CANADA DAY, July 1st, wearing apparel ("This Girl Loves Canada") to celebrate the day while joining in the crowds, the rain, and the evening of fireworks.
As part of the celebration for CANADA DAY Bonnie went in search of a Chip Wagon, found one so that she could have her order of the Canadian national food ... Poutine. Fries with cheese curds and gravy. Amazingly good!!
A sampling of the boats that were along the canal walls above the 8-step locks on the Rideau Canal, all present to celebrate CANADA DAY.
The crowded streets, the mass of people, collecting around Parliament Hill and Rideau Street make the day before the rain hits. The evening was topped off with fireworks illuminating the Fairmont Hotel.
Continuing down the Rideau with our group of boats we came upon an ice cream float salesman. A good summer business on the canal and lakes.
We secured SONATA for the evening after a 34 mile day at Lock 17, Burritt's Rapids. After connecting to power and sitting down to relax we noticed trailers arriving at the farm across the waterway from our location. After a few more minutes the horses and riders were outfitted and we had a polo game, probably a polo practice, right there in the middle of the wilderness on the Rideau Waterway Canal. Surprise, Surprise!
Morning's departure blessed us with a beautiful sunrise and a very light fog on the waterway. We came through the lock and passed the rapids the lock saved us from, all to say goodbye to one of Canada Park Service's best, a young man from Nova Scotia, working in Ontario, Canada; IAN MYATT. His can do attitude is only to be cherished, he is contagious; there is no "no" in his language ... at worst only a "maybe" to a request. He wanted our "vacation" to be the best, nothing but success.
Away from Lock 17 SONATA proceeds to Lock 18 and passes through to the other side; narrow and calm ... then on to the Upper Rideau Lake and Big Rideau Lake, to the Narrows Lock connecting the two lakes. Passage through the lock will be with seven (7) boats stuffed into the lock. No one got excited, even with a houseboat present. A ferry, a cable ferry, passed in front of SONATA on the way to Lock 37, Chaffey's Lock.
When SONATA arrived at Chaffey's Lock there was not enough room on the lock wall ... the boats tied up there were spaced far apart. We asked them to close up, tighten up, so we could fit in. Everyone cooperated so well, Bonnie had 6" of space between her and the lock wall, when SONATA made it alongside. The most cooperative boat was the one in front of SONATA, the one with SONATA's anchor in the rear of their boat. This boat was operated by Pat and Butch Garrow, a RN and a retired funeral director . . . and most of all they both love boating.
Jones Falls was made up of Locks 40, 41, and 42. These locks were right after another so you could start a conversation with someone on the lock wall and continue it from lock to lock. We talked with people from Canada, Maine, Florida, and some that had visited Virginia.
Cross over Jones Falls Bay into Whitefish Lake then Cranberry Lake to "Round-the-Trail" and enter the Upper Brewers Lock area where the channel is so narrow and twisted that a sign advises SONATA to sound its whistle. You know how Charlie loves his horn . . . he is happy to sound his whistle on any occasion.
On down the Rideau to Kingston Locks, four locks, the last ones until Trenton. We went to the Confederation Marina with dockage in front of City Hall.
Early on the 7th of July SONATA set off from Kingston on its way to Trenton. The seas were first heavy, 2-3 feet with the exposure to Lake Ontario. We varied our course and were soon behind the "barrier" islands. Close to Trenton we passed "Bones Yard Island" which is liked by the birds . . . and in the midafternoon we were at Fraser Park, Trenton.
No comments:
Post a Comment