Day 274 – 7/4/24

Starting location: Tied to upstream dock before Davis Lock 38, Ontario, Canada.

Weather: 66 am, 84 pm, mostly sunny

Ending location: Tied to dock downstream from Kingston Mills locks (46-49), Kingston Mills, Ontario, Canada

Statute miles: 27

General summary: Happy 4th of July to the USA! 🇺🇸 It is also a noteworthy day as we are 3/4 of the way through our Loop year. We are still having a great time, for the most part, and not anxious to rush home. I do find myself looking at our supplies differently – not just “do we have enough” but “do we really need any more before we start heading home”. Thinking I need to make certain routine appointments soon (doctor, dentist, veterinarian, various screening tests) and we’ll need to change our home address back so we can vote. Also contacted my employer about getting some part time shifts in the fall. But, trying to focus on what is directly ahead and enjoy the present. We hope to spend the rest of July and August exploring Canada before heading South in Lake Michigan by Labor Day to get to Chicago and return to St. Louis on the Mississippi to “cross our wake” in late September/early October.

We motored on through locks, winding narrow channels, and surprisingly wide lakes to the final set of 4 locks at Kingston Mills (one at the top, then 3 stepped locks just a bit beyond). A power boat a little larger than ours had arrived at Davis Lock in the morning, so we ended up locking through with them all day until they continued on and we tied up after the last lock. This turned out to be a very popular spot for locals to fish. The dock was nicely set between two vegetated tall rock walls which allowed things to start cooling off a bit before the full sunset, but it was a warm night.

I should mention that Cocoa’s urinary symptoms started improving right after the first dose of antibiotics and now seem completely resolved. We will make sure she drinks a lot of water and will take her out for a bathroom break as frequently as possible ongoing, to hopefully prevent another bout.

Also, the gelcoat patch is staying put.