Our Journey has come to an end

Paul Hallman
Sep 8, 2024
2 min read

We thought we would have been back to Wye Heritage yesterday, but the train schedule was more important than ours. Yesterday we missed getting through the Port Severn Lock by 30 minutes, so we tied up at the lock knowing we would be first this morning, and yes, at 9:00 am we were in the lock. In less than 10 minutes we were on Georgian Bay and within another 1 hour we would have our boat back in its slip at Wye Heritage Marina in Midland.

The Port Severn Lock is historical and the smallest lock on the system and also, the busiest because it is the first and only lock into Georgian Bay. They have tried to get Parks Canada to build a new larger lock, but because it has been designated as an Historical Site, it cannot be changed.

We have had good weather this entire trip, but today was different. Rain and very windy. We actually had 55 km/hr. winds as we left the locks and, as we wandered through Potato Channel we felt the winds get stronger. Potato Channel is named such, after the Island which is called Potato, but the channel was full of rocks and high winds PLUS it is narrow. If you do not have charts you could be in trouble trying to get through this route but it is the only way from the Trent Canal to Georgian Bay.

As we approached Wye Heritage Marina, the waves got bigger and by the time we were close, we were in 5 to 6 footers, however, we manned the ship and brought it to shore safely.

Video of Backing into the slip in very high winds

The docking was a bit of a challenge but we made it without hitting anything. Bruce and Chester were met by Sandy and within a few minutes they were packed and on their way home.

The afternoon was cleanup time for the Captain and take into account of what needs to be done over the next couple days. With the weather so cold and wet, there was no plan to do anything outside today, with the single exception of move the fenders off the boat and tidy up the lines that were on the starboard side of the boat.

I ran into town to get some chemical for the holding tank, and manual pump to clean out the engine compartment that still has cooling solution from the overheating problem we had about 30 days ago

There still is a bit of food left and that should last me till Monday at which time I expect to return to civilization. It is peace and quiet here tonight and I get to watch my first Blue Jay game in over 38 days.