Reunion Voyage: Manotick, ON to Merrickville

July 26, 2014

We are continuing our journey on the Rideau Canal system, today we traveled 23 miles and 8 locks to a little town. Merrickville is a 1 hour town a best, a main street with a few boutiques (Shoppes)(Shops), two restaurants, a grocery store (not to be confused with a supermarket), a gas station/convenience store and a three tiered lock. But they have a free town wall that is packed tonight with 13 boats, we are rafted off to another Marine Trader Trawler on the wall. The Canadians do not speak very good English and our French is non-existent, but at the bottom of the 3 lock lift we through hand jesters agreed we would raft off if only one spot was available, no electric or Wi-Fi tonight.

All of these locks are hand operated, including the swing bridges. After on long horn blast, the operator closes the traffic gates by hand swinging them into place. Then inserts a crank into a hole in the deck and walks around the crank handle to swing the bridge 90 degrees.

The people that operate these locks are incredible, very accommodating, and worked to make a space on the wall for us and the other trawler. Every person in the all the lock crews have been very friendly and cordial, interested in where we came from and where we are going. One young lady today after Carol told her our story, Racine down the rivers to the gulf around the tip of Florida, up the east coast, to the Hudson River, through Lake Champlain, to the St. Lawrence, Richelieu, and Ottawa Rivers and now through the Rideau System, said “I am so bad at geography but I ask anyway.” Carol showed her our burgee with the route and I think she understood.

Cool today, changed to jeans, and overcast predicted showers but not yet maybe tomorrow or later tonight.