Cruising the Trent Severn Waterway

[Bacchus]

We did TSW in 2019 which was record high water on Great Lakes.
1st lock at Trenton was tricky... no wall exposed, actually flooded by 6+/- inches of water so tie up for wait was out of the question. There is also a long narrow approach to the lock so holding position was a chore for a long period. Best bet if staying overnight in Trenton is get to know the boats leaving in AM so you can communicate once in the queue waiting for the lock. We circled in the river and tried to stay in touch w others ahead to approximate timing. You might try to call the lock master the day before to see if they could provide an update on wall conditions and any recommendations.

After 1st lock the level will be fairly well controlled so nothing like the first lock situation. There will be a few lock approached with strong spring currents but you should be able to power through and slow once inside the approach.
The last lock at Port Severn may have similar conditions when leaving the lock. It helps that the tenders will usually only put one boat in at a time (short lift & time) so less congestion leaving. The boats awaiting will not have a blue line to tie up and will be circling in the river. Know the exit routs ahead of time as there is a bit of a twist & turn under the bridge.

There are a couple narrow canal sections near the N end of the TSW and practice is to issue a "securite" when entering to alert others approaching. It's not a difficult situation if alone but not the best place to meet anyone and need to pass.

[Flatswing]

Originally Posted by Slainte 1

Our trip by van out to our "new" boat in Sturgeon Bay is coming up soon! mid May we leave for WI ! I was wondering if any one of you have a short list of "absolute must stops" in the north channel........I am watching u tube almost overnight and there are so many places.....from there we'll be on to the TSW.........on that note, I'm wondering if anyone has trouble with high water and currents especially once you "go over the top" and are heading down, with the current.......

Still looking for anyone wanting to go east towards Trenton or Kingston mid June this year!

Thanks all !

We also did the TSW with the record high water. Since you are starting fro the Bay side you will be going up to start with which is a little easier since you have wind protection entering the lock. There are often a few squirrelly currents entering or leaving the locks but nothing too consequential. Your biggest challenge will be large rental houseboats around the mid section of the canal Bobcageon, Fenelon Falls etc. have lots of fenders on both sides!

Finally in the TSW you don’t have to pay for a season dockage or lock age pass up front. For each, save the receipts, and if you accumulate enough to reach the season pass rate, the next lock master will charge you only the remaining balance and issue the decal(s)

[Cartouche]

Originally Posted by Flatswing

We also did the TSW with the record high water. Since you are starting fro the Bay side you will be going up to start with which is a little easier since you have wind protection entering the lock. There are often a few squirrelly currents entering or leaving the locks but nothing too consequential. Your biggest challenge will be large rental houseboats around the mid section of the canal Bobcageon, Fenelon Falls etc. have lots of fenders on both sides!

Finally in the TSW you don’t have to pay for a season dockage or lock age pass up front. For each, save the receipts, and if you accumulate enough to reach the season pass rate, the next lock master will charge you only the remaining balance and issue the decal(s)

10 Lock Days and 10 mooring days = the locking & mooring pass, although if bought prior to March 31st it was 8 Days Locking and 8 Days mooring

[Jeff F]

Originally Posted by O C Diver

That is definitely true on the Rideau canal, but I don't remember any like that on the Trent Severn.



Ted

Yes, quite right Ted. I get the two mixed up in my memory... I take it back.

I'm slowly making my way north now. Kirkfield Lock is closed for emergency repairs.

[Bacchus]

Originally Posted by Jeff F

Yes, quite right Ted. I get the two mixed up in my memory... I take it back.

I'm slowly making my way north now. Kirkfield Lock is closed for emergency repairs.

Jeff
Any estimate for Kirkfield repairs?
It was down fall of 2022... I'd have thought they would have had it figured out by now.
Marine RR at Swift Rapids was also down last year. Any word on that?

[Jeff F]

Originally Posted by Bacchus

Jeff
Any estimate for Kirkfield repairs?
It was down fall of 2022... I'd have thought they would have had it figured out by now.
Marine RR at Swift Rapids was also down last year. Any word on that?

Sorry, it's Big Chute that's down.

Parks Canada advises that Lock 44 – Big Chute Marine Railway remains inoperable. Boaters looking to transit through Big Chute are encouraged to slow their pace to allow for repairs to be completed. Specialized contractors and the Parks Canada maintenance team are coordinating repairs to the control and drive systems. Timelines for these repairs are currently unknown, however the repairs are expected to continue into the weekend. Additional updates will be provided on a regular basis. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

[Bacchus]

Jeff
You are correct, my bad, memory not as good as it once was!
That's not encouraging after having all fall / winter to do repairs.

[Jeff F]

It's open now.

Bacchus, I suspect your memory is better than mine :-). I mislabeled the lock in my earlier post.

No matter. All good now.

I'm just coming up on Peterborough. Very quiet on the Trent section.

[Slainte 1]

Anyone doing the Trent S. this July headed SE ? We're in a Krogen 49 and wondering about the skinny spots!!??

Any thoughts?

Thanks

[catalinajack]

Originally Posted by Slainte 1

Anyone doing the Trent S. this July headed SE ? We're in a Krogen 49 and wondering about the skinny spots!!??



Any thoughts?



Thanks

Canal Lake, the spot with about a three-mile run through a narrow channel with six-foot depths and sometimes choked with weeds. Do not follow another boat closely or you may run into a sunken log. Some folks avoid the Dismal Swamp Canal in NC/VA for the same reason. This spot is far more concerning. The year we transited this channel, we had to stop three times and reverse the props to clear the weeds. Still, it was uneventful otherwise. Our boat drew 5 feet.

[rslifkin]

Originally Posted by catalinajack

The year we transited this channel, we had to stop three times and reverse the props to clear the weeds. Still, it was uneventful otherwise. Our boat drew 5 feet.

I haven't done the Trent Severn, but I've had to do that in a few other places with shallow, weedy fresh water. Even if there's enough traffic to keep the weeds from the bottom from growing up too high, you're likely to encounter (and eventually snag on a prop) clumps of weeds that have broken loose nearby.

I've found the most effective way to clear weeds is to bring the throttles back to idle, pop the engines in reverse for a couple seconds, then back to neutral for a few seconds before going forward again. Don't actually stop the boat, you want to be out of reverse before speed gets down to zero so that the weeds thrown off the props get moved away before you go back into forward and potentially suck them back up. When doing this, you can often see the weeds float off behind you.

[Comodave]

When we did the TSW it was very early in the season. Canal Lake we indeed full of weeds. We had to stop and reverse countless times. The day before a 42’ trawler literally got stuck in the weeds. They sent a tow boat in to get them and it got stuck and overheated its engine. The second tow boat was successful in getting them out. The lockmaster at the next lock said that as more boats went through the weeds would get cut up and it would not be a problem, not sure about that though. However the TSW is awesome and not to be missed.

[Jeff F]

Originally Posted by Slainte 1

Anyone doing the Trent S. this July headed SE ? We're in a Krogen 49 and wondering about the skinny spots!!??



Any thoughts?



Thanks

Stay between the markers and have fun.

I'm at Lock 4, heading up to Gamebridge over the next week or so. I've been parked here for the last week or so watching big loopers heading north. Will keep an eye out for you.

Big Chute is only doing big boats on week days. AFAIK that's the only service issue.

Sent from my moto g play (2021) using Trawler Forum mobile app