As we were about to leave Peterborough, we saw this mother duck and her babies. She was trying to get the ducklings to hop up onto the dock, but they just couldn't do it. So then she was trying to get them under the dock--maybe they were less visible to the big muskies that we saw in the harbor there...
We hurried to get to the next lock which was just around the corner from the marina. This shows the wooden doors on the locks and the parks that are around each lock. There is wall space to tie up to for the night at all of them.
Our next lock was the Peterborough Lift lock. This is the largest one of its kind in the world. When this was being planned in the late 1800's, the architect for the lock went to England and France to study the locks of this type there. The construction of this lock was completed in 1904, so it has been in operation for over 100 years!!!
There are two pans of water. Boats are driven into the pan. Whichever pan is up in the air is filled with more water (weight) than the other so that the lower pan is raised to the level of the upper waterway.
This lock lift is 69 feet. Here, the pan on the left is lowered, and ready for a boat to go in.
Here a tour boat is entering the lower pan.
Here you can see the tour boat being lifted. It feels like an elevator...and unlike other locks, there is no turbulence when you're in the lock.
We toured the visitor center and also walked up to the lock. There is a road going through it. Actually, a pretty busy one with traffic from both ways when we were there.
Here is a view of our boat and the one which will be in the lock with us.
Driving into the lock pan on the right side.......
View from the top of the lock toward the canal we will be going into...
And the view from where we came....! WOW!
That day we traveled through such places as Stony Lake and Hell's Gate. I think you can guess the reasons for those names...! The scenery is beautiful, but we don't dare venture out of the channel.
One of the cottages on the route...I think every Canadian has a cottage of some kind on the water. The shore line is dotted with them.
This was a strange looking tour boat--the bow had to be lifted in order to fit in the lock.
Last, here are some birds walking on the rocks just barely above the surface of the water. It is not surprising that there are several prop shops in this area and they get a lot of experience!
