Locking in the Defever 49 CPMY: Long story short, locks either have cables or pipe that the boat connects to with its own line or use the weighted lines that are attached to the top of the lock and then taken to the boat. As the boat rises or falls in the lock, the boater then adjusts the lines to stay close to the lock wall.

In the Erie Canal, with weighted lines, we found that the middle hawsepipe with cleat enables excellent balance as the only connection to the weighted lines. The captain then stays at the helm using differential power to keep the bow straight. We found that when both of us are on the deck with each taking a weighted line, for some reason it is more difficult to control the boat. A you will ready below, hen using the pipe or cable, that’s not the case. But, when using weighted lines, we use the middle hawsepipe.

In the Trent-Severn Waterway it is a different story. The Waterway requires engines to be shut down when the lock is in operation which changes the approach. All of the Waterway locks have cables fastened to the side of the lock, When we enter the lock, we first loop a forward line around a cable, then twist the boat to the side, the captain then ensures the boat is in neutral, and loops a stern line around the aft cable and ties it off briefly. Then the captain shuts down the engines and returns to the stern line, untying it and then managing it as the boat rises or lowers in the lock. Once the level is reached the captain ties off the line, starts then engines, retrieves the stern line then returns to the helm. When ready, the person on the bow retrieves the line and off you go.