Ontario Canals here we come!

[SalishAire]

This thread is for those who are interested in our trip from Washington State to the Canals of Ontario.

We left on May 3rd, 2023 and immediately got off to a rocky start. We made it over Snoqualmie Pass without incident but when we drove away from our afternoon rest stop we hit a really big pothole. Going over Sauk Pass it seemed like the brakes were a bit weak but since we always gear down and use our brakes only intermittently we got down the very steep and curvy grades safely. On arrival at Clarice’s friend’s house a walk-around check revealed that one of the four brake calipers mounting brackets had broken clean off and the caliper was left floating between the wheel and the disk and the hydraulic line to it had broken clean off. The problem originated when we purchased the boat and trailer we learned that the trailer was never intended to have brakes on it so the frame didn’t offer much clearance. We believe that the pothole caused the caliper to hit (rather than slide by) the frame and thus break free. Our work around is to cap the hydraulic line to the rear axel and thus we have good braking on only the front axel.

Night #2 we stayed at a friend’s B&B in Spokane.

Day #3 we crossed the Rocky Mountains into Western Montana. We stayed in an unusual Harvest Host site where the absentee owner lets you stay on his 5 acres next to the Clark Fork River where he has set up 5 RV pads with power. He only asks that you send him $30 for using the site.

Day #4 we stayed a second night in Montana at a Grist Mill which is also a Harvest Host site. Our “fee” for staying was buying a milkshake, some salt water taffee, and a pound of fresh ground red wheat flour. The have several RV sites set up under the Grey Cliffs of Greycliff.

Day #5 we stayed at Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota – we had never been there before but plan to return as it is really pretty and it was cool to have buffalo and wild horses visit our campground next to the Yellowstone River.

Day #6 we stayed at a farm in Minnesota under the Boondockers Welcome program. It was especially nice as the host provided us with a chili dinner and conversation (we are also Boondockers Hosts and don’t offer dinner!!).

Day #7 we stayed at another Boondockers site in the northern woods of Wisconsin where we were serenaded by frogs and birds for the evening.

Today we are staying with my aunt at her “farm” where I visited with my cousins and played in the Michigan woods for hours on end as a child. The neat thing is I’ve never seen masses of trillium flowers in bloom off through the forest floor like we are seeing today.

[Nancy]

Thanks for this first installment. I'm looking forward to following along.

[SalishAire]

I've been trying to get enough bandwidth to upload some photos so here goes. (Currently just inside of Michigan, ready to cross into Ontario early tomorrow.)

[DesertAlbin736]

Trailer brake issues? Ha ha, been there, done that! On our first east coast "DA" trip to Erie Canal, NY, Westerly, RI, & Cheasapeake Bay via NJ & DE we had a similar case where the disc brake caliper on the right rear axle came loose & chewed up a rotor. In our case we took a more southerly route, first up to Pueblo, CO to visit a cousin who lives there, thence across I-80 & I-90 to Seneca Lake State Park in Geneva, NY as our initial launch point. We lost that right rear trailer brake as we passed through the town of Morris, Illinois. We tried to find a brake shop & the best we could find was "Captain Nabber's Shop" in Morris, IL, which apparently is still in business and pretty much looked like this. Or at least it did in 2015. This was during the 2nd year of ownership of La Dolce VIta. He didn't have any immediate access to the proper brake parts without waiting days to special order. So like you, we removed the caliper, pads, bracket, and rotor, then blanked off the hydraulic line to that axle and went on our way with brakes working on front axle only.

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We did the section of the Erie from the Cayuga-Seneca Canal junction with the Erie, thence westward to Fairport, NY and back, then drove on to Rhode Island to spend a week with sailing club friends in a rental beach house where I was able to dock the boat in a marina on the Pawcatuck River and get the parts needed to fix the trailer while it was parked back at the beach house where we parked it along side of the house.

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All part of the fun of "DA'ing"!

Looking forward to seeing more updates on your trip!

Onward through the fog!

[jetter]

No need to hurry. I do not think Trent Severn Waterway opens until May 19th.

[SalishAire]

To make life interesting we decided that the brake damage to the trailer was severe enough that we would do a trailer swap in Canada (we are USA residents). The new trailer is now registered to our daughter (an Ontario resident) who will gift it to us when we head home to Washington. The old trailer was given away as "scrap" to a local guy. The first step was getting the better grade tires swapped to the better aluminum rims on the new trailer and swapping the brake activators (we had just bought an electric over hydraulic activator). Yesterday we spent much of the day looking at measurements we had taken along with photos to make educated guesses as to how to set the bunks on the new trailer. Today we go and see if the boat will load at a marina where it is stored about 20 minutes away.

[SalishAire]

Finally after Hyacinth sat at the dock in Lake Ontario for about 48 hours we tried loading her on the new trailer - try #1 was a failure as the balance was bad and the aft bunks were way too tall; In the yard we found a nice grassy place to work and moved the axels forward about 8 inches (apparently the trailer's previous tenant had a rear engine(s)) and removed the aft bunks that had completely failed - try #2 much better and without the aft bunks in place we were able to get much better measurements (the boat was balanced by the front bunks - we were very very careful pulling it free of the water) - try #3 (moved the axels about 4 inches further and reinstalled the newly sized aft bunks) was good enough we felt we could tow home, rest and get a really good look before final adjustments. Here is how she looks now recognizing she needs a few more tweeks.

[Burton]

It is a joy to follow your adventure— we’d love to do the canals just as something new. Ah, the joy of getting a new trailer set up. We got Slow Motion with no trailer. Thankfully, we’ve six boat stands and got things pretty good first shot on tongue weight by looking at pics online for boat placement relative to the axles. It was slow going, however, getting the boat on the new trailer from the boat stands.

[DesertAlbin736]

Slick looking trailer! I like that it's more of a shallow angle tapering toward the the tongue hitch. Over the years since we inherited the now 24 years old trailer from PO's. I've had to deal with metal fatigue issues where the "bend" from parallel frame to the hitch is a sharper angle. Ended up with fatigue cracks at the cross member & sagging, or "hogging" in nautical speak. This picture before spending $1,300 to have a very good professional welder "box in" the frame from 5 ft behind the angle to 5 ft ahead with 3/8" aluminum plate. & add another cross member. The only issue remaining is that the front torsion bar axle is slightly out of alignment on the left wheel & prematurely wears left front tire on long road trips. The only solution is to replace the axle.

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You can see the modification in this 2019 "on the road" shot.

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[WillieC]

That’s 164 years there! If I added correctly.

Vintage!

[SalishAire]

We are now in the water in northeastern Lake Ontario. To continue following our Ontario adventure, we hope/plan to keep our blog up to date: https://claricenorman.blogspot.com/

[SalishAire]

Absolutely loving our time so far on the Rideau Canal! We have had lovely weather. The pass which allows for camping at the locks has turned out to be a great deal as the locks have really nice docks and park like settings (power is often available for an extra fee) all with toilets (one with a free shower). If you are a Ham operator, I am trying to do some Parks on the Air (POTA) activations along the way - last evening was very successful with clear reception from Italy, Spain, and North Africa!

[DesertAlbin736]

Awesome!! Green with envy! We've given up on any future "DA" trips talking our boat out to the east coast & the Rideau Canal. But perhaps some time in the future will consider flying out & chartering a Le Boat rental for the Rideau? Also looking at possibilities of chartering a canal boat in England or Wales.

Happy cruising & keep the pics coming!

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[ssrig]

Those dock parks look great! Boat looks great too! Thanks for posting!

[jetter]

A little history....the Canal was opened in 1832. It was built after the War of 1812 as a defensive measure in case the USA invaded again. We have been lucky to have only American tourists invade for the past 211 years.