Herb Island - But really Big Chute Marine Railway!

This blog will chronicle our (Pat and Patty Anderson's)

cruising adventures on the Great Loop!

DAY 106 - July 15, 2017

We left Lake Couchiching after coffee and peanut butter toast on a variety of the heels of bread we have had for a week or two! In short order, we were at the marina we had chosen to fuel up. Bad news - their water at the fuel dock was lake water, not potable. So we still will need to top off the water tank somewhere, but it is not obvious to us where tonight!

We are at a gorgeous anchorage, Herb Island, just a few miles from the last lock at Port Severn that will put us into Georgian Bay. OK, so the Active Captain entry was wrong about there being a Parks Canada dock here (there is a dock but it has a "No trespassing" sign on it). I will correct THAT in my review tomorrow morning! Landing Baxter here was difficult but possible. I was ready to go for a swim if need be, but I managed to land the kayak without any big problem on a rock shelf that extended a few feet from shore into the water. OK, it was slippery. But neither Baxter nor I fell in!

Boat loading at upper end of Big Chute Marine Railsway

The big deal, the really big deal today was the Big Chute Marine Railway. It is MUCH overblown in Skipper Bob! The Big Chute Marine Railway has about a 60 foot drop in elevation. Boats go in at the top, where the sterns are supported by slings, and the bows rest on a wooden carriage that rises up. The carriage is kept horizontal due to the relative profile of the tracks. Toward the end of travel, the carriage assumes a slight "nose down" attitude as it submerges into the water. So although the incline down is quite steep, it is not perceived as being so steep.

At the top of Big Chute Marine Railway Looking Down!

We were the first boat in, and I drove the boat onto the carriage, which is a reversal our usual roles - Patty has always driven the boat into locks on both the Erie and the Trent-Severn while I handle catching the ropes (Erie) or attaching the line to the cable (Trent-Severn). But since there was no rope or cable to catch, she invited me to drive in today, which I did, and I think I did reasonably well. The lock personnel tell you exactly what to do, and catch you with boat hooks to help with final positioning, so no great boat handling skill is involved!

Patty got a great video while sitting on the port gunwale, which starts at the high point, and ends just before we splash into the water at the bottom!

Tomorrow we go through the last lock on the Trent-Severn and out into Georgian Bay.  This is a bit unnerving, since even after reading Skipper Bob and looking at Active Captain, we are not completely sure where we will spend tomorrow night! Pretty sure one we are there we will figure it out, but tonight it is still a bit of a mystery!

It is also possible we will not have internet on a regular basis in Georgian Bay, so I will continue to write the blog but may not be able to post daily.