Pat and Cindy's Great Loop Adventure

Our home for the past week. We plan to leave Monday, August 15.

What makes Harbour West Marina so special …

Leaving Ojibwa, we knew we had to go to a marina that would have boat mechanical services. Sunshine was having a difficult time holding a charge so we needed an electrical expert. There was also a water leak that Captain Pat had been nursing along.

There are so many marinas in this area of Georgian Bay. I put out an alert on our social media and did receive responses from Midland and Harbour West marinas. Midland was swamped and didn’t sound like they could get to us soon. Jeff and Susan Heron, Great Loop Harbor Hosts in Penetanguishene, reached out to us and told us of a great mechanic at Harbour West. Susan was so kind – one afternoon she took me to a local super store to shop for groceries and provisions.

So we hooked up with Dean Aaron of Dean’s Marine and Mobile Services and his accomplices. His apprentice Aaron was especially helpful. They turned out to be exceptional. (Not to worry, Frank, not as good as you – but close!)

Harbour West Marina is a family-owned operation. Graeme Arris (Susan and Jeff’s son-in-law!) now runs the marina. Graeme’s Dad, Dan, bought the marine years ago as a “semi-retirement” project. Dan still lives on the premises with his partner, Maggie.

Bryn, the office manager, is amazing. She is so accommodating and wonderful to work with. All the staff is. It is people who can make the difference in a marina stay.

As usual we ran into some problems getting items shipped. All in all, the repairs went well. We now have two new alternators and the water leak is fixed. Captain Pat has the cabin reassembled – had to take the floor up and place everything outside in order to make repairs. Monday, tomorrow, we will get fuel, a pumpout, and resume our visit to the sites in Georgian Bay.

Captain Patrick made a big decision. After discussions with Graeme, Pat has decided to store Sunshine here at Harbour West Marina in mid-September. It’s nice to have a face to the name of the employees and mechanics who will be winterizing our boat.

We will fly out of Toronto or Buffalo mid-September – it’s two hours away – and fly back next June to resume our Great Loop adventure. That way we can have the month of May at our summer home on Lake Winnipesaukee, and see some more Georgian Bay sites when we return to the boat in Penetanguishene in June.

This marina is nice too because there are only a few slips for transient boaters (we got lucky!) For most of the boats here, this is their home port.

In addition to the marina employees, we have met some terrific boaters who have become friends – see photos below. We love this place! It will be difficult to say good by tomorrow, but it will be good to continue our adventure. And – we will be back here in three or so weeks!

Here are some photos from our stay at Harbour West Marina. More photos and history from visits to Penetanguishene in our next blog post.

Ojibway – Georgian Bay , Ontario

Here’s more information about the many parks in Georgian Bay:

https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/on/georg

As we exited the Port Severn Lock, we found ourselves finally in Georgian Bay. Captain Patrick has been talking about this for months.

Georgian Bay is the northeastern arm of Lake Huron, and located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. The North Channel is to the northwest, located between Manitoulin Island and the Sudbury District, west of Killarney. This was once a popular route for steamships and is now used by a variety of pleasure craft to travel to and from Georgian Bay.

Georgian Bay is characterized by rugged bedrock and white pine forests to the north and sandy southern beaches. Bruce Peninsula National Park on its western side includes part of the Bruce Trail along the Niagara Escarpment. Fathom Five National Marine Park is known for preserved shipwrecks, 19th-century lighthouses, and Flowerpot Island’s sea-stack rock formations.

The towns of Midland, Penetanguishene, Port Severn, and Honey Harbour are at the Southeastern end of the bay (we have visited all of these) and are popular sites for summer cottages, as are the many bays and islands on the Eastern Coast. Collingwood, Meaford, and Wasaga Beach are located at the Southern end of the bay, around Nottawasaga Bay. There are 30,000 islands in the bay.

We were fortunate to secure a slip at the Ojibway park dock, joining our friends Tom on Dancing Bears and Anne and Mitch on No Rush. We met other Looper boats and also local boaters who frequent this park for weekends and holidays.

The first thing Anne and I noticed was the similarity to Lake Winnipesaukee. Walking the island paths, it looked just like climbing Rattlesnake Island. And – there is an outhouse! Or as Anne preferred to call it – a privy.

The walking paths are well marked as to which path to take. There are wooden walkways as well.

While walking the path I ran into a couple and their friend. They seemed familiar. Come to find out – we met them previously on the locks! Jill and Richard from Frostproof, Florida on their 26′ MacGregor sailboat. They too were docked at Ojibway.

Jill and Richard informed me they had just seen a Massasauga rattlesnake. This is the only venomous snake in this region. Supposedly they don’t attack; just make a rattling sound to startle you. Their skin blends well with the rocks, making it difficult to spot them.

Richard and Jill visited our boat and we had some great conversations. Richard shared with us his success story of controlling his multiple sclerosis symptoms. By following a special diet for those suffering from autoimmune disorders, he dramatically improved his health condition. He and Jill are on their third Loop! He recommends a TedTalk by Dr. Terry Wahls that changed his life, by simply adjusting his eating habits. Richard is most grateful for his health and wishes to share his story with others.

Pat and Mitch needed some parts for their boats (always!) and took the dinghy to nearby Honey Harbor. Pat and I later also made the trip. You have to be careful with the wakes some of the larger boats make!

We did have a special blessing happen. We got up to the store counter and Pat realized he did not have his wallet. I figured he left it back at the boat. When we arrived at the dinghy – there was the wallet, poised on the rim of the dinghy! It must have fallen out of his back pants pocket. It was a miracle that it did not fall in the water! We were most grateful.

We also saw a 24/7 kiosk that serves freshly made pizza from an oven! You select the pizza type, insert your credit card, and take your pizza home! Becky, we should get this franchise for Mingy Cove at the Lake! You could have pizza anytime you want.

A sad part of this stay was it is probably the last time we will see Tom of Dancing Bears and Anne and Mitch of No Rush on this Loop journey. Captain Patrick plans to spend a week repairing the boat in Penetanguishene. Tom, Anne and Mitch are making some stops in Georgian Bay, but are planning to be in the states by August 10. They are completing the Loop this year, and need to be home in Hudson, Florida, by December. It’s really been fun travelling with them.

The only marine railway in North America

Finally – on Monday, August 1, Sunshine made her way down the Chute. She was the first in line at 9:00 a.m. that morning. The Big Chute is 100 feet long and 24 feet wide. It works like a big cradle on railroad tracks to carry boats up and over a land mass. Many tourists and spectators gather to watch the boats as they are taken across the Big Chute.

Originally built in 1914, renovations were added in 2003. Boats enter the cradle into waiting straps like those on a travel lift. Once loaded the cradle carries the boat out of the water and over land. The boat goes forward 600 feet and is then lowered down 27 feet to the water on the other side.

The entire operation takes about ten minutes! The captain and crew stay on the boat.

As mentioned in our previous blog post, Sunday afternoon we were waiting to move over to the Blue Line as soon as the Chute closed operations for the day – around 6 p.m. The boat captains were jockeying for positions. They were walking the docks and discussing with each other. -:) They decided that Sunshine and Blueshift (the Sabre) should be first in line, as we arrived first at the waiting docks.

After all were docked we were surprised to hear over the loud speaker that we were not supposed to be docking just yet! We were early. They let us stay, though, so all good.

Over the loud speaker they announce what order you will be going in. Depending on the size of the boat, they may place two boats in one carrier. Both Sunshine and Blueshift were placed in the first carrier of the day.

Getting close to the Big Chute!

We left Orillia for Lock 43 – Swift Rapids. If you recall, there are 45 locks in total, so we are excited at this point to be so close to Lock 44 – the Big Chute – and then to Lock 45 – Port Severn – the end of the Trent-Severn Waterway.

On the last few locks we are going down, rather than up. You loop your boat line to a the cable at the top of the lock (not the bottom) and your line then goes down with you as your boat descends. The lockmasters at these locks are most helpful. They take your line and loop it for you, even using a boat hook if necessary.

The Swift Rapids Lock is another engineering marvel. This is the “largest” lock. Your boat descends 47 feet!

Another interesting feature of this lock is it houses an electrical power plant that produces hydro electric power. Canadians still call electricity “hydro,” as originally most of the power here was hydro generated – with waterfalls. There is an incredible waterfall here.

We spent two nights at this lock. Planning to enter the Chute (the next lock) takes some strategy. Our “guide book” recommended going through the Chute during the week, with less traffic from local boaters. This year there are a record number of Loopers – around 500. (There was a significant decline the last two years due to COVID.) Granted, all are not doing the same routes at the same time. But there were several trying to make the Chute around our timeframe.

The other challenge is that the Chute is having trouble finding workers. Several senior employees have retired, and new employees need to be trained. The Chute announced that on the weekends there are now boat size restrictions. The boat cannot be over 30 feet long and 11 feet wide. Sunshine is 34 feet long and 12 1/2 feet. So we had to wait until Monday.

Our stay at this Lock was fun. The setting was rural, with country roads to walk on. And this was a holiday weekend, so we saw several campers and local boaters. We also befriended a couple on the boat docked behind us, Paul and Darlene. They are from Orillia and familiar with traversing the Chute. They are a lot of fun!

Paul and Darlene invited us to take an afternoon ride on their dinghy to check out the Chute. It was a windy and chilly ride but we finally arrived! Paul felt bad it was so cold. He kept saying “It’s just around the corner.” We finally told him we didn’t believe him!

This visit to the Chute proved to be very helpful. We talked to a lockmaster who gave us some great advice. She told us to come Sunday to the Chute, and hopefully we will find a dock for the afternoon. Around 6:15 p.m. we could then move to the blue line to be ready to enter the Chute 9:00 a.m. Monday morning.

Sunday morning we followed Paul and Darlene down to the Big Chute Lock. Their boat was small enough that they were admitted into the lock on Sunday, and off they went.

We did secure a slip at the Big Chute dock for Sunday afternoon. It was a beautiful sunny day. We met a nice Looper couple – David and Ellen – in a beautiful Sabre they just had build in the Maine factory. I went shopping and swimming, and Patrick spent the afternoon cleaning the hull with a special, magical ingredient – lemon juice! He was most happy with the results. We then had a nice dinner at the one and only restaurant there – complete with live music!

Other Looper boats arrived, with the same idea to get a prime seat at the blue line wall around 6 p.m. to be ready for that 9:00 a.m. big Chute opening. More on that in our next blog!

Orillia is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is in Simcoe County between Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. It is part of the Huronia region of Central Ontario. The population in 2021 was 33,411.

It was incorporated as a village in 1867, but the history of what is today the City of Orillia dates back at least several thousand years. Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of fishing by the Huron and Iroquois peoples in the area over 4,000 years ago, and of sites used by Aboriginal peoples for hundreds of years for trading, hunting, and fishing.

Known as the “Sunshine City”, the city’s large waterfront attracts many tourists to the area every year, as do a number of annual festivals and other cultural attractions. While the area’s largest employer is Casino Rama, overall economic activity in Orillia is a mixture of many different industries including manufacturing, government services, customer service and tourism.

Orillia is located on the shores of two connected lakes: Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching. Both lakes are part of the Trent-Severn Waterway.

We departed Kirkfield and were waiting for a weather window to safely cross Lake Simcoe. After maneuvering through five back to back locks – Bolsover, Talbot, Portage, Thorah and Gamebridge, – we entered Simcoe Lake in some windy conditions. The buoys are two to three miles apart. Even in ideal conditions, it’s difficult to see one from the other. And many landmarks are too far away to recognize.

The lockmasters told us it could be a rocky ride but that didn’t deter Captain Pat. It was windy but in the end all good. We arrived safe and sound at the Port of Orillia Marina and were happy to be there, especially after spending days tied up at lock walls.

This marina reminded us of our stay at the marina in Trenton. Clean bathroom facilities, free laundry, beautiful park grounds and ice cream and the Metro grocery just steps away. We loved our stay here.

We had some big celebrations at Orillia. July 26 Captain Pat turned 70! Hard to believe. He always said he would do the Loop before he turned 70.

He had a Captain’s breakfast, a great lunch at a local cafe, and dinner at the Common Stove. This was a recommendation and did not disappoint. We had a quiet celebration and of course lots of phone calls with well wishes. We will celebrate with family and friends upon our return to the States.

July 27 we celebrated 32 years of marriage. We walked around Orillia, did some shopping and had a lovely dinner. Lots to celebrate!

On our last day in Orillia, we had some special visitors. Irene and Brian Phair read our blog and couldn’t believe we were in Ontario. How ironic that they live near the Peterborough lock! They frequent the “Andrew” bridge we posted, and kayak near the lock. Myron and Pam Molenda also came for lunch. We had a great visit catching up with good friends.

We really enjoyed the town of Orillia. Great restaurants, art, culture and shopping. Here are a few pics:

We only had one mishap at this marina. You have to have at least one. Captain Pat took Sunshine out to get fuel and an pumpout. I was up at the marina office writing a blog so I did not go. Unknown to him the line on the port side was in the water! And as he departed it made it’s way into the prop! Lucky for us, no major damage was done. Patrick donned his scuba gear and went underneath the boat to inspect the props. We thought for sure there would be damage, but we lucked out. And we were so grateful!

Here are more pics from our stay at Port of Orillia Marina:

Kirkfield is the second highest hydraulic lift in the world. Peterborough is the highest. It is also the first down lock since Trenton. Because it is all “downstream” from here to Lake Huron, the buoys are reversed for the remainder of the canal.

Let’s take a look at where we have travelled, and where we still have to go. Here is one map of the Trent-Severn Waterway:

In the upper left you will see Georgian Bay – our destination. In the lower right is Trenton, where we began the Trent-Severn Waterway, on Lake Ontario. You will also see Toronto toward the bottom left. At the top is Kawartha Lakes, the historic region we’ve referred to. In the middle of the map are Peterborough, Pigeon Lake, Lakefield, Stony Lake and Lovesick Lake.

Toward the far left is Lake Simcoe and Orillia, which we discuss in the next blog. Finally there is Port Severn, just after the Big Chute (not mentioned on this map) and you then enter Georgian Bay.

This map better details the Locks and the little towns along the Waterway:

If you amplify, you can better read the towns. We have circled the towns where we stopped for the night: Trenton, Percy Reach, Hastings, Ashburton /Peterborough, Lakefield, Pigeon Lake/Big Island, Kirkfield, Orillia, Swift Rapids and the Big Chute.

The journey from Big Island in Pigeon Lake to our next lock – Kirkland – was a colorful one. We loved the Key West type homes at Fenelon on Kawartha Lakes.

The channels were very narrow, with granite rock  on each side. We had been warned that these could be treacherous waters for your prop. Captain Pat had to remain diligent.

We began seeing lots of houseboats. We were told to watch out. Many local vacationers rent these boats for the weekend or week, and may not be the best at maneuvering them.

We arrived at the Kirkland Lock and were fortunate enough to have a spot. There wasn’t much in Kirkland – except for the Lock itself.  In addition to the Peterborough Lift Lock, this was an engineering marvel. It is the second lift lock on the Trent-Severn Waterway.

The hydraulic lift at Kirkland was constructed between 1900 and 1927 by Canadian engineer Richard Birdsail Rogers, who also designed the Peterborough Lift Lock.

Around the Lock were many diagrams and photos explaining how the Lift Lock works.

We met a daring young man – Vincent – who was biking from Vancouver to Montreal! He said he started out with his girlfriend but she abandoned him after a few weeks. He was such a cute guy. I admire his tenacity and love of adventure.

We departed the Kirkfield lock and headed to the Port of Orillia Marina via Beaverton. The canals were lined with granite rock and beautiful flowers. The country landscape with its barns and fields made for some beautiful photographs.

We arrived Orillia for a much needed extended marina stay!

Lakefield is said to be a good example of a typical small town in the Kawartha Lakes region of Ontario. It’s a historic town and relatively compact so it is very walkable. Lakefield makes a nice spot for exploring. There are waterfront parks, a boardwalk, restaurants, charming historic homes from the 1800’s and several beautiful stone churches.

Also, Lakefield is home to the Lakefield College School – a private, coeducational boarding and day school for students in grades 9 through 12. Prince Edward was a student there and remains a big advocate of the school. (Thank you, Cam McLachlan, for this information!)

Our morning in Lakefield was one of our best. I sat at a picnic table outside and wrote out my birthday and anniversary cards for July (late, I’m sorry to say) and August. After Pat’s zoom call, we walked to a breakfast café for cappuccino and egg wraps. Then we ambled on to the Post Office to mail my cards. Snail mail is getting expensive! But I liked the Canadian postmarks on my correspondence.

On our way home we stopped at the grocery to buy Advil – always need that! It was a nice walk home on a quiet country road – just the two of us. Then we departed for another day on the locks.

I wish all mornings could be like this one.

Here are photos from our journey from Lakefield to Pigeon Lake – narrative on Pigeon Lake to follow:

Anchored in Pigeon Lake by Big Island

We anchored two nights at this most serene spot – Big Island in Pigeon Lake. We took many refreshing swims and dinghy rides. The water, like Lake Winnipesaukee, was cold at first but you get used to it. We took the dinghy over to Big Island to walk around.  Captain Pat got extra exercise – he opted to forego the engine and used the oars instead. I even rowed the boat for a little while – so fun.

Captain Pat is so innovative. He said he dreamed about this. How to make riding in the dinghy more comfortable while one person is rowing. He placed one of our deck chairs in the dinghy so the Admiral had a great seat on the bottom of the dinghy, and he could better leverage the oars! He is always coming up with a great idea.

We sure enjoyed this spot – the two nights flew by. During the day there were people in small boats fishing, and families on pontoon boats enjoying the afternoon on the lake and in the sun. We experienced some spectacular sunsets. This was definitely one of our favorite spots.

Here are pics from our stay in Pigeon Lake:

Peterborough was one of the first cities in Canada to get electricity using a nearby waterfall for hydroelectric power and became a regional center for companies that wanted to use electricity for manufacturing. Today Peterborough is the gateway to the Kawarthas, a region of cottages spread out over a large area, which is a favorite vacation spot for Canadians in the summer.

Peterborough is also home to the Peterborough Lift Lock, which lifts the boats 65 feet.  This lock is the first of two lift locks on the Trent-Severn and is the largest lift lock in the world. It was designed by Canadian engineer Richard Rogers in the 1890’s and opened in 1904. The lift lock consists of two water filled pans or chambers, like bathtubs, each weighing 1300 tons with one in the up position and one in the down position, connected by a hydraulic ram so when one goes down the other goes up the corresponding amount. Both pans have large gates at both ends.

You can read more about the Peterborough Lift Lock here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peterborough_Lift_Lock

The previous evening, we – Pat, Anne, Mitch, Tom and me – walked to the Peterborough Lock to take photos. The lock is massive and quite the engineering marvel.

As you approach the lift lock from the lower level a gate opens in the lower chamber allowing you to enter. Several boats can be accommodated at one time. After all boats have entered and tied up to the side walls, the gate is closed. Then an additional foot of water is added to the upper chamber making it heavier by 130 tons. A valve is then opened to connect the hydraulic rams together and the heavier upper level descends forcing the lower chamber up 65 feet to the upper level. Then the gate is opened at the upper level of the waterway and you continue on. Amazing!

We survived the Lock! We departed and continued our scenic journey to our next stop, Lakefield – Lock 26. Here are photos:

Lock 20 is the Lock just before the Peterborough Lift Lock

We were back into our rhythm travelling from Hastings to Ashburnham. No Rush and Dancing Bears left early. We took our time in the morning – I went for a walk and Pat was on a zoom meeting. I loved seeing the flowers and black squirrels (they are everywhere!) and stopped at a quaint gift shop for ice and other things.

Travelled from Percy Reach – Lock 8 – to Hastings – Lock 18

I really liked the landscape at this Lock. As mentioned previously it reminded me of Lincoln State Park in Indiana. There is a wonderful campground there. Most of the Locks do offer campgrounds for bikers or hikers.

The first day of the locks on the Trent-Severn went pretty smoothly. Not so much on the second day. You gotta take the good with the bad.

We left Hastings and were traveling with boats No Rush and Dancing Bears. As we approached Lock 9 we discovered we had to tie up to the wall, to wait for the Lock to open. There was a sailboat in front of us.  We entered the lock, behind the sailboat. The captain of that sailboat said we were too close. He kept poking at our boat with his boat hook. And he looked like Bernie Sanders, which didn’t help matters.

Captain Pat finally had enough. He backed up Sunshine, and said we are leaving this lock, not going to do this.  Our boat buddies on No Rush and on Dancing Bears were like, what? They were right behind us and so they had to back up as well. Anyway, they all backed up and No Rush ended up going into the lock with that sailboat. Dancing Bears

We then just travelled with Dancing Bear through the other locks that day. We ended up going from Lock 8 (Percy Reach) to Lock 18 (Hastings.) That is 10 locks, making for a very long day. It seemed like we finished one lock only to go into another one. And, yes, we did end up with that sailboat in another lock.

We get by with a little help from our friends …

We were booking it to make Lock 18 before it closes at 5:30 p.m.  Lucky for us, Anne and Mitch were already at Hastings. They went to the Lockmaster and convinced them to keep the Lock open for us. One Lockmaster had to go home. So Mitch volunteered to assist the other Lockmaster, and even helped by manually closing the Lock! We told Mitch he has another talent to add to his resume. We are so grateful for good friends who are always looking out for us.

We – finally! – made it to Hastings, where we docked on the wall of the lock. We thought at first the sailboat was there too! But he went to the marina across the lock.

Hastings was a cute little town. I grabbed dinner with Mitch and Anne and brought dinner back to Patrick, who was still nursing his rib and knee.  What a day.