Tumbleweed Made It To Canada!!

(Smiths Falls, Ontario) Hi 86 Lo 60 --  I didn’t sleep very much last night, it must have been the border crossing jitters.  We were both up by 8:00  and we pulled out of Remington Park RV Campground at Ft. Drum at 9:30.  The weather was excellent. I actually wasn’t as stressed as I thought I would be, just a little nervous about what we’d find at the border.

No one warned me about the bridge over the St. Lawrence River! I don't like bridges, and this one went straight up in the air. I just kept my eyes straight ahead and followed Jim.


Then the Canadian border came into sight.


I tucked in right behind Jim. Jim drove up to the booth and he was there for only a minute or so and then he moved on through. When I drove up to the booth the guy (a very nice looking gentleman) asked me where I was from, was I following the vehicle in front of me (Jim told him we're together), and did I have any weapons.  Then he said have a great day and enjoy Canada. My heart leaped for joy and I pulled in behind Jim. Jim told me he was asked where he's from, where he's going, how long he'll be in Canada, and does he have any firearms or weapons. That's it... nothing about alcohol or food. All that worrying for nothing! :) I want to thank everyone who gave us tips and offered their support.

We are now in Ontario, Canada.


We crossed another bridge, not quite as high as the first one, but still high.




We now have to get used to different looking speed limit signs. They're in kilometers per hour (KPH). We learned a tip for how to convert them to MPH. Multiply the KPH times 6, then drop a zero. That gives you the approximate MPH. In this example, 70 x 6 = 420, drop a zero, for 42 MPH. (It's fun and keeps the mind sharp.)




I love these split rail fences. They're everywhere.


We made the 92 mile trip in a little over two hours. We pulled up to Victoria Park Campground in Smiths Falls, Ontario and met Gail, the very friendly lady in the office. We went to our assigned site and when Jim backed in there were some tree branches in the way.  We went back to the office and discussed it with Gail. She called her superior and it was decided that someone would come out tomorrow morning to trim the branches back. Meanwhile, we moved the rig over some and managed to park well enough that only some light branches are now touching the roof.  We're situated more toward the road than we should be but Gail said we're ok. As long as they trim the branches back from the roof we'll stay where we are.


Victoria Park is really nice and right on the canal that runs next to the Rideau River. There are locks in several locations on the canal. You can see one in the background of this picture. (click on photos to enlarge.)



The view out our back window.


We’re here because of an online connection through the RV-Dreams chatroom. Sandra and I have been online together since 2008.  She and her husband are former full-timers who bought a house about a year ago and now live in Smiths Falls. We’ll be here for two weeks to see the sites and be with Sandra and Gordon.


They came to the park minutes after we got set up. We went to lunch then they took us on a car tour around the area. Gordon is a professional photographer and he took us to some of the locations where he likes to shoot sunrises and sunsets. We also checked out some canal locks. The Rideau Canal has different water levels, and the locks are used to move boats up or down depending on the direction they're going. There is a big lock right next to our campground.

Here, the lock is empty, and the low water level matches the level on the lower end. (There's actually a boat in the lock, but Dummy me, I didn't include it in the picture.)


Then the water is raised to match the level on the other end.


So the boat can come on through. (I finally took a picture of the boat.)
 

This turtle seemed to enjoy riding the water up and down.


These are the Smiths Falls. They're actually part of a dam.


Sandra prepared a delicious dinner for us this evening, and afterward we visited some more before returning to our home. Thank you Sandra and Gordon for the great meal and showing us around the area. We’re looking forward to two wonderful weeks together.