6/15 Locks 7-12 to Campbellford

One very nice thing is that right now the locks do not open until 10 am.  So there is no need to rush around in the morning.  We said our good-byes to Audrey and Randy who casted our lines off for us.  We headed toward lock 7 behind Lady Erika.  There are two couples from New Zealand on board.  We locked through with them at each lock today.

The Canadian countryside was breathtaking. 

We didn't get a picture of it, but the lock master told us the animal we saw swimming across the Trent River was a mink.  We saw swans and a turtle sunning himself on a rock.

We are getting pretty good at locking through.  Lock 11 and 12 were a new experience though.  As you enter Lock 11 you are looking at the back gate of Lock 12.  They raise you to top of Lock 11 and open the gate.

You are then at the bottom of Lock 12.  The picture looks almost exactly the same!

When that lock raises you, you have gone up 48 feet and through a swing bridge.  It was less than a half mile then to Campbellford, Ontario.  Here they have tie ups on both side of the river with electricity and Wi-Fi.  The visitor center is located at the Old Mill Park.  At the bandstand tonight is a singer doing country/rock for free.  We are sitting comfortably on our boat listening to the concert.

The town is really nice.  We had an early dinner and will explore more tomorrow. This picture I took when we first arrived.

Not long after we got settled, a cruise boat, Kawartha Voyageur arrived and tied up to the waterfront on the opposite side of the river.  It will go through the locks to Peterborough, Ontario.  That is a neat trip for folks that don't own a boat to do this cruise.

In Canadian currency, there is a two dollar coin.  The one dollar coin is often called a loonie.  The two dollar coin is often called a twonie.  The center of the twonie has an enrgraving of a polar bear.  The artist was a resident of the Trent Hills area, where Campbellford is, so the Canadian Mint deemed Campbellford the home of the two dollar coin and a giant 20 foot replica was created to commemorate this occasion.  It is in the Old Mill Park where we are docked.

Twelve locks down and 33 more to go and they are some unusual ones, so stay tuned.  Tomorrow, we will explore Campbellford some more before moving on.

Lat 44 degrees 18.46 North
Long 77 degrees 47.99 West