The locks on the Trent-Severn Waterway open for the first lock through at 8:30a, so we were up early and on our way. On this first day we will pass through twelve locks with the last two locks being a double flight. In addition to the twelve locks there were two swing bridges that also needed to be opened for us. 
Many of the lock doors on the T-S Waterway are manually opened by lock attendants. There will be an attendant on each side of the lock wall and each will “walk” the turnstile around to open or close the lock door. As you can see from the photos, they are also masters of multi-tasking because while the lockmaster was opening the door for us, he was also calling ahead to the next lock to let them know that we are headed in their direction.
The landscape during our travels was very diversified – from the urban areas with the man-made canal to the primitive wetlands.
As the day wore on and the heat/humidity increased, we wore down physically. Personally, I did not think that we were ever going to come to the last flight of locks # 11 & 12 with the city of Campbellford just beyond. We knew that a major storm was headed in our direction and we felt pretty confident that we would make Campbellford before the storm hit. However, we were incorrect. We had just entered the lower of the two connecting locks when the rain first began. It had been so hot that the rain felt good and I think the rain drops even sizzled as they hit my hot skin. The combined lift on these two locks was 48 feet and by the time we had partially lifted the first 24 feet,and were ready to proceed into the second lock, the storm intensified with rain literally coming down in sheets and lightening striking the ground immediately outside the lock. As crazy as it seems, we were really lucky to be where we were when the torrential rain and lightning came. Due to the fact that we were in the lower of the two locks we were protected, especially from the lightening. The lockmaster told us that he would not raise us any higher or into the next lock until the squall passed due to the wind and the lightning. So Mark and I tied off the boat and came inside to change our clothes when the rains started to let up a little. We were both totally soaked. The storm passed within twenty minutes and the heat came back, not quite, but almost as bad as before.
The city of Campbellford provides dockage on canal walls in the heart of downtown. Clean restrooms as well as a great internet signal were all the incentive we needed to stay an extra day to rest and recover.
Hours on the water: 8
Nautical miles traveled: 27.4
Number of bridges to be opened: 2
Time spent waiting at bridge: 0
Number of locks: 12
Next Destination: Hastings, Ontario
What we are listening to: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Lesson for the day: The storm was exciting and thrilling but I am glad we were safe!
Obligatory knitting report: Regular sock for Captain Mark with Opal Yarn
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