Creeping Along the Rideau Canal - Parts 5 and 6

July 27 – 28, 2011

Part 5: Davis and Chaffey's Locks

As soon as we left the Jones Falls dock, we entered a very narrow channel with tight turns; it was necessary to sound the horn so other boats would know to exercise caution and hold back or get ready to react to oncoming traffic. Fortunately, since our horn sounds like it belongs on a destroyer, other boaters usually take heed. The narrow waterway turns so much in a few of the passages, there are those ninety degree turn signs attached to rocks and trees.

We only traveled another 5 miles from Jones Falls before we reached the Davis Lock. It is a single lift chamber, only 9' up. It has a reputation for being one of the quietest locks since it is in a rural area, with many lake cottages on Sand Lake to its south and Opinicon Lake to the north. Since we knew that Chaffey's Lock and the tiny town of Elgin were both within bicycling distance, we decided that we would stay a couple of nights at Davis.

What we didn't know was that the lock is run like a military encampment by the lockmaster John. He has been there forever and knows all of the local boaters and property owners, and from our observations, is well-liked by all of them. So, when we came up to the lock and announced that we wanted to lock through, but stay on the upper level, John came over and said that if we didn't want to hook up to hydro (which we didn't), he prohibited us from using our generator. He said he had “folks that came to his lock for peace and quiet”, and he wanted to keep it that way. Well, okay, we like the quiet too.

FLUKE at the Davis dock back annex

Then, he instructed us where to take FLUKE, which was away from the regular dock and back around the corner, right next to the overflow dam. With great reluctance we slowly inched our way to where John stood, yelling at us to get over to him. We asked if we had enough water, and he said he knew what he was doing and we should just do what he said. So, we did.

We sure were surprised to see that John was tying us up to one of the wooden sections that are fitted into the dams to control water flow. When they aren't in the dams, they are left floating in the water. We threw him the lines, and he tied them through the lift hoops on the dam wood, and he told us to float our fenders in the water since the dam section only sat about 4” off the water. He said that no other boats would even be back in the area so we didn't have to worry about having the “dock” submerged or the fenders floating over the “dock”. Then, he suggested it would be a good idea to tie off to the cedar tree on the shore too, which would keep the boat from going forward into the dam spillway. Gee, thanks, John! Then, he picked up that big block of wood you can see on the “dock” and dropped it next to our cockpit gate so we didn't have so far to step down and said “Welcome to Davis lock”.

In the photo you can see the dam float in the foreground, our private “dock”, and some of the lake cottages to the right. There are many of the cottages within walking distance which we would learn, makes for some interesting social interactions and activities. There were 23 boats at this little lock the first night we were there.

As soon as we got off the boat, Molly had to check us out. She is John's Golden Retriever, and really the mistress of Davis Lock. She checks out everyone, and especially all the dogs that go ashore. While Ursa wasn't impressed with Molly's title, she tolerated her and didn't embarrass us any more than usual with her anti-dog behavior. Besides, Molly had more interesting canine friends to tend to. Every morning, Owen, Tess, and Juniper, local cottage dogs, came to the lock to visit Molly. Davis Lock is an off-leash park for dogs because “most everything is up to the discretion of the lockmaster” according to commandant John, and he is a dog lover.

Besides the dogs, several of the locals would also visit Davis Lock throughout the day to see John, other neighbors, boats, and boater friends who may be at the lock for a few days away from their cottage. Little chat groups would take place in the cool shade of the big trees. In the late afternoon, they would turn into cocktail parties. At dusk someone from one of the local cottages would play taps and O Canada on the trumpet, really cool. Then, the boaters would toot their horns, and we would sound a blast on FLUKE's horn, and then the others would yell and toot some more. Davis Lock is THE summer social mecca of the lake region.

We rode our bicycles over to Chaffey's Lock, about 5 miles, because even though we were going to have to lock through there, we did not plan to stop and wanted to see what was around the lock. It is a great place to ride a bike because the roads are all rural, and no traffic is there except the cottage locals or people going to the locks. There are a few hills, some of which we couldn't get all the way to the top, especially for the second 5 miles on the way back.

Chaffey's Lock overview

We wanted to talk to the lockmaster and make sure that we would be able to get through the approach and lock OK. If you look in the photo above, in the upper right hand corner is the approach to the lock. That shiny, green area is algae and aquatic plants which grow in the shallow water. The channel boats take is visible through the weedy area as the darker patch. We knew that this was one of the shallowest passages we would have to go through. In fact, as we would learn, only 10 days after we went through here, the Rideau Canal from Jones Falls to Chaffeys lock fell below the 5' level, and we wouldn't have been able to get through at all.

You can see Brown's Marina in the photo too. It not only serves as an important canalside fuel and repair facility, but also is the site of the government liquor store, the nearest one to the Rideau Canal. So, it is convenient to just pull up to Brown's dock, run up the stairs, cross the country road and make a liquor purchase. We got that info from those fine folks at Davis Lock.

Lockmaster's house museum

Chaffey's Lock has another one of the restored defensible lockmaster's house similar to the one I described at Jones Falls, complete with some period artifacts. However, at this one, you have an opportunity to see a video that talks about some of the history of the town around Chaffey's lock. Plus, there is a small gift shop that sells some nice t-shirts. Eddie bought one.

We took a walk to the nearby Opinicon Hotel. It is a big facility, nestled in the trees, that was built to house workers at Chaffey's mills before the lock was built. Its history includes being an inn and fishing lodge, and when you walk on the property today it feels like you are going back in time. Even the little snack bar/grocery store has been lost in a time warp. We followed the trail of people licking ice cream cones to the snack bar to get one ourselves. Just when we were marveling at the size of ice cream scoops the kid was dishing out, the owner came and yelled at him, saying that they were running out of ice cream because he was giving people too much in one scoop and he needed to cut back. Since we were the only ones in line at that time, I suggested he cut back after we got ours, and he obliged. Eddie left him a loonie for his college fund!

The following day we decided to bicycle into Elgin, the closest town to the locks, another 5 mile ride. Back in the day, this was the town that had the quarry that supplied stone for lock construction. Today, it is just a sleepy little town, but it does have a grocery store.

We just needed to pick up a few fresh vegetables, but I always look around to see what else is in the store. It was the first time I had ever seen milk sold in plastic bags. I wasn't sure what I was really looking at until I looked closely and poked at the bag. I couldn't see how milk is dispensed from the bags, other than pouring it into some other rigid container for table use.

We sure were surprised to look across the street and see the couple whose garage sale we visited when we were at Morton Bay. Easily recognizing Ursa, they laughed when they saw us, and we told them about some more of our adventures. They said they had gone to Jones Falls to try to see FLUKE, but they didn't look at the right dock, so missed us.

Wild turkey, no loon yet

On the way back, those country hills were sure not getting any easier for me to get up. Eddie was complaining that his stents were overheating and could use a rest. I welcomed the chance to get off the bike and run down a pasture road to try to photograph a flock of 6 wild turkeys. By the time I got close enough, the last one was all I could get in the picture. I will feel like a real turkey anyway if I can't get a picture of a loon.

We were all glad to get back to FLUKE and load up the bikes; our butts and legs had had enough for a while. We needed to come up with a strategy for our next destination since the weekend was approaching, and the locks are always busier.

July 29 – 30, 2011

Part 6: Newboro Lock

We left Davis Lock early enough to be able to get to Chaffey's, without getting grounded at the approach area I talked about in the last posting, and be the first to lock through. They all begin lock operations at 8:30 a.m. Since it was Friday, we knew we needed to get settled early in the day and wouldn't be able to move until Sun. since everyone stays put for the most part on the weekends. We decided that we would stop at Newboro Lock, only 5 more miles from Chaffey's.

In the last posting, I told you about Brown's Marina, just past Chaffey's lock. We decided that we would stop there to pump out and take on water and run up to the LCBO to buy beer since it was still so early. No one else was at their dock so we were able to pull in easily.

Wayne ran up to get the beer, just a regular Canadian brew, $36/24 pack of cans. We are not used to paying 13% tax on most things, including beer, and then there is a can deposit. We didn't plan on buying any more beer while we were in Canada.

The marina owner came out to ask what we wanted, and we told him we were going to the store for beer and also wanted to pump out. We asked him if his pump out could handle our boat, and he said he had never failed to pump out any boat. We pointed out how high our bow was and how far down the suction would have to pull. He said he would just grease up his machine, which looked beefy, but old, and then we would be ready to go once he got the prime established. Well, he tried and tried, but just couldn't get the prime to gain a suction hold. With great reluctance, he had to admit to his first failure. We told him thanks for the effort, and not to dwell on the failure, since his machine wasn't the first one to fail for us. Importantly, thank goodness we weren't in desperate need of a pump out since we had no idea when the next opportunity would arise.

Newboro Lock, looking north from south dock

Even though it had begun to rain by the time we got to the lock, named after Newboro Lake, there were still a lot of boats moving around and waiting to lock through. We tied up to the blue line on the east dock which would give us a chance to talk to the lockmaster. We were told there were no spaces at the top of the lock (hydro was there), and that a couple of the boats on the low side would be leaving the dock shortly. So, Wayne and Eddie waited out in the rain holding our dock lines, indicating we planned to pull into the west dock when the other boats left. We were lucky to get a space since it was already midday.

There would have been a lot more dock space available on the lower side, but the east side dock had been crushed out on the end by ice, and they hadn't repaired it yet, so no one could tie up there. It was the only concrete dock we had seen. Maybe the ice incident was the reason.

If you look in the photo, to the right, you will see several tents set up. The Rideau Waterway Land Trust (owners of Rock Dunder) were having a benefit chicken bar-b-que. We ended up going, saving the galley slave a night of cooking on the boat. There was a comic musician that provided live entertainment.

There is a monument on site dedicated to the Seventh Company of Sappers and Miners without whose diligent work efforts Newboro Lock wouldn't have been built. Newboro Lake used to be called Mud Lake, indicating that there were many shallow spots in it filled with lots of mosquitoes. Colonel By had hoped that the lake level would rise enough when he flooded Chaffey's mill area to make it so that a lock wouldn't have to be built at Newboro. The water never rose high enough, so they had to build another lock. They ran into solid bedrock that took so long to try to dig through that two different contractors quit the job because the loss of life from malaria was high and the working conditions were brutal with all the mosquitoes attacking the workers. So, Colonel By used the military group of Sappers (demolition workers) and Miners (the diggers) to complete the lock, but not without a high loss of their lives too.

Newboro public dock

The lower dock at the lock isn't really a great place to be. People launching their fishing boats from the public boat ramp make a lot of wakes and noise. Plus, there are two big fishing lodges just beyond the public dock and their guests are speeding by the lock too. The sinister-looking police boat went out on some kind of lake patrol; it was the only vessel like that we ever saw on the whole canal, and this was the only place we ever saw it. Seems weird having a boat like that just to catch fishing regulations violators.

Most interesting home in town

It is a nice walk into the tiny town of Newboro, which is only 1 street. The fishing lodges occupy the most public space, but there is one interesting store, Kilborn's. It reminds me of a small version of LL Bean because it caters mostly to the needs of outdoor enthusiasts, having quality outdoor apparel and supplies. It also serves a critical purpose, selling ice cream. Eddie ended up buying a Tilley hat (lifetime guarantee) and a pair of Keens (Captain Wayne is jealous), after hearing me rave about how much I loved the pair I bought in Alexandria Bay. He is so happy with both purchases, and even had another guy remark about his Tilley hat while we were on a street walk in another town.

My best loon photo

This wooden loon was on the grounds of what looked like an abandoned gift shop of some kind. I know it is kind of cheesy, but it really gives a good idea of what the loons do look like. I will tell you I am still not having much success with the live birds at this point, but I'm not giving up.

Beware of oncoming traffic

Newboro lock has one of the 3 hydraulic locks on the Rideau Canal. We were glad to lock up the 7.7' without incident, sound our horn in the narrow, tight turn and be on our way. We had reached the highest level of the Rideau Canal and all the other locks would be lowering us down.