Day #10: Ottawa!

Another overflowing lock. This one, however, was done on purpose. While unique, the lock master said he likes it. When the water starts flowing over the door the lock is full.

We couldn't have asked for a nicer night on the hook. The stars came out and the winds never got above a whisper. Nellie, who is known to fight the bit, slept soundly. The locks don't start their summer hours until 15 June so this morning we got to lollygag until 10am.

The dreaded zebra mussel.

Alice in Wonderland came to mind when discussing the effects of the Rideau's zebra mussels with the lock master of Hartwells (locks 9 & 10). Zebra mussels are an invasive species which grow incredibly quickly and pack densely together. They are filter feeders and it's estimated that each mussel sieves one quart of water a day. The result is clear water. That's good right? Actually, no. The sun now penetrates to greater depths allowing grasses to grow in areas, think navigational channels, where previously they couldn't. Channel maintenance now includes mowing the grass.

Pirates of the Rideau! Luckily we were able to out run them.

The spires of the Fairmont Chateau Laurier tell us we're nearing the end of the Rideau Canal.

Try as he may, John couldn't push open the the lock that separates Nellie from the Ottawa River and points north. Because of severe flooding the river (and these last eight locks) are closed to navigation. And, for the intrepid individual that goes anyway, a $5,000 fine awaits. So, Nellie's good waiting. It's anyone's guess when the flooding will abate, but the experts say we should expect to proceed no earlier than mid June. On the bright side Nellie's the only boat here in downtown Ottawa. In fact, she's only the third boat here this season. An apt analogy is arriving at Union Station at rush hour and finding yourself all alone. Disorienting for sure, but once the dissonance passes, it's exhilarating.

15 Miles from Long Reach to downtown Ottawa. Nellie is now less than a half mile from the Rideau's terminus and 125 miles from its beginning. The blog posts will begin again when Nellie gets underway.

219 miles into 2019. 8441 miles from Naples. Less than 1/4 mile from Canada's Parliment building--how cool is that! DBH