Wednesday, July 18, 2012

We left Fenelon Falls with Debbie and Jay Leonard about 8:30 this morning and arrived at the Kirkfield Lift Lock at 11:15.  At 50 feet, the Kirkfield Lock is the second highest lift lock in the world (the Peterborough Lock that we went through a few days ago with a 65’ elevation is the highest).  The Kirkfield Lift Lock is the highest elevation in the Trent-Severn Waterway, from this point on until we are out of the TSW, we will be descending in each lock.  

Our entry into the lock was delayed because Avanti, a very large steel sailboat from Denmark, was stuck in the lock.  We were told Avanti draws 6.5’ and is too deep drafted to go through the Trent-Severn canals and has gotten stuck several times.  Today, even though more water was added in the Kirkfield Lock, their keel still got caught on the lock gate.  The lockmasters tried rocking the boat back and forth to dislodge the keel and after nearly an hour, a work boat crew was required to come and pull them off with a winch. 

We also learned there are restrictions that any boat entering the TSW with a deeper keel than 5.5’ must  sign a waiver relieving Parks Canada of any responsibility for boat damage, etc. caused because the canals are not deep enough to accommodate a boat with deeper keels.

We entered the lock at 12:00 noon and after tying up, started the 50’ descent.  We were the first boats into the lock and on the edge looking out over the tree tops. It was eerie. It only took about 5 minutes and when we arrived at the bottom, Avanti was off to the side unable to move on because the narrow canal is too shallow for them. 

In addition to the shallow depth, years of logging in this area have left  what are called “dead heads” – logs and trees that are burrowed into the silty bottom, but can sometimes work loose and pop up – especially if fast boats fail to honor the 6 mph speed limit and kick up waves which loosen them.  Dead heads can cause much damage for boats in the wake of fast boats because they float up suddenly and are nearly always unavoidable.  We were strongly advised to proceed with caution in these shallow, extremely narrow rocky canals.

At the end we passed through the 1905 Arch which brings us out of the canal, but we were warned that the arch area is also hazardous  because “dead heads” accumulate around the edges as well as inside.  It really is a pretty place and “Attitude Adjustment” – Jay and Debbie’s boat, as well as ours, came through just fine.

We locked through a few more locks and arrived at Portage Lock around 3:00 PM and tied up on the upper west lock wall, along with Silk Purse, a smaller boat on the east side.  Locking through were our friends on Quest and Marc’s Ark.  We invited everyone to our side where we had a shady picnic area.  Everyone brought hors d’ oeurves to share and we had a lot of fun.  Striper and Pirate, Debbie and Jay’s shitzu  ran around and played for over an hour and were so funny to watch.  Our group broke up at sundown and we enjoyed a good night’s sleep in the cooler temperatures.  I even wore my socks to bed for the first time since we left New York.

Loopers gathering at Portage Lock

The Leonard's dog, Pirate, and Striper romp and play

Trent Canal, very shallow and narrow

The Kirkfield Lift Lock

At the top of the Kirkfield Lift Lock going down

The Danish sailboat that got stuck in the gate of the Kirkfield Lock

Now the sailboat is stuck in the mud

The 1905 Arch at the end of the Trent Canal

The narrow shallow and filled with deadheads Trent Canal