The Richelieu River and Canals

The Richelieu River and Canals - farewell Canada

With a very favorable current pushing us down the St. Lawrence we made the run to Saint Ours Canal – almost 60 miles – with an average speed of 9 mph.  As a result, we enjoyed a leisurely afternoon in the park on the Island Darvard between the lock and the dam which constitutes the St. Ours Canal. Since this river is home to one special endangered fish – the Copper Redhorse  - a special fish ladder was constructed with the new dam in the 1960s to allow the fish to travel to their traditional spanning grounds up river.  While the dam was not impressive – the twisty fish ladder was interesting, but sadly we did not see any fish making the climb on our visit. On the island we also visited the historic canal superintendent’s house which is now a visitor center and mini-museum.  Our stop coincided with an “event” so the place was packed with families and tents enjoying the sunny afternoon and learning the history of this area. This “canal” consists of only the one lock which lifted us 5 feet to clear the rapids here and smooth our run up the river for the next 30 miles to Chambly.

The town of Chambly sits at the top of the Chambly canal – a 19 kilometer stretch with 9 locks again to circumvent a series of rapids between Chambly and St. Jean sur Richelieu. Both towns were major defensive points on this route between Lake Champlain and the United States and both New France and British North America/Canada.  These forts were developed as a result of the failed American attempts to conquer lower Canada during the American revolutionary war and again during the War of 1812.  The English beefed up the defenses along the border with the U.S. as a precaution.  From these military roots,  we still have forts like the one  we saw at Kingston and again in Chambly, the Rideau Canal and this navigable water route between the St. Lawrence and Lake Champlain which allows the friendly exchange of pleasure boats easy transit between the two countries. Many of the forts which the British built have been restored and are now maintained as parks like the one here on the shores of Chambly Basin. Only a few of the original buildings remain, but the there is enough to give the flavor of this town that has roots reaching back to the American revolutionary era.  The majority of the town’s historic district, however, dates to the height of the canal’s prosperity in the mid to late 19^th Century. 

From Chambly it took most of a day – almost 6 hours – to reach the last lock on this canal in St. Jean sur Richelieu where we spent out last last night in Canada. :(

During our summer in Canada there is one question we were repeatedly asked.  “Do you really come from Florida?”  Immediately followed by – “Did you really come all the way by boat and how long did it take?”  Many Canadians spend at least part of the winter in the southern U.S. and some had even heard of Panama City although few really had any idea where we call home.  All of our questioners, however, were courteous.  No matter how great their curiosity, we were never “bothered” or harassed.  Conversations inevitably started with – “excuse me” or “sorry to bother you but….”. The stereo-type of Canadian politeness was in every case our experience. Maybe it is just boating, but we have been fortunate to encounter helpful, thoughtful, and kind people all along our route. This is especially true in the French areas where English – especially menus and instructions are harder to find.  My pitiful French is greeted with a smile and the friendly desire to meet me halfway with their English – always more proficient than my French.  It is with regret that we are soon leaving our northern neighbors and look forward to returning in the coming seasons. Of course, those almond croissants and bowls of frothy Cappuccino might have something to do with it as well!

Finally a shout out to the outstanding service we have enjoyed at all the Parks Canada locks and docks.  The smiles, greetings, and helpful operation of locks in rain or burning sunshine has been special bonus to our time this summer.  Thanks, keep up the good work and hope to be back soon.