Catch Our Lines: Peterborough Lift Lock

We stayed several days in Peterborough, ON, looking for boat repair parts (shower) and buying a few groceries. We rode the city bus all over Peterborough - a good deal, $8.00 for both of us to ride as much as we wanted in one day. We also walked a lot!! We also joined a group of Loopers at the Peterborough Marina for docktails.

We saw many pretty houses with decorated gardens. Novel use for an old door.

We spent our first night at lock 19 wall. We enjoyed breakfast with Grant and Cindy Crowson, from Napanee, Ontario at a nearby restaurant with bargain breakfast prices. Good food, too. Their boat name is "As the Crow Flies".

Blue Moon tied to lock 20 wall.

I'm glad we weren't in the lock with that big tour boat.

Lock 20, Sharon standing on the bridge.

As we were preparing to leave, King met a family that was on an RV vacation. They were interested in our boat, the loop, and the lift lock, saying that they would like to buy a boat and go on the loop someday. We asked if they would like to ride with us from Lock 20 to Lock 21 (the Lift Lock, about a mile away). They said, "sure" and jumped on board.

Mark, Janice, Tory (6 yrs.) and Cassie (4 yrs.) from Simcoe, Ontario were our guests.

The two most amazing things about the lift lock is the size (it is bigger than it seems to be in the pictures) and that is was completed in 1904. There is also a museum at the site that shows actual photos of the construction of the lift.

Each of the two pans weighs 1300 tons when filled. With one pan up and the other down, the two balance each other. It does not matter how many boats are in either pan because a boat displaces its own weight in water. When it is time to lower one pan and raise the other, one extra foot of water (130 tons) is allowed to enter the upper pan. This extra weight allows the upper pan to push down and raise the lower pan to the top level.

There is an on-site museum that explains how the Peterborough Lift Lock works and how it was built.

View of the lock from the museum.

We are in the pan. Notice we aren't holding the lines because the lines are tied and cleated to the side rails. It takes about 45 seconds to complete the ride up.

Blue Moon tied to the top of the Lift Lock wall, lock 21. We were the only boat at this wall that night.

View from the top One pan up - on the top left and the other pan is in the lower center of the photo. See how small the lock master and workers appear in the center of the photo.