Captain’s Log — Wednesday, September 9, 2026
Conditions on the Trent-Severn Waterway. Trenton → Georgian Bay, km 0–386.
Open water first: strong wind warning on Lake Simcoe; strong wind warning on Georgian Bay; strong wind warning on Georgian Bay. If your day involves the crossing, check the marine forecast below before you commit to it.
Sturgeon Lake is the low spot on the system today at -13 cm (-5.3 in) against its usual level for this month. That doesn’t move the chart — it moves what’s under your keel.
All 40 locks and 12 bridges are showing operable on the Parks Canada feed.
Shoulder season. Traffic thins, lock hours start shrinking, and the nights get cold enough to matter.
On the water today
| Where | Now | Wind | Today |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trenton Lock 1 — Bay of Quinte |
Cloudy, 19.8°C | SE 2 kt (gust 15) | Cloudy. |
| Peterborough Locks 19–21 — Otonabee |
Cloudy, 16.7°C | — | Cloudy with 40 percent chance of showers this morning. |
| Fenelon Falls Locks 34–35 — Kawartha Lakes |
Cloudy, 16.7°C | — | Cloudy with 40 percent chance of showers this morning. |
| Orillia Locks 41–42 — Simcoe/Couchiching |
17.7°C | SSW 1 kt (gust 17) | Showers. |
| Midland Lock 45 — Georgian Bay |
17.7°C | SSW 1 kt (gust 17) | Showers. |
Sunrise 06:45, sunset 19:35 at Peterborough (Eastern).
Seasonal normal for the date: Low 9. High 21.
Open water — Simcoe and Georgian Bay
The two stretches on the waterway where the forecast actually decides your day.
Lake Simcoe
⚠ Strong wind warning — in effect.
- Wind: Wind south 10 knots increasing to southwest 20 near noon then diminishing to west 15 early this evening. Wind veering to northwest 15 near noon Thursday.
- Weather: Showers today and this evening with a risk of thunderstorms.
- Covers: Today Tonight and Thursday.
Observed at the buoy, Sep 9, 2026 4:00 am ET: S 7.8 kt, seas 0.2 m (0.7 ft) at a 2-second period, water 21.5 °C.
Georgian Bay
⚠ Strong wind warning, Strong wind warning — in effect.
- Wind: Wind south 15 knots increasing to southwest 20 early this morning then veering to west 20 this evening. Wind veering to northwest 20 Thursday morning.
- Waves: Waves 0.5 to 1 metre building to 1 to 1.5 early this morning then subsiding to 1 Thursday morning.
- Weather: Showers ending this evening with a risk of thunderstorms.
- Covers: Today Tonight and Thursday.
Along the waterway
Reported in the corridor over the last few days. Headlines are the publishers’ own — follow the link for the current state of any story, since these move faster than a daily post can.
- Affordability is ‘the tide that floats all boats,’ says JL Durnford — OrilliaMatters, Sep 8
- Harry Van Oudenaren’s Memory Of Looking Across Big Bob Channel For Bobcaygeon’s 150th Anniversary! — Kawartha 411, Sep 7
- Learn About The State Of Our Lakes At Symposium In Fenelon Falls — Kawartha 411, Sep 6
Water levels
Each gauge is compared against its own historical average for this month. The deviation is the number that matters — gauge datum is not chart datum, so the reading itself won’t tell you a depth, but the change from normal tells you how today compares to a typical day this time of year.
| Gauge | Pool | vs. normal | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trenton | Bay of Quinte to Lock 1 | -4 cm (-1.6 in) | 🔵 |
| Lower Glen Ross | Lock 6 to Lock 8 Pool | -1 cm (-0.3 in) | 🔵 |
| Upper Glen Ross | Lock 8 to Lock 11 Pool | +2 cm (+0.6 in) | 🔵 |
| Crowe River | Crowe River Tributary | +21 cm (+8.2 in) | 🟢 |
| Indian River | Indian River to Rice Lake | +1 cm (+0.2 in) | 🔵 |
| Otonabee / Peterborough | Rice Lake to Lock 20 Pool | -0 cm (-0.1 in) | 🔵 |
| Sturgeon Lake | Sturgeon Lake / Fenelon Falls Pool | -13 cm (-5.3 in) | 🔴 |
| Burnt River | Burnt River to Balsam Lake | +22 cm (+8.9 in) | 🟢 |
| Gull River | Gull River to Balsam Lake | +11 cm (+4.2 in) | 🟢 |
| Head River | Head River to Lake Simcoe | +12 cm (+4.6 in) | 🟢 |
| Severn / Couchiching | Lake Couchiching Outflow | +16 cm (+6.2 in) | 🟢 |
| Wasdell Falls | Sparrow Lake to Big Chute Pool | -1 cm (-0.3 in) | 🔵 |
🔴 more than 10 cm low · 🟠 5–10 cm low · 🔵 within 5 cm of normal · 🟢 above normal. Live readings and 30-day charts →
Locks and bridges
All 40 locks and 12 bridges on the Parks Canada feed are reporting operable.
Parks Canada status last synced 2026-09-09 05:00:03 ET.
Sécurité — navigational warnings
1 warning(s) published in the last seven days:
- NW-C-3880-26 — Meaford — Other, 2026-09-05
Vicinity: Meaford Category: Military Exercises (Other) Exercises using white parachute flares taking place daily until 010400 UTC Oct 2026 at the Land Force Central Area Training Centre in Meaford. Charts: 2201(NAD83)
Sources: Environment and Climate Change Canada (weather, marine and hydrometric data, Open Government Licence — Canada); Parks Canada Trent-Severn Waterway lockstation status; Canadian Coast Guard NAVWARNs; regional news headlines as published and linked to their sources. Water gauge readings are on assumed datum and are not chart datum.
This is not a substitute for official sources. Conditions change faster than any daily post. Check Parks Canada before you travel and carry current charts.
Compiled 2026-09-09 06:00 ET from live feeds.