Uploaded November 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
All of the clips in the video were filmed on Monday September 6th, 2021. This video summarizes the tenth and final day of my solo canoeing adventure on the Rideau Canal.
Strava for Day 10: strava.com/activities/5922283993
In this episode, I begin from my campsite at the Hartwells Lockstation and paddle north along the Rideau Canal and Ottawa River to the Rockcliffe Marina. The section of the canal between the Hartwells Locks and the Ottawa Locks gets transformed into the Rideau Canal Skateway each winter. I decided to paddle the same route as the skateway. When I reached Dow's Lake, I paddled across to the other side where the Dows Lake Pavilion is, before turning around to rejoin the main route of the canal. I did the same thing when I reached Patterson's creek. When I reached the Ottawa Locks, I shared the locks with 7 other boats and took the canoe through all 8 locks in the flight. When we reached the bottom of Lock 3, we were able to continue straight into Lock 1, essentially bypassing Lock 2. Once I reached the Ottawa River, I paddled across to the Quebec side to get a view of the skyline of Ottawa. I then paddled downstream past the Rideau Falls and 24 Sussex Dr before reaching the Rockcliffe Marina. I paddled under a total of 11 bridges in this video including the Bronson Avenue Bridge, the Bank Street Bridge, the Flora Footbridge, the Pretoria Bridge, Hwy 417, the Corktown Footbridge, the Laurier Avenue Bridge, the Mackenzie King Bridge, the Plaza Bridge, the Alexandra Bridge and the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge.
Why was I able to bypass Lock 2?
When they originally were building those locks (1831), they decided to extend the walls of Lock 1 higher to be the same level as Lock 2, to help protect the locks from getting damaged if there were extremely high water levels in the Ottawa River below. So does that mean that Lock 2 has been completely useless from the start? I believe the answer is no. Even though it had higher walls, I don't think Lock 1 was designed to handle double the lift of all the other locks in that flight. Originally boats would have been lifted down to the bottom of Lock 2 before entering Lock 1. But why are they able to bypass Lock 2 today? For one thing, the water level in the Ottawa River is higher there today than it was in 1831 because of a Dam that was placed downstream. I also believe it's likely that upgrades have been made to this lock over the last 190 years which make that possible. Having 1 less lock certainly saves time.
Campsite Overnight Oats: youtu.be/jNoMXeY4y8s
Skating the Rideau 2015 (Top to Bottom): youtu.be/bOqSutD4Ipo
Skating the Rideau 2015 (Bottom to Top): youtu.be/u3XB2TZ8X_Q
Skating the Rideau 2014 (Fail): youtu.be/KIMtsZYR09U
Skating the Rideau 2011 (first visit): youtu.be/CrEe9ofNvcM
Downtown Ottawa - Narrated Canoeing: youtu.be/PPnGQKyUqjU
Rideau Canal Trip: youtube.com/watch?v=6D4_tWHhQh0&list=PL0a5DXVTM1Gug_91_B5JgJqV47gww7SvX
Trent-Severn Waterway Trip: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0a5DXVTM1Gs-FWa0wpSY8s9lBuPhAfZ1
The canoe is a Bluewater Peterborough 16', made of Kevlar and manufactured in Guelph, ON in the early 1990's. I filmed this video using Samsung Galaxy S10 & Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphones. The GPS I used for the trip is a Garmin eTrex 30.
I hope you enjoyed this video. Please COMMENT and subscribe!
Thanks for watching.
All of the clips in the video were filmed on Monday September 6th, 2021. This video summarizes the tenth and final day of my solo canoeing adventure on the Rideau Canal.
Strava for Day 10: strava.com/activities/5922283993
In this episode, I begin from my campsite at the Hartwells Lockstation and paddle north along the Rideau Canal and Ottawa River to the Rockcliffe Marina. The section of the canal between the Hartwells Locks and the Ottawa Locks gets transformed into the Rideau Canal Skateway each winter. I decided to paddle the same route as the skateway. When I reached Dow's Lake, I paddled across to the other side where the Dows Lake Pavilion is, before turning around to rejoin the main route of the canal. I did the same thing when I reached Patterson's creek. When I reached the Ottawa Locks, I shared the locks with 7 other boats and took the canoe through all 8 locks in the flight. When we reached the bottom of Lock 3, we were able to continue straight into Lock 1, essentially bypassing Lock 2. Once I reached the Ottawa River, I paddled across to the Quebec side to get a view of the skyline of Ottawa. I then paddled downstream past the Rideau Falls and 24 Sussex Dr before reaching the Rockcliffe Marina. I paddled under a total of 11 bridges in this video including the Bronson Avenue Bridge, the Bank Street Bridge, the Flora Footbridge, the Pretoria Bridge, Hwy 417, the Corktown Footbridge, the Laurier Avenue Bridge, the Mackenzie King Bridge, the Plaza Bridge, the Alexandra Bridge and the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge.
Why was I able to bypass Lock 2?
When they originally were building those locks (1831), they decided to extend the walls of Lock 1 higher to be the same level as Lock 2, to help protect the locks from getting damaged if there were extremely high water levels in the Ottawa River below. So does that mean that Lock 2 has been completely useless from the start? I believe the answer is no. Even though it had higher walls, I don't think Lock 1 was designed to handle double the lift of all the other locks in that flight. Originally boats would have been lifted down to the bottom of Lock 2 before entering Lock 1. But why are they able to bypass Lock 2 today? For one thing, the water level in the Ottawa River is higher there today than it was in 1831 because of a Dam that was placed downstream. I also believe it's likely that upgrades have been made to this lock over the last 190 years which make that possible. Having 1 less lock certainly saves time.
Campsite Overnight Oats: youtu.be/jNoMXeY4y8s
Skating the Rideau 2015 (Top to Bottom): youtu.be/bOqSutD4Ipo
Skating the Rideau 2015 (Bottom to Top): youtu.be/u3XB2TZ8X_Q
Skating the Rideau 2014 (Fail): youtu.be/KIMtsZYR09U
Skating the Rideau 2011 (first visit): youtu.be/CrEe9ofNvcM
Downtown Ottawa - Narrated Canoeing: youtu.be/PPnGQKyUqjU
Rideau Canal Trip: youtube.com/watch?v=6D4_tWHhQh0&list=PL0a5DXVTM1Gug_91_B5JgJqV47gww7SvX
Trent-Severn Waterway Trip: youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0a5DXVTM1Gs-FWa0wpSY8s9lBuPhAfZ1
The canoe is a Bluewater Peterborough 16', made of Kevlar and manufactured in Guelph, ON in the early 1990's. I filmed this video using Samsung Galaxy S10 & Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphones. The GPS I used for the trip is a Garmin eTrex 30.
I hope you enjoyed this video. Please COMMENT and subscribe!
Thanks for watching.
