Continuing up the Rideau and on to Montreal. August 11 to September 1, 2019

On Sunday August 11 we went through 2 locks

and took a lock wall space with power just above Chaffey’s lock.  A really nice spot.  

Here are some bluegills who liked bits of blueberries Julie dropped in off the swim platform.

I had made a reservation at the storied Opinicon Inn for our 41^st anniversary dinner.  But first we set out to take the walking tour of the Chaffeys lock attractions.  

We visited the old mill which is now an art gallery and the helpful clerk there suggested the old railway trail.  So we set out on it over the old iron railway bridge and on toward some other local sites.  

We took an offshoot of the trail to what we thought would be an overlook of the canal.  Julie was ahead of me on the single file trail.  Unfortunately she tripped on a root, her natural reflex to run to try to regain her balance kicked in, but she tripped on a second root and took a severe fall hitting her left shoulder first, rolling to her right hand and then face planting on the clay, rock and root littered trail.  Instant bloody nose and Julie immediately says she thinks it is broken, not sure of her lip and teeth.  She got up and we started walking the approximately 1.5 miles back to the boat.  Of course, she was quite bloodied and used her hand to control the bleeding as best she could.  As we passed others on the trail, some were concerned offering tissues and such, while others just looked the other way.  We got back to the boat so Julie could clean up the wounds a bit, changed her bloodied and soiled shirt and we headed out to seek medical assistance.  The lockmaster was going to loan us his personal car to drive to Smith Falls, the closest hospital, when he noticed a gentleman he knew named Mark.  Mark is a retired general practitioner from Ottawa who frequently cruises the Rideau.  He graciously offered to take a look at Julie’s injuries.  His first impression was a broken nose and he explained we would need to get to a doctor/hospital within 48 hours…not in need of emergency action but definitely need to get help soon.  He continued to investigate and found no damage to teeth or inner lips, just a lot of skin abrasion to the lip and chin area.  Knowing that if the nose was broken and touching would be extremely painful, he asked Julie to touch her nose, then to wiggle it a bit.  She was describing the sensations she was feeling as she did this and said she was not hearing any clicking or feeling any extreme pain.  So, he asked if he could touch it.  He did and then changed his diagnosis; the nose is not broken!  Mark told Julie she would be very stiff the next few days, she would get black and blue around her nose and eyes, the skin abrasions would take quite some time to heal and she should take Tylenol for pain.  He also made sure Tom would be around, not leaving Julie alone for at least 24 hours.  So, we avoided a trip to the hospital and thanked Dr. Mark for his help.  We went back to the boat and Julie took some well deserved rest time.  She is one tough cookie, it hurts just to look at her and the returning vision of her “face plant” comes back to mind. And this whole episode is yet another example of all the kind and generous people we have met during our four years of cruising.  Mark even stopped over at the boat in the evening to check on how Julie was doing.

The next day on our 40th wedding anniversary day, Julie felt well enough to move on to the next lock, Newboro.  We took a little walk before leaving the Chaffey lock area.  So this is our official 40th anniversary photo in front of the Inn...fortunately the kind woman who snapped the photo was not avoiding us!

At least Julie is not too black and blue yet.  Here is a working phone booth....yes they still have many of them up here in Canada!

 Some tight spots along the way!

We were able to get a nice lock wall spot below the lock overlooking Newboro Lake

and thus did not have to handle lines and such going through a lock today.  There were a couple of fishing resorts nearby so we were able to watch a lot of fishing boats and pontoon boats moving about.  Fortunately Sum Escape is heavy and wakes from all this passing boat traffic was no issue for us.  Many of the smaller boats there rocked pretty viciously a few times so we were very fortunate to have the heavy boat here. 

Another small world story.  We called our friend Ralph (Mazel Tug) to catch up a bit.  We found out that he and Linda had spent many weeks in Newboro over the years on family fishing/cottaging get aways.  He named all the resorts we could see from the lock and also that Westport was great for shopping, confirming our next stop would be a good one too re-provision a bit. 

On Tuesday we headed to the marina at Westport where we had called for a reservation a few days ago.  When we arrived, the assigned slip was not open but there was a city dock to tie off to for a half hour or so while the other boat got underway.  We had the slip all the way back against the pedestrian bridge and it was a bit tight for us to turn around and “parallel park” against the wall.  But with little wind, twin engines, a bow thruster and a couple dock hands it was no problem, albeit a little tight. Another foot forward and our anchor would be overhanging the swim platform of the Sea Ray ahead of us and three feet back and we would be hitting the bridge.  As we said, thankfully little wind!  Westport was a cute little town with everything we needed.  We walked about 1.5 miles to the laundromat to get caught up on a little laundry and went to the wonderful grocery store. I also spent some time getting the dinghy trim motor repair planned.  I had found an image of the part on the internet so I could look at our engine and start planning the disassembly and part installation.  First stop was the hardware store for some penetrating oil as the four allen screw bolts appeared to be well corroded from 13 years of boating.  Then I needed to find a scrap piece of wood to prop up the outboard just in case when I pulled the part it might lose hydraulic pressure. After letting the penetrating oil do its thing for a while, I broke the first of four bolts loose.  And slowly but surely I got all 4 loosened!  I traced the wiring up through the engine cowling and got my repair plan set in my mind.  Now just need the part.

On Wednesday we headed to Green Bay on Big Rideau Lake.  Julie is starting to heal a bit but we are still not making friends very easily...

Along the way, the starboard engine was not holding RPM, jumping around about 100 RPMs either side of the setting of the throttle.  This is the second time this has occurred and indicates a faulty throttle sensor or a wiring problem in the electronic controls for this engine.  I called Toromont CAT and ordered a throttle sensor unit and we agreed that they would contact us once it was in and find us along the way to install it.  The Green Bay anchorage was just around the corner from the marina where our trim pump motor for the dinghy outboard was supposed to be delivered sometime today.  Around 3 PM we got a call that the part was in so we told them we would pull anchor and head over to get the part and a pump out.  Upon arrival, the fuel/pump out dock was full of boats “loitering” after fueling or whatever.  It took a few minutes to clear and then we sort of plowed through the mud to get there.  Of course, they said it was plenty deep for our 4 foot draft.  I can tell when I am in very shallow water by the subdued response time turning with the twin screws.  Anyways, we got the $600 part, the pump out and then plowed our way back out in reverse and went back to Green Bay.  Once settled again, I set out to install the part.  The toughest part was fishing the wiring back through the engine cowling but the string I tied to the old one as I pulled out the wiring helped immensely.  After about two hours and only one minor cut on my hand, the part was installed and working!  Hooray, we have our “family car” back in service!

On Thursday I decided to take a look at the strainers as I was a bit concerned with all the mud we plowed yesterday.  Yes, they needed cleaning so while I was doing that I also changed out all the pads under the port engine as they were pretty messy from the coolant the technician had spilled when changing out the water pump last week.  I sopped up about two cups of coolant and changed all the pads.  I have to say, two cups of coolant spilled was a really clean job considering that there were 12 gallons to drain before changing the pump.  Later, we pulled anchor as I removed masses of weeds and Julie was drinking coffee and watching TV on the display!  Teamwork.

and went two miles to Colonel By Island, a very popular spot out in the islands in Big Rideau Lake.  They have mooring balls and docks without power.  Given no power, we would rather enjoy the scenery on a mooring can versus a number of boats on a dock, so we took one.  Julie did her normal excellent job maneuvering the stern of the boat to the mooring can 

so I could loop lines through it as there was no painter line on these moorings, then she continued maneuvering to move the can to the bow as I walked the lines along the side of the boat and secured them on the bow.  What a great spot, crystal clear water, a nice 2 mile hiking trail around the island, 

loons and ospreys and even a little “coming and going” of fellow cruisers to watch.  We did the trail two days and also both did some maintenance on the boat.  One of my favorite repair areas...adjusting the pressure switch on the vacuflush toilet system.  Yes, that is an 18" square entrance and in the bow of the boat.

We also found a little time to float on our water chairs in this crystal clear water.  Nice!

On Saturday we took the dinghy to Portland to walk a bit, mail some cards and get a few vegetables.  We found yet another phone booth

and a nice little park with flowers just for hummingbirds and bees.

Oh, and the grocery store had Kawartha ice cream, it might be my last chance so I had to have a Moose Tracks. We got back to the boat just as it was starting to rain (hard!) so we dodged that bullet.

Sunday we departed for Smith's Falls.  A cloudy and misty day along the way.  After arrival we took a walk and toured the visitor center museum which had a good presentation of the building of the Rideau.  

We also toured the Canadian Pacific Railroad Museum.  

They had one of the "Dentist Cars" that were used until the 1970's to provide dental services to small communities.  Quite an interesting concept.  Some of the dentists and their families actually lived on these train cars for years at a time.  The cars would be placed in a community on a side rail and the community would be able to visit the car for dental services before the car moved on to another community.  

It was a really cool old train station that was preserved too.  We stayed on the lock wall along the town's park and a Christian band performed in the park in the evening as well.  A nice stop.

Monday, August 19 we went to Merrickville.  Upon arrival around noon we were able to snag the last dock space with power.  In fact, shortly after we tied up, boats coming up in the locks were looking for space and could only find wall space with no power.  We hooked up power to two 30 amp circuits to use our "smart wye" adaptor to provide the 240 volts that our air conditioners and water heater need, but no luck.  Each circuit was live, but they must be on the same 'leg" of the 120 volt power so unable to combine them into 240 volt power.  But we were in luck again, an electrician was at the lock and confirmed that was in fact the issue.  A quick swap of legs in the circuits at the electric box by the electrician and we had power!  How lucky were we that the electrician was there!  And given it was 86 degrees, the air conditioning was welcomed!  We took a nice walk around the community, visiting the museum blockhouse and of course trying some locally made ice cream...all were very good. And we enjoyed a beautiful sunset.

Tuesday morning we moved to the blue line which was a quarter mile away from our dockage in “The Pond”, the dock area for the lock.  We ran into Jeff and Deidra (French Toast) who were going the other way after turning around in Ottawa.  Check out the 1929 New York Commuter boat that was leaving the lock.  I spoke to the captain and he said this boat has been owned by the same family since it was new in 1929!  A beautiful 65 foot vessel, fully restored. 

We continued on to our reservation at the Hurst Marina where we intended to get a pump out, water, do laundry and catch up on wi-fi needs.  When I called them they said they had a pump out…but when we got there it was out of order.  Again, we will have to find an alternative.  One was to back track about 10 or 15 miles to Pirate Cove Marina but our friends Randy and Sherri (Priorities) had a bad shallow water, damaged props experience there last year, so we avoided that.  Dow Lake Marina just short of Ottawa will be the target for this service.  Also, the wi-fi was very slow so we did not accomplish what we wanted to there.  Did get some laundry done so all was not lost.

Next planned stop was below lock 9 which puts us at the level of Ottawa where we will meet our son Jordan on Friday August 23.  We travelled through 7 locks to arrive here.  Once we arrived, I called Toromont CAT and the technician said that this location would be a good one to meet.  He  was there in about 90 minutes, installed the throttle sensor and all seems well again.  

We took a nice walk through the park over to Dow’s Lake through the arboretum along the canal. 

A very nice,, albeit hot walk.  The marina looks tight to get into for the pump out tomorrow but should be doable. 

Thursday morning, we left the lock wall to be at the marina at opening time.  We got there about 10 minutes early so started to fill the water tanks while we waited.  The dock attendant was there promptly and did the pump out while we finished filling the water tanks.  When finished, it was found to be quite shallow again backing out of the fuel dock area.  In fact we were hung up in the mud enough when combined with the wind, that it was almost impossible to swing the stern away from the dock which was our only exit!  After some maneuvering and picking up a rope or some plastic or something on the port prop we were able to get underway.  Hopefully whatever we are hearing on the prop will clear with some reverse/forward/reverse cycling.  We’ll worry about this once we get out of the Ottawa step locks on Sunday.

We were able to secure a spot right by the Ottawa Senate Building right downtown Ottawa!  A great spot with power available.  

But again, the two closest outlets would not play well together for our smart wye (which combines two 120 volt outlets to make the required 240 volts for our boat).  The outlet used by the boat behind us would work.  So, we talked to Rocky who we had met a few locks back and he agreed to swap spots with us as the one outlet would work fine for him.  Again, the friendly nature of our fellow boaters shines through!

We scoped out the city a bit in anticipation of Jordan joining us on Friday through Monday.  Jordan arrived on Friday, albeit 6 hours late due airline issues.  We checked out the Byward Market area and had a nice seafood dinner there with him.  Also watched the history of Canada light show projected on the Parliament Buidling at night.

On Saturday morning we watched the Changing of the Guard ceremony on Parliament Hill lawn.  This was the last performance for the season!  I guess it is truly time that we start heading south for the change of season!  

We also visited the Natural History museum, 

walked around the lobby of the Fairmont Hotel and watched an awesome fireworks show (also the last of the season) from the park in the evening.  It is so nice having Jordan join us!

On Sunday, Jordan helped us negotiate the eight step locks down to the Ottawa River level. This completes our travels through the Rideau.

It was nice having him aboard to see what we do to get through locks, but more importantly to spend additional time with him.  He also was able to step off the boat and take some great photos for us.  

 Leaving the last step lock.

We proceeded only a mile to our marina for the next two days, the Hull Marina in Gatineau Quebec, just across the river.  In the afternoon we visited the Military Museum.  It was an impressive facility and we could have spent more time there but wanted to see other sites as well.

On Monday, we walked across the bridge back to Ottawa. We also walked back and forth a couple times and put in 19,000 steps this day!

The step locks in the distance.

and visited the Bytown Museum, the Parliament Building 

and the Senate Building before Jordan had to catch his flight home.  After he left, we also visited the House of Commons.  We should note that the Senate and House of Commons are both in “temporary’ facilities due to extensive maintenance and renovation of the Parliament building where they would normally be housed.  And we learned that “temporary: is about 10 years as they are actually removing the bricks in the Parliament building one at a time to clean and re mortar each of them, in addition to gutting the inside of the building to re wire and re plumb the entire building!

On Tuesday we left early to go to Montebello, a Fairmont resort property and marina on the Ottawa River about 40 miles downstream.  

Along the way we “tested” for the noises we had heard trying to pull out of the fuel dock at Dow Lake.  All seems OK so whatever we might have picked up seems to be gone now.   

Montebello is a three story log structure built in the heyday of the railroad.  It is quite a property but seemed underused, although this could be due to how late in the season we were here.  We walked the facility, spent the afternoon at the pool but passed on the dinner buffet offered.

On Wednesday we left in the rain for the lock wall at Saint Anne de Bellevue lock.  Along the way we had to negotiate the Carrilon Lock, a 65 foot drop.  When we arrived there in the rain,  they were performing lock door maintenance and we encountered a 3 hour delay.  However, given this is a guillotine door, we were glad it was tested and ready to properly operate!

The St. Anne lock wall was reported to be a very busy place but we only found a couple other boats there, likely because of the weather as well as how late in the season we are.  In fact, this photo of fallen maple leaves on Sum Escape proves our need to keep moving South! 

We took a walk around the community after conferring with yet another very friendly and knowledgeable lockmaster.  He also made a number of recommendations for Montreal and beyond.  It is also interesting to note that the preferred town side of the lock was still unusable due to the high water this year….the wall was only inches out of the water.  And the guide book reported “high walls” on the other side that made it difficult to exit your boat were just about at the right level. 

On Friday August 30 we departed at 6 AM to make the 9AM scheduled recreational vessel locking at the St Catherine commercial lock along the St. Lawrence Seaway.  

Upon arrival we checked in as required after paying our $25 fee on line, but were told it would be at least 11 AM before we could be locked through.  6 other boats arrived and 5 of them rafted along with us at the staging area.  We did get through at around 11 AM.  We were the first boat at the lock but the last one into the lock.  But that was fine as we rafted off another vessel, so they handled the lock wall lines and truly did all the work.  Tom did use our engines and bow thruster to help keep our two boats from moving forward and aft and also to keep the other boat off the lock wall. 

We proceeded to the next commercial lock, St Lambert and this time did not raft off, we took our time to get to the lock as AIS showed a commercial vessel in the lock.  We hovered in the lee of the channel and were again last into the lock and rafted to another boat.  Same procedure as the last lock. 

Once through the lock we proceeded to the Montreal Yacht Club Marina.  Once we turned out of the Seaway canal we had to turn upstream and everything we had read about the severity of the river current proved accurate.  We had to run about 600 RPMs above our normal operating speed and were still going a full 5-7 MPH less than normal!  That current had to be in excess of 5 or 6 knots!  So, it was a bit tricky entering the marina due to the currents.  Then, as we approached our assigned slip, the wind gusts were around 20 knots….not a fun way to dock especially since they were swirling winds due to the buildings around the marina.  It was a long day going through the commercial locks on the St. Lawrence so we checked in, did some laundry and retired.  We were warmly welcomed here by the marina staff and all dockmates.  Most of them were French speaking (we are n ow in Quebec) and some did English very well while others not so well.  But everyone tried to converse in English for our benefit.  One woman in particular came to talk to us a couple times.  It seems she wants to take their boat to warm Florida for the winter but her husband does not want their boat in salt water!

On Saturday we toured the city by foot after planning our trip to Quebec City for Sunday.  The Notre Dame Cathedral was magnificent!  We thought about attending Mass there in the evening but it was a French language service so we passed.  

We found a great little restaurant and had some freshly prepared food that was very good.  Lots of people in the City for the holiday weekend.  We also took an Uber out to Mount Royal park and checked out all the sights.  

Tom took a walk up to the top of the clock tower for a photo.

And there actually is a beach across from out boat....although it is no swimming as it is just above the marina.

Sunday, we boarded a Gray Line Tour bus at 8 AM for a 12 hour day, 3 hours each way to and from Quebec City with 6 hours to explore the city.  Quebec City is the only fortified city north of Mexico.  It is another UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We are really glad we took this tour as the boat trip there would add a day each way and the way back would be upstream against a pretty strong current.  The tour included a guided walking tour of Old Quebec which was well done. 

We also went to the Montmorency waterfall 

and a drive through the “walled city”.  This building was built in 1534 

We were able to walk around the Fairmont,

the Plains of Abraham Battlefield site where the British staged an invasion, the walled city,

 and generally just enjoyed viewing the architecture.  A very historic city and a great story showing how an area once in disrepair can be revitalized into an international tourist attraction.  Quebec City’s major industry today is tourism.

 Another Notre Dame, the oldest church in Quebec city.

 On the bus ride home going over bridges instead of our normal under the bridge.

Fireworks upon our return to Montreal.

That's all for now.  We are working on this from the public library in Burlington Vermont on Sept 14.  Nice to have a free high speed internet again.  We promise to update more as soon as we can.