The Welland Canal

Yesterday we went through the Welland Canal as planned. The Welland Canal is a joint Canadian / US enterprise that consists of a canal and 8 locks. The Welland Canal is what all the commercial and pleasure boats use to bypass Niagra Falls and the adjacent rapids. The longest stretch of canal is about 11 miles and goes through flat countryside. The locks each drop the boat (if you are locking down from Erie to Ontario) about 40 feet. In a couple places you go straight from one lock to another so when you look back you see about eighty feet of doors behind you. You really hope they have strong latches because that is a LOT of water back up there. We asked Pat if we should close the hatches on Remedios in case the door breaks and he said it wouldn’t really matter. Pat’s answers to these kind of questions are always quite factual but not always comforting.

Towards the end of the canal we received a radio message that we were supposed to tie up at the side of the canal to let a “Saltie” go by. A saltie is an ocean going freighter. A BIG ocean going freighter. Here is Remedios tied up and then for perspective, next is a shot with the freighter going by.

While we are on the subject of big things in the water that can hurt you; sometimes we get asked why we can’t just set the autopilot and then go to sleep all night. Actually, I ask Pat this question every night. It’s because the Great Lakes are full of stuff like this. This big thing is a stationary beacon in Lake Erie.

Things like this, and other kinds of huge bouys are all over the place. Most are lit, some are not, some are 50 miles off shore, almost all are charted, but even charted bouys break loose in storms sometimes. So, that is why we sit out here at night with our iPods and check the radar, and the horizon every 30 minutes all night. Pat is the most worried about hitting one of these at night. Rob and I are not sure if that is because it is Pat’s boat, or because he is sleeping up in the front cabin.