Continuing from Campbellford to Hastings

The first photo is the suspension bridge Muriel and I rode bikes to below Campbellford. The second photo is the looper group tied to the wall in Campbellford. From right to left is Sunshine, Ithaka, Southern Comfort, a couple of local boats and then Blue Max. The Old Mill Park is in the background. I took the last photo from the bridge right behind Sunshine, Muriel and Shelly are on the sundeck at the rear of the boat.

On Wednesday we ran from Campbellford to Hastings which is only 27 nautical miles with six locks. We arrived about 3:00 pm. The marina is only three years old and is very nice and as usual, the people are unbelievably nice. We ran through some very heavy rain which reduced visibility to a few hundred yards in a narrow, winding section. We slowed up and followed Southern Comfort. They have the area on their chart plotter. We are using paper charts and dead reconing for the Trent Severn. All went well. We arrived at the last lock of the day as the weather cleared. While we were in the lock it began to pour rain again so the lock tender had all of us tie into position and wait out the heavy rain. We all still got wet. We did not take any pictures today before arriving in Hastings. It is beautifully sunny but quite windy right now. It is forecast to be 50 degrees tonight. Good sleeping!
Hastings was so comfortable we spent a second day there and just enjoyed the area. Shelly and Chip from Ithaka spent most of the day fishing from the dam and spillway near the lock. Shelly caught two small fish. In the evening all the people from the transient boats got together for some drinks in the park at the marina. The people are so much fun, they make the day.
On Friday we moved on to Peterborough, ON. We had only one lock to transit and it was at the end of the day. We crossed Rice Lake, which is one of the largest lakes on the Trent Severn, shortly after leaving Hastings. The Lake has many islands and beautiful homes and lodges line the shores. We left the lake and continued up the Otonabee River to Peterborough. Much of the river bank is unsettled and lined with marsh, trees, and ferns. The rest of the river bank is scattered with small fishing cottages. There are large homes scattered in with the cottages.
Peterborough is the largest city in this area with much to see and do. Everyone says not to travel during the weekends because there is so much local boat traffic that the locks become quite crowded so we will stay here until Monday. There is a canoe and kayak museum here which Muriel and I will probably visit today. There is an open air concert in the park adjacent to the marina tonight followed by a fireworks display and today there is a farmers market here. This is also the site of the very unusual hydraulic lift lock. It is like two large tanks into which the boats are driven then as one goes up the other goes down. The weight of the upper tank forces the lower tank up. We will include photos.