Aug 31, Young's Point, ON

Our move was six miles north today, on Katchewanooka Lake, to the Lock #27 at Young’s Point. We are getting into the lake region known as the “Kawartha’s” which is a really pretty region. Less than an hour underway today.




We are docked on the lock wall just south of the lock where we are in a park with several other boats that plan to spend the night. Our mooring is covered by the Canadian season pass. There is no power or internet but the setting is pretty and is nice enough that we do not mind not having all the amenities.

KOKOMO II in the rear left on the lock wall for overnight. Dockage is covered by our season pass.

There are lots and lots of boats going through the lock all day, kids swimming and people fishing and picnicking all around.

This is our first busy lock.

There are several places of interest he at Young’s Point. There is a Linwood Cedar Model Home open for inspection. This is their Canadian headquarters and they have sold and built many homes in the region and sell homes in the US including 5-10 a year in North Carolina. Hmmmm.

Linwood Model Home

Carvings for sale

NANA's candy store. Sounds like somebody's grandma.

There is also a large country store right next to the lock called the Lockside Trading company. It has furniture and accessories used to decorate a cabin. Makes us want to think about a summer place someday. Lockside has a good band playing outside on Sunday’s and a crowd of 50 or so people come and go from the garden patio all afternoon.

Good Sunday band.

Great place to come and have some ice cream and watch the boats go through the lock. Sometimes only one or two boats, sometimes 8-10 boats at a time and sometimes 20 or more. From what we see today, the Kawartha’s is a very active boating area.

Linda with our lockmaster

We were able to meet and talk to the lock personnel here. This is the first lock here we have stopped to stay overnight on the Trent-Severn and we will plan to do it more often. The facilities are nice and the personnel are very friendly and helpful. Weather is clear, sunny and not too humid. Very nice day!

Aug 29-30, Lakefield, ON

Today we are heading from Peterborough to Lakefield, a distance of only ten miles, but we are transiting nine locks including the Peterborough Lift Lock, which is the tallest lift lock in the world. We are raised up 65 feet very quickly (like in an elevator).

Peterborough Lift Lock

We visited the Visitor Center at the base of the lock and found some interesting facts. This is the largest lift lock in the world. It was designed by a Canadian engineer, Richard Rogers, in the 1890's, and constructed by Canadians beginning in 1896 and opened in 1904. The structure is made of unreinforced concrete.

Peterborough Lift Lock Visitor Center

KOKOMO II waiting to go through

The Lift Lock consists of two water filled chambers (think bathtubs), each weighing 1300 tons, 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 chambers have large gates at both ends. As we approach the lift lock at the lower level, a gate opens in the lower chamber allowing us to enter. After we have entered and tied up 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 opened to connect the hydraulic rams together and the heavier upper chamber decends forcing the lower chamber up to the upper level.

Entering the Peterborough Lift Lock with the gate down.

What about the weight of the boats? As we enter, the weight of our boat displaces an amount of water that weighs the same as our boat, so the total weight in the bathtub is the same as before we entered. Those engineers are clever!

We're being lifted!

At the top looking behind us. At this point we are 65 feet higher than the waterway below.

At the top looking forward.

Peterborough Lift Lock as we motor toward Lakefield.

We arrive in Lakefield and stay at the Lakefield Marina right downtown. This is a charming little place with several restaurants, great meat market, great produce market, several book stores, shops, hardware, IGA grocery and many very pretty homes. We rate this a great stop!

Lakefield Marina

Lakefield stone church

Flowers are everywhere. Quite a variety of sunflowers. Supposed to be more species of sunflowers than orchids. Hard to believe but here are a dozen different sunflowers.

Lakefield downtown. There is one stoplight in town.

Pretty homes in Lakefield.

Serving English Tea here

Lots of restaurants

Graveyard with dates in the 1800's on these headstones. Church is open as a museum and has twelve short pews facing the pulpit with this pretty window behind.

Front of the Anglican Church dated 1853.

We liked this town and are having beautiful weather so we stayed an extra day.

Aug 23-28, Peterborough, ON

We are heading from Hastings to Peterborough this morning, proceeding at a slow cruising speed of 8.5 knots (about 10 mph) so we can enjoy the scenery (and we get good fuel efficiency at slow speed).

Rice Lake

Boat house

Entrance to the Otonabee River

Approaching the lock at Peterborough

The trip is about 40 miles and takes us the first twenty miles through Rice Lake, which is about a mile wide and has beautiful hills all around, and then the last fifteen miles through the Otonabee River which reminds us of the rural intercoastal waterways in Georgia with a dug canal look and marshy areas beside the canal. There is one lock just before we arrive in Peterborough but the lift is only about 6-8 feet.

Exiting the lock at the higher level.

Note lock tender personnel hand cranking lock open (red and white shirt on left and white shirt on right. (Click on any picture to enlarge)

We arrived in Peterborough about 2 PM and are greated by a 100 foot high water fountain spray in the middle of the lake as we enter the town. The Peterborough Marina is right downtown and we seem to be in walking distance of most things in town. We have internet access and 50 amp power. Looks good. It is a scorcher this afternoon now that we are not cruising on the water. Temperature feels like it is the low 90's.

The 100 foot water fountain at Little Lake

Peterborough Marina

Outdoor bandshell with a few early birds

The town of Peterborough holds an evening free concert at the marina Wednesdays and Saturdays throughout the summer followed by their famous "Peterborough Summer Festival of Lights". Tonight is Saturday and the last show of their season. They said at the marina office that they expect 8,000 people here tonight.

Baloon man performs for the children

The concert headliner is a rock and roll band from England called "Sweet". The "Festival of Lights" is a nice 10 minute fireworks show to conclude the evening. The concert was well attended and the crowd loved the show. Their were a few vendors including food and soft drinks but no beer. Very mixed crowd, young and old, and well behaved. Park was spotless in the morning.

Bandshell at dusk with the large crowd in lawn chairs

Peterborough is a medium sized town and downtown within walking distance of the marina.

Furniture store has a LARGE chair out front and sells Mennonite made wooden furniture.

Downtown Peterborough

Summer is short but flowers are everywhere

Ontario government building

Walked to the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough which showcases the "life and lore of the people and waterways before there was a Canada". Very good museum about canoes and canoe building from the time of the early native people though the time of the early explorers and traders to the present. Birchbark and seal skin to wood and fiberglas. Peterborough Canoe factory was one of the biggest and most famous and made beautiful wooden canoes. Museum on the site of the old Canadian Evinrude outboard engine plant in one of their old buildings. Evinrude plant is no longer here.

Canadian Canoe Museum is only 10 years old.

Met a retired school principal (volunteer) who told us stories about some of the exhibits. He made the canoes "come to life".

Linda has an eye exam in Peterborough with an Opthamologist to evaluate the healing of her cornea and as a precaution against another infection outbreak. Dr. McDonald says everything looks good. So we are continuing on our "Loop" adventure tomorrow.

Linda is all smiles after her eye exam

Aug 22, Hastings, ON

On toward Hastings today, a trip of about 20 miles and six more locks.

Some turbulence below the lock as the water is released. We are tied up on the "Blue Line" so the lockmaster knows we are waiting to go through.

Most locks are beside a hydro-electric power plant with rapids below as the water is discharged to make the power.

This is pretty countryside with the rivers and lakes and vacation homes. There are hills surrounding most lakes and the whole area has a summer resort atmosphere.






Two of these locks raised us 27 feet at a time and in one stretch of 3 locks where we were lifted 75 feet in a quarter mile from a lower lake to a higher lake. It was quite an engineering feat to connect all these lakes and rivers into a usable waterway. Many of these locks have celebrated their 100th anniversary since opening.

This is a double lock lifting us 27 feet at a time.

Hastings is a small town with our last lock of the day right in town.


There is a marina and several restaurants, a book store and a "collectibles" store that has a supply of furniture, brick-a-brack and 8 tracks for your music collection. Haven't seen those in a while. Several stores sell fishing supplies and worms and there are many fishermen fishing the spillway of the dam which forms the edge of the lake at the top of the lock. Lots of water is being released over the spillway and it make a pretty sight to see the rushing water churning below the small dam.