Migrating Loons

29 July, 2018 We have wheels!!!! We left Campbellford a bit later in the morning, hoping to let the morning rush pass through the locks ahead of us. When we got to the first lock of the day, there was a line up of boats waiting to go up the locks. With no room to tie up along the wall (cement dock) we waited out in the Bay/river for a while. With the winds that morning, some of the bigger boats had a hard time securing themselves to the cables in the locks (which caused the delays). We decided to stop at lock 15 that day. Healey Falls, Lock 15 is the first in a series of three locks, and you can spend the night in the basin between locks.  We were the only ones there and we took advantage of that and used our generator for the first time to cook supper. (there is no shore power at this location). The basin Top of lock 17 - overlooking the basin in the distance The next morning (25 July) we had really bad downpours, until around 11:00 at which point I told Papi that ...

23 July, 2018 We've been official Loopers for two weeks now. It's still hard to wrap our heads around that. We're slowly getting into our new routine of taking it one day at a time and not rushing ahead as fast as we usually did when we were on vacation... we are now "travelers".  Checking for the next marker on Lake Ontario The end of the Rideau Canal We left Upper Brewers Locks and made our way down the Rideau Canal to Kingston (15 July). We took advantage of everything that was within easy walking distance from the marina to resupply a bit and also took advantage of the free laundry and showers at the marina!   Sea Bee leaving Kingston, ON There was another Looper boat leaving the Kingston Confederation Basin at the same time as us the next morning. We weren't sure we would meet up with them, but we took a few pictures anyway. We were happy to see them after our four (give or take a few minutes) hour traverse to Picton, in the Bay of ...

July 14 Proudly showing our colors We are currently at Upper Brewers, Locks 43-44, and have decided to spend another night here to relax a bit and unwind.  This last week has been  "high and low in emotions! Just to do a quick recap for those who don't follow us on our Migrating Loons Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/une.autre.belle.aventure/ .   Day One - the clock has restarted! As mentioned in my last blog entry, they found where the water leak was coming from: the Power Steering shaft O Rings and the Bearings needed to be replaced. To replace those parts, as you can probably guess, another haul out was required once they received the parts.  We were very fortunate that the guys at the marina were able to order and get the parts on Friday. We were hauled out on Monday and the mechanics were able to do their magic and get us back in the water Tuesday afternoon. Before releasing us from the slings, they did one last check to ensure that no ...

We're still smiling! July 4 (PM) We decided to go for a boat ride to see if it would make a difference in the quantity of water coming from the leaks. We didn't go that far, only to Nobbles Bay, and without the dinghy.  While we were there we took advantage of the clear water to jump in and do a bit of snorkeling and generally try to cool off from this heat! On our way back, we stopped at Rideau Ferry Harbor public docks, not that far from the marina, to go and pick up a few things at the little convenience store. I can say that everything we bought made it back to the boat dry this time 🙂. We still decided to go for a little dinghy ride after supper, what can I say? It's fun to drive around in the dinghy... who knew? Papi brought me a flower ♡ July 5 We had one of the mechanics on board first thing this morning, and this time he came equipped with a camera to check and see behind the engines.  We think they have identified the problem! At first, because of...

July 3 It was reassuring to see that the marina wants to help us out as much as possible.  They are ordering all the parts we "could" possibly need to repair the leaks. That way, once we get hauled out, they will be able to fix whatever the issue is in a timely manner, therefore minimizing the time we will be boat-less. We like their plan. So what to do while we are waiting?  Well, we still have a few little projects to do, which we were going to do as we went along. Papi is checking for part numbers to give to Vian, so that he can order our spare parts while we are waiting.  He'll also be working on re-sealing a couple of windows that need it. Trying to find the belt number Our boat fridge We've been using our fridge for about a month now, and it was due for a defrost. Apparently, with all the hot and humid weather we've had, it can accelerate the ice build up in the small freezer. Before doing anything, I read the NOVA COOL 3100 manual and googled ...

When we returned to the boat, we were pleasantly surprised that it was back in the water and that the work to address the transom leak and power steering hose had been done.  We did our last bit of running around with our daughter, had a pleasant short boat ride with friends, and where all ready for our departure the next day. A special thank you to Marie-Pier who drove down from Laval to spend the day with us and see us off. She took the "official" picture of us. We are part of the Great Loop 2018 Fleet Photo taken by Gyspe C July 1st, it's been our planned departure date from the beginning, and we were excited that we managed to actually leave the gas dock at 1:40 after filling up our gas tanks and emptying the black tank.  Our first stop was Nobles Bay, there we tried out our new anchor and anchor roller system.  In 15 feet of water, it worked like a charm!  Next stop was to meet up with our friends on "Gypse C" at Cow Island. We deployed our a...