07-09-09 Peterborough, ON

Just a note from yesterday. You will recall that we traveled 23.2 miles from Lock 10 to Hastings Lock #18. Looking at Google Earth, we discovered that the distance, as the crow flies, is 8.47 miles. Yes, the Trent Severn Waterway is curvy, meandering, and quite long.

Today, we covered the 39.4 miles from Hastings, Lock 18 to Peterborough. As the crow flews, it is 17.2 miles. We got to make up a little time as we crossed Rice Lake. This beautiful lake was full of fishermen and recreational boaters. After the lake, we meandered to the little town of Campbelltown. They have a free town dock. However, it is barely 40 feet long and only one boat at a time can tie there. We were fortunate to get that one spot, so we stopped for lunch. We didn’t see a town at all, just the middle of nowhere.

Proceeding on, we entered our only lock of the day, Lock 19, with a rise of 9 feet. For the first time, the lock was full…4 boats. We were the first ones in so it was easy for us. The last ones in have to be a little more careful! The lockmaster was full of information about the events in town and where the restaurants are located. The Peterborough Marina is very large, has 50 transient slips, gas, diesel, pumpout, 6 washroom/shower combinations, and sits beside the city park which has a concert every Wednesday and Saturday night. This Saturday, a U2 tribute band will play.

Upon entering the harbor, one cannot escape the huge water fountain in the center of the harbor.

We have decided to be here at least 3 nights, through Saturday night. There is a lot do here. They have an excellent marine store, called Boaters World. (Not the same as the ones in the states that just closed). There is a ribfest on Friday, with a competition for the best ribs and home brewed beer. This is a very large town compared to most we have visited. With that in mind, we will probably not blog for a couple of days while we get some R&R. But, when we begin again, we will have some good stuff. The world famous Peterborough Lift Lock, the world’s largest lift lock, is just around the bend and will be the first thing we do when we leave here. Stay tuned.