6/19/15 Wye Marina to Severn Falls Marina
Samba took her first train ride today! Toot Toot. More about
that later.
We left Wye Marina around 9:00 and bid a final farewell to
the Georgian Bay as we headed to the beginning of the Trent-Severn Waterway. It was a tight
little (emphasis on little) staging area at
the base of a dam where we had to hold the boat in place until they were ready
for us in the lock.
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| Notice all of the channel markers. |
Our first lock is on the other side of the bridge. We talked to other boaters who missed the markers by a few inches and ended up with bent props. Ughhh.
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| Lock entrance on the left. Dam spillway on the right. |
OF COURSE, our first lock is the smallest in
all of Canada.
About 5’ on each side of Samba and maybe 15’ in front and back. Needless to
say, it was like threading a needle to get Samba into the lock and secured for
the ride to the top. We did it though - woo hoo!
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| The begninning of the Trent-Severn Canal system |
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A little tight. The ball
fenders came in real handy |
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An attendant checking us out
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| The doors closing behind us |
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The attendants waiting on the water to fill
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| Manually closing the gates |
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Jim's on the front and Carol's on the back
holding Samba on the wall as the water
rushes in. |
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| Almost there |
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| The gates opening |
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| And we're off! |
We had heard many stories about how nice the Trent-Severn
waterway is and we agree. Lots of hills, trees, beautiful homes and cliffs.
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| A little close for comfort! |
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| Oh Oh |
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| We try to not scrape the sides! |
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Note how convoluted the red line is,
not the straight one. |
Next was Samba’s railroad trip.
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| The hill we have to climb |
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| Bringing another boat over the top |
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| Now it's our turn |
With guidance from the attendants, we guided Samba into
place in the slings which only keep the boat stable as she rests on the flat
bed rail car.
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| Raising out of the water |
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Checking the bottom of the boat
before starting up the hill |
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| Up we go! |
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| The view behind us. Nosebleed time. |
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| Getting ready to cross the road |
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| Back in the water. Getting a gentle push off. |
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| The rail car heading back to the other side for it's next load. |
It truly was a feat of engineering and the only lock like it
in the world.
We decided to slow down and relax after our
first 2 locks so we tied up at Severn Falls, just a few miles on down the waterway. As it turns out, there are no
falls, no town, and not much of anything but a little restaurant and grocery. A great feat of marketing. Oh well, it’s all part of the great adventure.
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| Severn Falls |
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| The view from the back at Severn Falls |
