The first lock today was Lock 14. The college girl working there said the cheese place was her favorite thing about Campbellford. Except of course she really said it was her “favourite” thing, because up here they spell those kinds of words that way. Either way, as previously noted, we missed it. We did get some delicious doughnuts, however, before shoving off.
Since (1) we couldn’t drone over the last double lock and (2) we didn’t have the camera ready in time when we went through it, the second double lock gave us a chance for minor redemption in the form of another time-lapse video.
We know, we know, the video is too jerky. This was an experiment with 10-second intervals, done as a test before the super-awesome-we-can’t-wait Peterborough Lift Lock. That spectacle comes in a few days since we are staying in Peterborough until Monday morning.
Our buddy Blomo left this afternoon. We probably enjoyed his company more than he enjoyed the slow pace of the Looper lifestyle, but we think he at least understands why we find it so awesome. We hope he returns with his wife.
We’ve learned and observed a few things about Canada during the short time we’ve been here. For example, daylight on summer days last about 18 hours. No joke. There are morning rays at 4 a.m. and it’s light enough to walk around at 10 p.m. This apparently makes it easy to grow flowers.
Also, they tell us summer only lasts about four days. Which means everybody wants flowers whenever possible. The Parks Canada folks tend flowers at the locks, usually in boats. Clever, eh?
Even when nobody is looking, flowers pop up. This one was growing out of a concrete lock wall. Poor little thing likely is unaware that its struggles to bloom will be for nothing when the ice and snow arrive next week.
Of course, there’s often a thorn amidst beauty. We wonder if the dude who thought this sign was funny is related to the guy who put his leather recliner on a float in the river.
Dana wanted to drop an anchor and wait awhile, but we needed to get to Hastings so Blomo could catch his evening shuttle to Toronto. We docked at Hastings Village Marina and promptly did what we always do—look for lunch. For some reason there’s a statue of a big fish and a little fish just past the marina, perhaps to show fishermen what size fish they can catch and what size fish they can claim they caught.
When Shannon was a Blackhawk, she played with a girl named Anna Hess. Anna’s double was a singer at karaoke night.
Turns out the biggest thing all week in Hastings—population 1,200—is karaoke night at McGillicafey’s Pub. According to the bartendress, the locals practice all week. It was way cool. One of us was tempted to sing Rocky Top, but they probably didn’t have it on the machine. We’re glad we went. They’re glad Doug didn’t sing.
