July 11, 2010 Orillia, Ontario

July 11, 2010 Lake Simcoe, Ontario

Marc- It has been a few days without a log entry. The Lucy III remains in Hastings awaiting its new engine while its crew has been traveling on Windsong toward Port Severn. The engine from Moyer Marine has arrived in Clayton. It was delivered to the wrong marina, French Creek rather than French Bay. The French Bay mechanic went over to French Creek, put it in his pickup truck and then drove home without telling anyone. The engine mystery ended when he came to work with it the next day. We plan on going to pick up the engine Monday and bring it to Hastings for installation.

Sara- Talking to my Mom about Alzheimer's, I swatted at a fly and simultaneously swatted Jonathan Safran Foer's brilliantly compelling and disillusioning Eating Animals into the lake. Shocked to speechlessness, I watched as my book floated away, the boat motoring slowly and unflinchingly onward. “What? What is it,” Jay demanded of my horror-stricken gasp. “It's ok, It's ok. Just a book. Not a person,” my mom replied placatingly. Just a book? My colossal, charismatic despair seemed to indicate otherwise. There are other copies of that book, I attempted to reassure myself, but in vain (that was my book, with my annotations and squiggles and stars to mark especially important parts). “Oh, I knew it wasn't a person,” Jay boomed, “but we can go back. Don't worry.” Eyes wide with mad joy, I reached for my book, grass green cover approaching with painstaking torpor as Jay reversed the engines. “Now don't you jump in!” my mom called, passing me a hook that I promptly and eagerly used to retrieve my book. And it was in my arms again! All blubbering nerves, I plopped my regained treasure on a table where a much more sane Joan flipped through the pages, concluding, to my ecstatic exultation, that the pages were, excepting the index, mostly dry. After much paper-toweling and flipping and jumping and ear-to-ear grinning, the book's totally fine. (And even my pen, which I'd left in the book, was still there.)

So now that we've established that I'm crazy, perhaps we should return to July 4th when we stopped in Paradise. It was lock #6 and two great weeping willows whisped tenderly around in the warm breeze. We had power, a rarity in these locks, but I didn't touch my computer, not even to check Facebook. Instead I sat in the shade of the willow nearest our boat (which we'd nicknamed “Whomping Willow” after J.K. Rowling's imaginative, and occasionally extremely destructive, creation) and basked in the lovely atmosphere as I read On the Road, a book which, had it plopped into the water, I would probably have jumped right in after. Had it fallen by that lock, it wouldn't even have been such an insane move as the water there, though tinted green and weedy, was the purest I've experienced since Lake Champlain. Swimming in it, especially after having gone running with my dad, was a heavenly relief, a watery catharsis.

Marc- We seen some very interesting islands in the Kawartha lakes region. One island was home to a distinctive church. The area is also home to an assortment of summer camps. We've also seen many Blue Heron's on this trip.

Marc- The trip to to Port Severn aboard Windsong was significant for the several sections of standing rapids we passed increasing our boat speed by 2 to 3 knots each time. The "rough" water had more to do with a rapid change in depth than speed of the current. The Lockmasters all indicated that the hydro dams were releasing lots of water due to recent heavy rainfall. The Kirkfield Lift Lock as well as the Big Chute Railway demonstrated some very interesting engineering to bypass significant changes in elevation. At Balsam Lake we traversed the highest navigable waterway in the world at 256. 3 meters above sea level (the highest waterway connected to the sea). We all had to jump in for a swim here. The water was a very pleasant 85 degrees and crystal clear.

July 8,2010 Lakefield, Ontario

Marc- The Lucy III is still docked at the Hastings Village Marina awaiting a rebuilt engine from Moyer Marine. We were told that it was shipped out today and should arrive Friday. I am expecting that it arrives on Monday. We are currently aboard Windsong in Lakefield, Ontario after doing seven locks from Peterborough. Locking through the Peterborough Lift Lock was most exciting, We entered a huge tank and tied the boat to the side. We were next lifted vertically about 70 feet. The view over the side of the tank was most impressive. Sue had camera in hand to show how the lift lock works. Sue was invited to tour the engineering spaces as well as the control room. See Jay and Joan's blog for some excellent photos and descriptions: http://www.svwindsong.blogspot.com/

We do encounter some large craft in these waterways. The Kawartha Voyager is the largest at 120 feet long and 22 feet wide.

This was another super hot day of 100 degree high humidity weather. We passed by many kids swimming in the river, some swinging out from the trees, and yet others jumping from bridges. The local people have been friendly and helpful in providing suggestions for tonight's stop. The swimming here is excellent with the water temperature is 85 degrees. We are expecting a cold front to cool us off overnight.

July 7, 2010 Hastings, Ontario

Sara- The engine died, utterly and finally after 30 something years of rebounding from the grave, coaxed back to this world by my dad who knew it was gone the moment he heard the first shuddering crack! yesterday afternoon. Lucky for us, we’re traveling with the most wonderful people, our friends Jay and Joan who have offered us a spot on their fantastically spacious, air-conditioned, dog-inhabited (Molly, Marley, and Rosie are the sweetest, funniest chocolate labs) catamaran. They have at least two bathrooms so, though it may be a tad claustrophobic, we’ll survive quite nicely.
The mechanic came this morning to confirm what my dad already knew and now he’s gone and we’re packing. I’m packed and just sent Steph over to do the same. I’m not exactly sure how she’ll manage to cram her entire, extremely fashionable and voluble wardrobe back into her suitcase and onto Jay and Joan’s boat, but I’m sure (with plenty of help from my dad) she’ll manage it.
My mom bought the coolest, bluest bucket hat the other day; it’s huge with a wide, floppy brim. I wore it while playing UNO with my sister yesterday afternoon when the heat was driving us mad and am thoroughly convinced of its lucky, if not magical, powers.
I think Jack Kerouac’s On the Road is keeping me sane through all this craziness. It is a crazy book though, but in the best way, of course. This morning Mom, Steph, and I walked over to a 50s style coffee shop where we consumed bagels and hot chocolate while Steph, and then I read the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows aloud. It’s an absolutely brilliant book. We’ve been listening to all the Harry Potters on CD read by the amazing Jim Dale in the car and on the boat and all I can think is Wow... JK Rowling’s a genius!

















Marc- What a change in plans and now, thanks to the extremely nice Gehrig family, we are aboard the catamaran Windsong while our engine is being replaced. This is extremely good fortune for us since Windsong had two empty cabins and air conditioning during a very hot and humid week.

July, 5, 2010 Healey Falls, Ontario

July, 5, 2010 Healey Falls, Ontario

Marc- The trip up from Frankford on the Trent was hot. Summer has arrived to this region. We did have a nice dock space near two large Willow trees in a park like setting. The town was tiny and did not have a great deal to offer. We were treated well by the lady at the local Subway shop. Sara and I went for a jog and then a swim with Stephanie. Dinner was enjoyed on board Windsong with even a vegetarian option. From Frankford to Campbellford was mostly motoring in weedy canals with some stretches of clear river. There were several locks to negotiate as well. Some of these locks were rather modern metal hydralic structures while others were clearly working well using 19th century technology and wooden gates.

The morning treat was swimming at the Blue Hole. We rafted up to Windsong that was already anchored in the Hole. The swimming was excellent and enjoyed by all. Our afternoon stop was at Campbellford. This town had a nice park and a giant $ 2 Canadian coin, a Toonie, in it. The ice cream was good and we were able to fuel up the Lucy III at MacMillan's Wharf. An afternoon shower helped cool up off before climbing several more locks to the basin at Healey Falls.
The basin was a wonderful spot for swimming, dinner at a picnic table, and even a marshmallow roast. Sue cooked us a great dinner of pasta, salad, fresh vegetables.

July 3, 2010 Toronto, Ontario

July 4, 2010 Frankford, Ontario

Sue- So I showed up yesterday, a week into the trip. Marc made arrangements for me to fly to Toronto. It was a great flight on a little American Eagle plane, it took only 1-1/2 hours, there were no clouds. I saw the Boston Harbor Islands sitting in clean water so that they looked like they were growing out of the water. I could see their rock and sand bases. Then I saw so many pretty parcels of land, as you do from a plane, though I had no idea where we were until the flight attendant pointed out Niagara Falls to me. That was very cool. Then we flew around Lake Ontario and into Toronto.
Marc and the girls were there when I cleared customs and we had a nice reunion. They had called me seventeen times a day each day since they'd left, and it was reassuring to know they were safe. We were amazed by Toronto! It is huge, clean, there were swarms of people walking everywhere. There are no cars parked on the sides of the roads, but there are parking garages underground and at ground level everywhere. There is a tremendous amount of building going on. There appear to be a lot of apartment buildings all around the city, and as we drove out of the city we saw fairly tall apartment buildings for MILES. I have never seen so many apartment buildings. We must have been 15 or 20 miles out of the downtown area before we saw a single family home. The downtown is huge and right in the middle of it is parkland and the stately University of Toronto campus. We also walked through the Fairmont Hotel (The Royal York Hotel) where Marc's Uncle Clement worked in his youth. The population was very international and we had dinner at a waterfront Chinese restaurant. The Tall ships were docked right out front. Marc drove us back to Trenton to CFB (Canadian Forces Base Yacht Club).

Today at Trenton, we entered the Trent-Severn Waterway, saw a Swan couple and their babies, an Osprey, and 6 locks. It was really HOT, but there is a breeze, the skies are clear blue, so it's hard to find fault with the weather. Our spot in Frankford is idyllic. We are tied up in the lock, we have weeping willows for shade, benches and picnic tables. We even went for a swim in the canal.

July 2, 2010 Canadian Forces Base Trenton, Ontario

July 2, 2010 Deseronto, Ontario

Stephanie- The fireworks last night reminded me of the song titled “fireflies,” which I predictably began to sing, (pretty much the only song I know the lyrics to.) Dad awoke early and pulled the anchor and set sail before Sara or I were even awake; always the early riser. The Lucy III headed west down the beautiful Bay of Quinte for Belleville and eventually the Canadian Forces Base Yacht Club at Baker Island in Trenton, Ontario. We saw before us a promising day, and, as if to prove this, a clear, unfaltering azure sky. I was, as always, exhausted for no apparent reason, feeling zombie-like as I groped the sides of the boats' walls to keep from stumbling in the turbulence of a wave. By the time I had washed up in the cabin and finished applying all of my intricately-arranged makeup, we had almost arrived at our destination. As I helped Dad and Sara arrange all the lines so that we would be ready to dock, we spotted the marina and military base we would be staying at for the following two nights. The first piece of scenery that caught my attention was a great checkerboard tower, which we later discovered to be a lighthouse for the Canadian Forces. In the distance, I could see lots of greenery and infinite beauty. The marina was nice and the food was excellent at the Yukon Galley on base. They allowed us to use a crane to lower both masts for passage in the Trent-Severn Waterway and its low bridges.

Marc- This was an excellent stopover location. We were able to do the mast lowering as described by Stephanie with lots of help for our friend Jay Gehrig. Once the rig was secure, we moved the boat to a new dock and then I called Enterprise for the rental car. The service was excellent and the local office was just on the edge of the base. We used the car to do some shopping and sightseeing in town. We also made a stop at the best laundromat we have seen in our travels.