We were up and out by 8:15 today and made our way to a lovely spot in Smith’s Falls. The travel down was windy with 30 km winds. Not much fun in locks with 5 – 6 boats in them, tight squeeze and no room for error or circumstance. One lock has this tiny channel that leads up to the lock and there were already 5 boats waiting. In the lock was a ferry that took up the entire lock and left no room for us to tie up to in the channel. We were told to turn around. Easy for them to say when they are not driving and the waterway is smaller than what we need to turnaround. Backing out was not an option due to the wind and the way the bow handles in high winds. After some boating negotiation we managed to squeeze into a spot with the help of about 8 fellas. Scott is amazing at driving this thing.
For those that plan to do the Rideau it would be an asset to contact the Sly’s locks to be sure that tiny channel is clear before you get there. Otherwise it may be a not so pleasant experience.
So now I sit happily on the wall in a small harbour town, Aiden is catching every sunfish imaginable and Scott has gone to the grocery store on our bike. The sun is setting and leaving today behind with a glowing show of colours.
