Day 38 and 39: Locking through the Kirkfield Lift

 Day 38: August 25: We were getting ready to leave Buckhorn when a lady walked by and told us there was going to be an escorted motorcycle ride with about 100 bikes at around 10:15. The event was sponsored by the Canadian 911 Foundation to recognize fallen first responders; specifically 5 officers who have been killed in the line of duty since 2022. So, not being in a hurry, we decided to stick around to watch it go by! We chose a vantage point a little way from the lock where a mom and son were sitting. We had a nice chat with them while we waited for the procession.

We got UW and headed onto Buckhorn Lake, admiring the expansiveness of this large body of water. One thing we noticed as we passed by the homes is the number of brightly colored Adirondack chairs everywhere. It's really fun to see how beautifully landscaped most places are. There are lots of flowers on docks and water side gardens along with fire-pits and sitting areas. It's certainly a great place for anyone who loves to sit and watch the world go by and folks take full advantage of their surroundings.

I love this picture of what is called Burnt River. The water was so beautiful as the sun tried so hard to shine forth out of the cloud cover which has dominated the sky for days.

We locked through Bobcaygeon (elevation 11.5'), Lindsay (elevation 7') and the beautiful Fenelon Falls (elevation 24'). 

We decided to stop at Lock 35: Rosedale (elevation 4') for the night where there are nice hot showers. We thought we would lock through and grab a spot on the wall on the top side but it was full. The very helpful Lock-tender suggested we go through, turn around and go back through and tie up on the bottom along with one other smaller boat. The people onboard came right over and helped us tie up which has been the common practice whenever the opportunity arises. They are locals who just use their boat like a cottage. They cruise from one lock to another throughout the summer and stay for a few days; camping on water. Nothing beats it.

Nebo log for the day indicates we traveled about 31 miles in just over 5 UW hours. 

Day 39: August 26: We got ready to get UW to make the 9:00 am lock opening when we noticed another boat (Wilma May) heading our way. John waited to let them pass into the lock before we entered. The next thing we knew another boat (Squier About) was heading up-bound also. We saw the AGLCA flags and were excited to see we were going to be accompanied by other loopers. For the first time since we have been traveling we were in a chamber for 2 other large boats, all flying the AGLCA burgee.

We exited the lock and continued across the lake and were surprised to see a 4th boat charging towards us. More loopers on Zendevor; we met them two days ago while we were locking through the Peterborough Lift. They were standing on the observation deck watching the lift in operation as they were preparing to lock through tomorrow; of course we began to chat with us once we locked through and tied up for the night. They are from Alabama. We continued locking with all 4 looper boats through the Kirkfield Lift (elevation 49'), Bolsover (elevation ), Talbot (elevation 14'),  Portage (elevation 13'). 

The Locktenders had a bit of a time getting 4 large boats like ours into a chamber but amazingly they were successful. We had a fun time locking with other loopers, chatting in the chamber and hearing other folks' stories. The couple on Wilma May has been looping since November and were getting close to the finish line in Ohio. Folks on Squier About started their loop about 2 months ago. 

Now a word about the Kirkfield Lift. It is the second highest  hydraulic lock in the world with a lift of 49 feet. It is situated at the highest point along the Waterway at 840.5 feet above sea level. In September 2022 the lock closed due to mechanical issues. Since then it has been undergoing repairs. Until they are finished only a single chamber is operating and it can take a lift about an hour to complete and a descend about 1/2 hour. Since we have been traveling up-bound through the Waterway, once we exited the Kirkfield we began to head downstream so will descend in all of the following locks. This also means it's no longer "red right return". Beware and keep the red on your port. 

Getting to the Kirkfield is quite an experience in itself. The channel leading to it is so narrow that it is highly recommended you call Securite on channel 16 and announce the size of your boat and that you are entering the channel. As an additional measure, the Lock-tender at Rosedale called ahead to let Kirkfield know 4 large boats were on the way and to confirm there were no other large boats heading downstream. I can't imagine how this channel was created. Take a look at the shale along the side of the channel. This all had to be broken through in order to create the channel. As an added bonus, it's very shallow; we saw 5 to 8 feet depths! Your boat will not be happy if you swerve out of the middle of this channel. 

We were informed that the chamber was descending at that time and would be ready for us in about 2 hours (which is about the time we needed at slow speed to get there). One positive was there were no other boats heading our way! As soon as we got to the lock the gates began to open and the 4 of us proceeded to take our place 49 feet up. We were first in on the starboard side. As we approached the edge of the chamber I felt we were in the first car of a roller coaster just about to drop down the first giant hill. Once the huge contraption started, it took us about 1/2 hour to descend and on we went. 

Exiting the area we headed into some bigger water. We turned one corner and the colors of the water and sky were stunning. 

We also spotted a family with a bunch of kids along the edge. They were laughing and yelling for us to honk so one by one the 4 loopers gave them a friendly blast of the horn as we passed by!

We locked through 3 more locks together. At that point the other loopers said they were continuing their journey. We decided to stop and spend the night at Lock 40: Thorah lock. It is pretty much in the middle of nowhere and we were completely alone for the night. John thought he might be able to coax a few perch onboard for dinner! But all they did was nip at his feet and shy away! 😝😝😝

Nebo indicates we traveled 19 miles in 4 hours 15 minutes UW, passing through 5 locks. As a reminder we have to shut the engines off at each lock so the UW hours does not show our actual travel time which was about 6 hours.