigans by some of the staff in 2013 we found ourselves taking longer than expected. . . Hopefully that isn't the case again for the coming season.

Lovesick Lock

Next update is for our time at Young's Point

:-)

$18 Billion to Keep Asian Carp Out? I Got a Better Idea!

The US Army Corp of Engineers released a report discussing options and strategies for keeping the dreaded Asian Carp and other invasive species out of the Great Lakes watershed. My immediate reaction was 'Good Luck'.

 The report goes on to say that beyond the huge amount of money - and you know that figure will only increase - it will take decades to implement. There has already been reports of Asian Carp DNA being discovered in the Great Lakes (Article). And those guys expect to that they won't spread from there in the decades they need to stop the fish from getting in? Like I said, good luck.

 The Army Corp already built an electrified fence just outside of Chicago on a river that connects Lake Michigan with the Mississippi River (the source of these pesky critters), back in 2002. The theory behind that is a small electrical current is introduced in the water, stopping the fish from swimming through. The trade-off is that private boats traversing this spot - including those doing the 'Great Loop' trip - are forced to stop ahead of it, get out and be towed across the electrified portion, at a cost of $600 per tow.

 There is already litigation between the border States to have Michigan dam off the waterway in an attempt to stop the carp. So the fun has already begun. I'm sure the Corp's cost estimation didn't take into account the lawyers' fees both now and in the future.

 I guess nobody ever thought of installing a marine railway, like we have on the Trent Severn Waterway?? The original 'Big Chute Marine Railway' was built in the early 1900's to get boats over a steep vertical change in elevation on the Severn River and was slated to be replaced with a conventional lock in the 1960's. Right around that same time, there was a scare with another invasive species, that of the Sea Lamprey eel. Those little buggers stuck to the bottom of boats and it was determined that they didn't survive long if the boat they were hitching a ride on was hauled out of the water.

 So, rather than getting rid of the marine railway, it was decided to build a new, larger one that could accommodate a number of boats at one time. This 'new' carriage has been in service since 1977 and has kept the Lamprey at bay. I'm sure that a similar, more grander version could be installed at Chicago - at both a significantly lower cost and quicker timeline.

Big Chute Marine Railway at Ontario's Trent Severn Waterway

 

:-)

Ice Buildup on Great Lakes Causing Shipping Delays

We have been dealing with a very long stretch of extremely cold temperatures for the past four weeks, as have many in the northern US and eastern Canada. Currently, we are suffering through what is being described as a 'Polar Vortex'. As I write this, the current windchill temperature is -30 Celsius.

 I just call it all more reason to spend next winter in Florida!

 This far reaching and long term weather is resulting in excessive ice along the Great Lakes shipping routes, with some areas not seeing conditions this bad since the 1930's. At the Soo Locks in Sault St. Marie, there are four US Coast Guard Ice Breakers working around the clock to keep the shipping lanes open, according to an article on the Up North Live web site.

A bit farther south, CBC News has reported a number of ships stranded on the Detroit River at Windsor. The Canadian Coast Guard dispatched one of their breakers to get the traffic moving again. The story quotes US Coast Guard Petty Officer Ross Flowers as saying "It's potentially something that's only going to get worse in the next couple of days," He also adds that ice that forms a little further up on the St. Clair River is harder to break up, referring to it as a giant frozen snowbank.

 We purchased our current #boat on Lake St. Clair in 2010, where it was berthed at MacRay Harbor marina. The seller recounted that a few years prior, winter ice upstream on the river clogged the water flow so much that the level of Lake St. Clair briefly dropped significantly. Some of the boats stored there are housed in funky, covered and heated wet slips and when the water went down, so did these boats. Some of the big ones were actually sitting on bottom before the water levels returned.

 Here's a shot of our newly adopted 'Boogaboo IV' in one of those covered slips. They offer in-water storage, complete with overhead, natural gas fired radiant heating. Some folks actually live on their boats there for the winter. Cost? About $10 G's (USD).

MacRay Harbor Marina slips, Lake St. Clair, Michigan.

 So let's bundle up folks. Good news is that we're more than half way through the off season!

:-)

Oh The Humanity!

Has it come to this? Yes, I spend a lot of time on the Interweb. That is because we are working towards expanding our online presence to one day soon providing us with a full time level of income. That is something that doesn't happen overnight, nor does it happen all by itself. This goal requires a great deal of effort and that's why Anchor Girl & I find our days being filled by a full time commitment to this ever expanding enterprise.

 As such, we are interacting more and more with signing in, logging on and applying for various elements in the online world. Most are innocuous and straightforward in nature; email address, password, etc.. Last night, I had to stop, chuckle and share this one with AG - a new line on a sign up page that I had never seen before; 'You must be a human. Accounts registered by "bots" or other automated methods are not permitted'.

 I must be a human to sign up?!?!? The nerve of those non-human servers to make such an outrageous demand. Next thing I know, these same, cold hearted machines will expect us to actually enjoy the fruits of our labours like real humans; taste the food, take in the sunsets and reflect on all the beauty that this human life affords us mere mortals

 Yes, I am a human. And yes, I will continue to take it in with all the glory and wonder that this flesh and blood existence provides. And throw in a dash of spirituality, just to keep it all in perspective :-)

A glorious sunset over Georgian Bay. One more human enjoyment :-)

 

 

 

iPhone as a Video Camera?

 As you have already figured out, my next favorite thing to boating is capturing our fun and adventures on video - and sharing them with the world :-) Well, to achieve better and better video quality over the years, I have continued to upgrade to better and better cameras. Well, what a pleasant discovery it was to realize how good the camera is on my iPhone 4!

Lake sunset taken with my iPhone 4. Pretty nice quality, I'd say.

 I am blown away by the quality of both the still photos and video capture from this compact camera. Couple that with the recently upgraded YouTube Capture app and I now have a DSLR quality solution for on the fly production, all at point & shoot price - plus it's always with me!
Camera shake on the video side is a bit of an issue for hand held (on the fly) capturing, but the YouTube app now corrects that while rendering. Basic video editing is now built in to the app as well with the ability to cut and join different clips. And again, it's all on the phone!! Brilliant :-)

 Will this replace my other cameras? No, but it does make a great companion unit. Especially for those times when we are out and about and it's the only camera at hand. Hey, never know when the mood is gonna strike. For filming, that is . . .

 Makes me wonder if there's anyone who still only uses their phones for simply calling people any more?

Boat Cruise on The Trent Severn Waterway - Overnight at Rosedale

In the autumn of 2012, we were shocked and somewhat dismayed by the frightening water level drops in Georgian Bay/Lake Huron and feared we would not be able to take the boat up there during the the following summer. Having had the good fortune of spending three weeks each summer up on 'The Bay for the previous five seasons, we were starting to consider heading 'down east' along the Trent Severn Waterway (TSW) once again.

 Considering that our 2013 summer holiday plans came from a sort of last resort type of approach, I thought that this would end up turning out to be basically a shrug when asked how it was. Far from it! This turned turned out being a great decision, as we not only got to revisit ares we hadn't seen in a number of years, but it actually ended up being like a first time experience in many ways.

'Boogaboo IV' tied up at the bottom of Rosedale Lock for a couple of nights.

 In the past, and with only one exception, we had stayed exclusively at marinas for all of our overnight stops. This year, we got a season's mooring pass which allowed us to spend limitless days/nights at the locks along the way. Sure, we had been by and driven through all the locks all the way to Trenton (Mile '0' of the TSW) but now that we were stopping and spending a day or two at each lock, it was like the a whole new world.

Setting up the BBQ grille on a picnic table beside the boat.

 Lock # 35 at Rosedale is a perfect example. When approaching from the east and simply focusing on getting the boat through the lock, one has little time to actually survey the surrounding grounds. Couple that with thew fact that this lock has the second lowest 'lift' (just a little over three feet) the boat is down (or up) and through in no time at all. Stop for awhile and discover that Rosedale has probably one of the biggest park areas of any of the locks!

  When we were siting at the back of the boat on the first morning here, I noticed something in the distance that looked like a very large snake poking it's head up out of the water amongst some Lilly pads, so we walked over for a closer inspection.

Scouting the Lilly pads for a large snake or turtle.

 We stared into the water, waiting for movement from what I thought for sure was the head of either a large snake or turtle, but it just seemed to float motionless. I suspected that whatever it was, it was waiting for something tasty to float or fly by, within striking range. Of course, at the point I was pretty much on my own, as Anchor Girl was too scared to get too close to it.
 After studying this close up, zoomed in photo, I surmised that it was nothing more than an oddly rolled up leaf from the Lilly plants, arranged to look like an animal's head. Tell me I'm seeing that and we weren't going crazy ;-)

Snake, turtle of oddly shaped leaf??

 As I mentioned, the grounds are quite expansive, larger than any other lock we've stayed at in the past. Our second evening there brought an opportunity to wander around in the (windy) sunshine and capture some nice shots with the boats in the background.

 This is at the top side of the lock. Always a popular spot for overnight boaters, one has to time their arrival just right - or be lucky - to grab a spot on the tie up walls.

A full house of boats tied up along the top side of the Rosedale Lock.

 Looking back eastward, towards the lock and lower tie up / blue line walls;

Rosedale Lock along the Trent Severn Waterway.

 Not quite a sunset, but an interesting shot of the sun's rays shooting out around this quickly passing cloud, right above the lock chamber;

Another windy day, with quickly passing clouds at Lock #35

 Here's a nice pic of 'Boogaboo' and our home for two days. As I mentioned, this is a very popular lock for overnight boats, and we had to squeeze into the corner between the lower entrance of the lock and the blue line. We just fit too, as the lockmaster didn't want us withing the blue line area or having the bow stick out beyond the entrance to the lock. It took a bit of creative tying of the boat, but we got it, with a whole three or four inches to spare ;-)

'Boogaboo IV' snugly tied up at the bottom of the Rosedale Lock.

 

 They say that parting is such sweet sorrow, but our next destination would be even more fun, as we leave Rosedale for a short hop across Cameron Lake and the village of Fenelon Falls.

Pulling away from Lock #35 at Rosedale, Ontario.

 Up next, a wonderful time - and spectacular sunsets - in Fenelon Falls!

:-)