Sunday, July 21, 2019

Youngs Point, ON, Island View Resort (after Lock 27)

Our plans for the day had us traveling through eight locks covering 148 feet vertically and 26 miles horizontally to reach our next stop at Youngs Point, lock 27. We pushed off from the dock wall at 9:45 knowing boats were already waiting at the Blue Line of lock 20 (just out of town). We thought we would give them time to get through Lock 20 to avoid having to drift around waiting to get in the lock. It seemed like a good plan, but when we got to the lock at 10am, things were still backed up. We had to drift around a while until we could get a spot on the lock wall to tie up. Word came from the lock master that it would be a while to get us through due to some delays farther upstream. The lock wall had a large grassy area and shade, so we put the leash on Bo and let him off the boat. We were able to catch up with a couple other Loopers we knew who were also tied to the wall while Bo got to do some running around and relaxing in the grass. 

Things began moving along and it looked like we might be underway again around 11:00am. We broke the news to Bo, got him back on board and prepared to get underway. However, just as it was our turn to go through the lock, we got word that the Peterborough Tour Boat was headed for the lock, so we would have to wait for another lock cycle. Ugh! We finally got through Lock 20 around noon and continued another .6 miles to the famous Peterborough Lift Lock (PLL), lock 21.

Note: If you have no interest in mechanics, hydraulics or structures, you might want to skip the following couple paragraphs.

Question: Why is the Peterborough Lift Lock so famous?

Glad you asked.

The PLL is the world’s highest hydraulic lift taking boats up 65 feet in two minutes. It was completed in 1904 and was one of the world’s largest unreinforced concrete structures at the time. The lock raises and lowers boats in two water-filled steel chambers.  Each chamber is 140 feet long and holds about 273,816 gallons of water weighing about 1,142 tons. There is a 7.5 ft. diameter hydraulic ram located under each chamber capable of raising each chamber 65 feet. The two rams are connected in a closed water hydraulic system such that any movement of one chamber forces an equal and opposite movement in the other. The upper chamber is overbalanced by taking on an additional one-foot of water. A valve connecting the hydraulic rams is then opened, the heavier upper chamber travels downward forcing the opposite chamber upward an equal distance.   When you look at the PLL pictures and video you will see that each chamber is supported on each side by large arch-shaped steel trusses and plates with riveted connections. All this has been working well and looking pretty good for 115 years old.

Question: Does it matter how many boats are in the chamber or how much they weigh for PLL to work? Another great question. Let’s think about it (you are already reading this paragraph so you must be somewhat interested). A boat displaces a volume of water equal to its weight, that is why it floats (the forces must balance to be at equilibrium). So, if the PLL can operate with a chamber full of water, it does not matter how many boats are in the chamber or how much they weigh because they have displaced the volume of water equal to their weight. The PLL doesn’t care if it is lifting a chamber full of water or a chamber full of water with boats floating in it. 

This is the end of the technical diversion.

Going through the PLL is extremely interesting. While you enter and leave the lock like any other, the ride is much different. People are located on the observation walkway along the top of the lock to watch the show. The entire lift only takes a couple of minutes, so you don’t really have time to take it all in. You can look over the edge of the boat (and chamber) and see the ground 60 feet below. You look backwards and have a great view of the area; but need to avoid thinking about being in a boat, in a 273,816-gallon tub of water, 65 feet in the air. Before you know it, you are at the top, they lower the front gate, and off you we go to the next lock.

We took a lot of photos and a couple videos of the lock’s operation that will hopefully provide a better depiction of what goes on at this lock.

We still had 24 miles to cover and 6 more locks to get through before reaching Island View Marina at lock 27. We passed through Trent University with some very interesting architecture just north of Peterborough. After that, it was back to a rural environment most of the trip. Passage through the next few locks was uneventful, and we arrived at Island View Marina around 5:40pm. We were met by Keith (the owner) and his helper Kevin when we arrived. The marina was very well kept, the people very friendly and they had a little restaurant/bar called Lock 27 Tap & Grill just across the walkway from us. Diner was great, then we got back to the boat to work on our plans for the next few days.