Rideau Canal

 The Rideau Canal runs from The Ottawa river in Ottawa to Kingston on the north shore of Lake Ontario. It was opened in 1832 and built to insure commerce could continue in the event those pesky Americans to the south decided to shut down the St. Lawrence river. There are 45 locks over a distance of about 125 miles. We took 2 and a half weeks traveling this waterway.

As seen in the last post we started the trip by going up a flight of 8 locks which puts us on a Parc Canada wall right in downtown. Unfortunately just as we started up the locks the remnants of Tropical System Beryl decided to arrive and stayed for our 2 day visit. We still had a good time but didn't get many pictures.

Canal Wall

Leaving Ottawa

All but 2 of the locks are still hand operated so the process can take a bit of time but the staff is very efficient, Below is a short video of opening the lock gates.

In many areas the desired depth for the canal was reached by building dams to raise the water level versus having to dig or blast a channel through solid rock. Considering that these dams were built in the early 1800's they are truly impressive. You can see the boat below tied up to the wall with the entrance to the lock on the far left.

We had bought two passes before the season that cover locking and mooring. The mooring pass becomes a better deal the more you use it and we used it a bunch. I'll give you a cost per night at the end of the season when Jill gives me the numbers. They usually limit you to 2 nights at each stop to make room for others. Below is a picture of us below the lock at Burritts Rapids where we were able to stay a 3rd night. 

We didn't stay because it was so nice but because we really wanted to stop in the next town of Merrickville. The lock wall there had been closed due to high water since Beryl came through. We're glad we waited the extra day as the town was very nice. Below is a video of the spillway and dock. I don't think I'd want to be there with it flowing more!

A couple of shots of the town.

The next town is the "largest" along the waterway between Ottawa and Kingston but still a pretty small town. We paid for a slip at the town run marina as it was a weekend and this is a very popular stop.

The town also has a very nice, small railroad museum worth an hour or two. Smith Falls was a railroad hub when the railroad replaced the canal as a major form of transport. They have 3 caboose's that you can spend the night in.

Up until the early 70's CP rail had a traveling dental car that made yearly visits to small towns that didn't have one. 

The long time president of the railroad had a 47 Cadi transformed into a rail car so he could tour the line in comfort.

Up until Smith Falls the waterway is mostly a combination of canal and narrow river. 

It was at Smith Falls that we first saw the tour boat Kawartha Voyager. This boat is not one you want to meet in a narrow pass.

After Smith Falls the Rideau becomes more a series of larger lakes connected by narrow canals.

Next stop was near the town of Perth which is reached via the Tay canal. We decided to stay below the locks and ride our bikes into town. Below is Chasing 80 tied up below the lock as seen from the bridge. Keep the lake in the background in mind...

These locks don't get as much use as the Rideau so can take on a bit of a swamp monster persona.

That evening after coming back from town we received the following....

We went up to the stone lockhouse incase we needed to take cover and were able to watch the tornado pass from right to left out in the lake...too close (again).

We spent an extra day at this lock to let the weather calm down and then went to the very nice town of Westport. Its small but has many shops and even a brewery close to the town marina.

After Westport we had a few more stays at lock walls before reaching the town of Kingston. One example of Parc Canada lock walls is actually the floating docks we found occasionally.

Just before the above dock we passed through one of the more narrow places and someplace you don't want to be surprised by the Voyager. Another plus for AIS.

 Luckily the  tour boat happened to be just behind us when we traveled this stretch. We were safely tied up when they passed by in "short lock mode".

Next we were on to Kingston. When we started the trip this year we didn't really know if we would be able to get there or would have to make a big U-turn. The lift bridge just before town had broken in the spring during some maintenance. It took them some time to determine it couldn't be repaired and they would have to remove it. Look up LaSalle Causeway removal for a good video. Below is how we found it.

 We spent a few days in Kingston to restock and hit a couple of breweries before moving on to Trenton where we are now. This beautiful 1929 Commuter stopped by the marina while we were there.

The plan had been to spend a week in Trenton and get some waxing done on the boat. Well, it turns out I picked up something else in Kingston...Canadian covid...I didn't loose my tastebuds but now everything tastes like maple! I guess my luck ran out after successfully dodging it for 4 years. So far Jill is clear and I'm on the upswing but there hasn't been any waxing done. We'll stay here for another week and see if we can catch up. 

So that's how you get 2 blog updates in the same week...you're welcome bro! Probably won't get another one out till we get home as I plan to return to having fun soon!