We’ve now been through a second set of locks since leaving California two months ago. This time it is the "tidal" locks at St. Pierre, at the southern entrance to the Bras d’Or lakes on Cape Breton Island.

There are a double set of gates at each end (rather than totally separate locking chambers) and the lock operator simply adjusts the tide level within the lock by letting in or out the water to even the levels. In the olden days this was a land bridge, and vessels were hauled across on skids by oxen.

There is no fee. Just some basic information to provide the lockmaster.

We’ve had some questions about the rail at the forward end of the dinghy. We call this our "Granny" bar. It is very helpful for getting into and out of the dinghy and the younger as well as older generations make use of it. Now that we are used to this, if we were using an inflatable we’d figure a way to install one on the bow.

Walking into town from the anchorage we spied what must be a nest of Arizona Wildcat fans.

They even painted their fire hydrant as a cat (albeit the wrong specie). A few blocks away they were Washington Husky fans, having painted their hydrant as a dog.

St. Pierre is a sleepy village, with quite a few Bed and Breakfast establishments for the summer trade.

They are also big on color (perhaps it is to contrast with the overcast that seems so prevalent).

There were quite a few motorcyclists cruising the main drag, even one with a HOG. You need to enjoy wet weather to ride a bike around here.

There are usually a minimum of two churches in each of the towns we have recently visited.

The local music store proprietor is a jack-of-all-trades. He is a DJ, does upholstery, fiddle/guitar repair and lessons, and floor installations.

Back at the local Lions Club Marina (which has Internet WiFi extending to the anchorage) we found a cutter just up from the British Virgin Islands. This is the only cruising boat we have seen since leaving Halifax. They are another ROCNA anchor aficionado.

St. Pierre marks the bottom end of the Bras d’Or lakes, what appears to be a wonderful cruising area if you are from New England or Eastern Canada. Hundreds of miles of protected shoreline, dozens of snug anchorages, and just enough infrastructure to meet the needs of self sufficient cruisers. With warmer water than outside, the climate is drier and there is less fog than on the coast. We can see how one could spend the better part of the cruising season here.