Long Island

Friday August 2, 2013 (Three nights)
45 15.007 N
75 42.101 W

We got off to a bad start. We moved the boat over to the “marina” and shoehorned into the “dock”. First problem was that the hose was only about 12’ long (no kidding) and so we needed to move the boat along just so it would reach. Then it turned out that their fittings were so leaky and the vacuum pump was so weak that it could not pull the “product” up over the rail on the boat. The first lock opening was at 9 AM so we abandoned the attempt at about 8:45 and headed for the lock. Of course we had missed our “spot” in the line so would have to wait for the second opening. Then the lock broke down and we had another delay.

Not an uncommon sight

This may be a good point to complain a bit about the Canadian lock system, the main point being that there is no system. At the risk of sounding a bit like the “Ugly Australian-American” the USA locks and lifting bridges are better organized (At least from the boater’s perspective - and we complain about them occasionally).

The first and most obvious issue is that the Canadians do not use VHF. I just cannot imagine why not. In the USA we all listen to the appropriate channel for bridges & locks (usually 13, but it sometimes changes by state). We call the bridge/lockmaster on approach. They will respond and tell us what to expect and what we need to prepare for. Since everyone is listening to the same channel, we all know “the score”.

The Rideau waters are much more restricted, the locks smaller and, this time of the year, busier. They need more coordination but get less. After one lock we were forced to reverse for several hundred yards in a very narrow channel to allow opposing boats to pass. (And I say forced because the other boater was very belligerent and refused to respect the rule “Give way to downstream vessel”). This issue, and many others, could be easily resolved with some radio chat.

Because of budget cuts, the hours of operation have been cut this season which causes lots of extra delay and inconvenience. We found it most frustrating because some of the locks are “triples” and one iteration can take over an hour. Yet the locks were manned with 4 or 6 people. With a few simple innovations they could cut the manning in half and extend the hours.

Enough with the complaining. But it added a lot of stress, and reduced our enjoyment of the trip significantly.

So we were thru the Smiths Falls lock (mile 60.5) by about 10.30 AM (2 ½ hours after starting engines we had progressed maybe ½ a mile.) We then had two locks at mile 59.3, one at 57.6, one at 53.9, and three at 46.0 in Merrickville, three more at mile 43 and one more at 40. By now Tide Hiker and crew are tired and it was late (maybe about 4 PM) and we were looking for a place to tie up. No room at the inn! All the spots were taken.

We had ignored a chance to stop in Merrickville where there was plenty of space, and apparently it is a very attractive town, but at that time we were stressed that it was already afternoon and we had only made about 14 miles. Big mistake.

Next docking facility was at Long Island, at Mile 15 – 25 statute miles away. This was a long stretch of flooded river valley that we would have loved to cruise on a different day. But now it was going to be 3 long hours and a race to make it by sunset. On the way we passed a marina offering pump-out so we stopped – they charged us $25! We made it in time and there was space in front of the lock on the "blue line".

At least the engine had had a decent run and the batteries were at 100%. However Deidre and Bob’s batteries were dangerously low. 

Saturday August 3, 2013

We needed to be up early to move the boat from the “blue line” (waiting for the lock) to the “gray line” (taking a break) docks. We are now only 15 miles from Downtown Ottawa, further evidenced by the 16 TV channels we can select from. (Of course French channels here have taken over from Spanish channels in the USA.)

It is a long weekend hereabouts, and the end of the Quebec Navy two week vacation. There is a constant stream of boats passing us into the locks, going north. We have lots to do to prepare the boat for visitors, but really no services here. (Fresh water is becoming an issue. The water supply at the locks has been declared off limits because of some health concerns.) We will probably stay here a couple of days but we need to move elsewhere for water and shopping.

This afternoon we rode our bikes into Manotick town center.

Sunday August 4, 2013

We received a notice on the iPad this morning that internet service was ‘suspended” because of “excessive international use”. I called the phone number provided but after about 10 minutes of “hold” the lady said she could not help us. So after completing a few jobs I headed back to the coffee shop on a bike to see if I could sort it out on line. I discovered that according to AT&T we had built up $1,050 of roaming charges on the iPad. Ha, these people are such rouges. I called them again and this time the customer service person could sort it out for me. Back to the boat and “back to work”.

It’s really windy and stormy today so we have decided not to go thru the lock, but wait for the morning when the forecast is better.  We just moved up to the Blue line so we can tale the firsy opening in the morning.

The lockmaster popped in to check our mooring pass. The pass cost about $400! So, counting tonight, this will be just our forth night using the pass, so the average cost per night so far is $100. It will need to get down to about $20 before I feel it was a decent value.

The boat is starting to look more presentable. As of 5 PM I have crossed off 13 jobs