Lock 42 Couchiching to Big Chute Lock 43

Date              August 3, 2011

Day               37

Departure     Lock Wall at Lock 42 Couchiching  8:45am

Arrival          Big Chute Marine Railway Lock 43  1:30pm

Miles               8.5

Cumulative  817.0

The Severn River is so beautiful and scenic.

Going through a narrow channel, the current was really flowing quickly.

Tying up at Lock 43 Swift Rapids, was different from the other locks we have gone through.  Most locks have ropes hanging from the top of the wall that you can grab and fasten to your boat cleat or a cable that you pass your own line around and then pass it around the cleat on your boat.  Swift Rapids has cables, but also bollards.  The bollard is the easiest of all three, you simply drop your line over the top of the bollard and then pass it around the cleat on your boat.  The bollard floats and goes down (or up as the case may be) as the water in the lock goes down.  Swift Rapids is also a long drop down, 47 feet.  Here is a shot of the doors as they are opening once we got to the bottom and BraveHeart leaving the lock..

Traveling today was picture perfect!

The Big Chute crossing the road.  We will ride this tomorrow!

Bob and the original Big Chute carriage.  It is no longer in service

A cute little guy that let me get very close to him!

We spent the night at a dock at the top of the Big Chute.  This allowed us to get an idea of how it worked and what to expect.  There must be critters around at night.  When we took the dogs out for their last walk of the night, we could hear noises at the trash bins.  Better keep an eye out!