Murray Canal

Entry #48:

Friday, May 31st:  Took up anchor early heading for the entrance of the Murray Canal.  Took a picture of the rising sun.  (Can’t wait to post my pictures.)  After about an hour, I saw a series of (what I thought were) white buoys lined up in the shape of a ‘V’ leading to the canal entrance.  It wasn’t the case however.  As I was right in the middle of the ‘V’ my shallow water alarm went off.  I immediately veered to port and got into deeper water.  Puzzled I took my binoculars to take a closer look and found the white buoys to be swans!  Well there goes using my sight sense.

As I entered the Murray Canal, an older women was walking her dog.  She saw me and pointed and shouted “There’s a bridge”.  I looked ahead and sure enough I could see a road bridge about a mile ahead.  I asked her what’s the number to call to have it opened.  She responded with something that wasn’t discernable.  She then pointed to herself and began jogging towards the bridge!  I presumed she was the bridge attendant and offered to have her come aboard.  She smiled, waved me off and shouted ” Tie-up at the dock by the bridge.”  I proceeded slowly the mile and did as instructed.  I soon saw her on the other side of the canal jogging past the bridge and never saw her again!  I thought about walking off the dock to the bridge house but the water level was well above the dock ramp.

Eventually, another person strolled by walking his dog.  I asked him if he knew the number to call to open the bridge.  He responded that he will open the gate at 9 am and that I will know when he arrives when I see his truck parked by the bridge house.  It was 7:30 am!  OK well my jib sheets were shredding from Lake Eries’ experience so I finally have time to change them.

Precisely at 9 am I heard over a loudspeaker the bridge attendant direct me to leave my dock as he was opening the bridge.  I immediately jumped, untied my dock lines and the attendant and I waved as I went through the opened bridge.

Three miles later oh boy another bridge.  To my relief, as I approached the bridge it began to open immediately!  Onward so I thought smiling.  Silly you, John.  Out comes a guy with a 10 foot pole.  A copper cup is attached at the end of the pole and he’s extending the pole out as far as he could reach yelling “Toll is $5” as I’m motoring by.  Surprise.  I can’t stop.  I’m at the tiller dangerously close between the cement foundations of a swinging bridge and he wants me to place $5 dollars in a ‘cup’!  Indeed.  And how was I to know there was a toll, let alone be prepared?  Frantically, I reached into my pocket, pulled out a Canadian $10 and somehow scored it into the cup while passing the concrete foundations.  He responded “There’s not enough time to give you change.”  I yelled back in disgust and relief, “Keep the change.”

I made it through the last portion of the canal without incident and rounded Presque Island unto Lake Ontario heading for Cobourg.

With my auto-pilot on and winds light but steady, I worked on my hatch. For some reason I began loosing my cellphone service trying to verify Coast Guard storm warnings.  Finally reached Cobourg just prior to the marina closing.  Docked and had a great spaghetti meal with a Stella and called it a night.