Hastings Village Marina, Ontario to Lock #19 Scotts Mills-Peterborough, Ontario

Date               July 26, 2011

Day                28

Departure     Hastings Village Marina, Ontario  8:30 am

Arrival            Lock #19 Scotts Mills-Peterborough, Ontario 2:15 pm

Miles               35

Cumulative  694

When we left this morning, the sky was partly sunny with a slight breeze.  As we traveled along, we listened to the weather on the VHF radio.  It predicted possible thunder showers and winds to 30 kilometers per hour.  Should we have left; should we keep going?  We checked the Waterway Guide and Skipper Bob for places to stay should the weather get bad.  OK, now Plan B is in place, let’s keep an eye on the sky but keep going.  Luck was with us, we made it through Rice Lake and on to the Otonabee River and finally through our one and only lock today.  We are safely tied to the lock wall above Lock #19, Scotts Mills in Peterborough, Ontario.  Tomorrow we will experience the Peterborough Lift Lock, stay tuned!! 

This is the way most of the Otonabee River looks, very rural and narrow, except for the occasional home along the river bank.

Dam at Scotts Mills Lock

We learned today that the main function of the dams at the locks is to maintain the depth of the river below the dam.  The gates on the dam are used to release the water slowly, or more quickly, depending on the rainfall.  Today, the water is being released quickly as you can see by the turbulence below the dam.

Erika Lin tied to the lock wall above Lock 19 and adjacent to the dam