Wednesday, June 27, 2007
On the Rideau Canal: Merrickville and Smiths Fall, Ontario
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Monday - Wednesday, June 25-27. On Monday, the four of us traveled through a total of 15 Rideau locks and approximately 43 miles, leaving the urban landscape of Ottawa and gradually entering a more rural setting. This was probably the longest stretch of our Rideau adventure, but it felt good to cover so much ground. On Monday afternoon we finally tied up to a wall in Merrickville, which is a popular stop because cute shops, galleries, artist studios, and restaurants are just down the street. On Tuesday the weather turned really hot – with a heat index of 104 degrees F! Even in the heat, we enjoyed going to a glass-blowing studio, a metal working shop, a pottery studio and several other shops (after Martha and I parked Jim and Bob at the boat). We spent an extra night in Merrickville because we could connect to electricity here -- and air conditioning was a must for us wimpy Americans.
Today (Wednesday) we went as far as Smith Falls (Lock 32), stopping because thunderstorms are threatening. We made one stop along the way to get supplied with our favorite booty – CHOCOLATE! A Hershey’s factory is located just a half-mile from Old Slys Lock. Needless to say, we made it there and back in record time on foot, armed with pounds and pounds of dark brown treasure. We were on high alert for armed attack, but we made it to the boat safely, where we enjoyed a Hershey lunch.
Rumor has it that there is a weak WiFi signal around here. If the blog gets posted today, the rumor was true.
Monday - Wednesday, June 25-27. On Monday, the four of us traveled through a total of 15 Rideau locks and approximately 43 miles, leaving the urban landscape of Ottawa and gradually entering a more rural setting. This was probably the longest stretch of our Rideau adventure, but it felt good to cover so much ground. On Monday afternoon we finally tied up to a wall in Merrickville, which is a popular stop because cute shops, galleries, artist studios, and restaurants are just down the street. On Tuesday the weather turned really hot – with a heat index of 104 degrees F! Even in the heat, we enjoyed going to a glass-blowing studio, a metal working shop, a pottery studio and several other shops (after Martha and I parked Jim and Bob at the boat). We spent an extra night in Merrickville because we could connect to electricity here -- and air conditioning was a must for us wimpy Americans.Today (Wednesday) we went as far as Smith Falls (Lock 32), stopping because thunderstorms are threatening. We made one stop along the way to get supplied with our favorite booty – CHOCOLATE! A Hershey’s factory is located just a half-mile from Old Slys Lock. Needless to say, we made it there and back in record time on foot, armed with pounds and pounds of dark brown treasure. We were on high alert for armed attack, but we made it to the boat safely, where we enjoyed a Hershey lunch.
Rumor has it that there is a weak WiFi signal around here. If the blog gets posted today, the rumor was true.
