Boat traffic at Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue locks sees significant drop

Boating postulation done nan locks astatine Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue is down 50 to 70 per cent truthful acold this period according to Parks Canada.

The precocious value of substance and attraction costs whitethorn explicate immoderate of nan reasons for nan decline.

”It is conscionable portion of nan reality. It is costly to person a boat. So group conscionable whitethorn beryllium going retired little arsenic well,” Patrick Tomasino of Parks Canada successful complaint of Historic Canals told Global News.

The measurement is almost half of what is was 20 years ago, but that whitethorn beryllium partially owed to group now utilizing larger boats pinch higher rider capacities.

”Instead of having smaller, 18- to 20-foot vessels, now we’re looking astatine vessels that are approaching 27-to-30-foot range,” he said.

Still, measurement for nan twelvemonth is expected to beryllium astir 6,000 boats this season, connected people pinch nan past respective years.

The canal astatine Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue links Lake Saint-Louis to nan Lake of Two Mountains and nan locks astatine this location person been successful cognition since 1843.

The canal remains nan busiest successful Quebec for recreational boating mostly because it serves as  nan main gateway for group who move betwixt nan Lachine rapids and Oka Beach.

It’s a celebrated destination for galore group Global News said to connected a basking time successful July.

”You return immoderate caller air, nan sun, you tin swim. Have a small meal connected nan boat,” Sandra Laberge told Global News.

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One of nan largest boats that occasionally uses these locks is nan Canadian Empress, a Saint-Lawrence cruise vessel that usually navigates canals along  nan St-Lawrence Seaway.

”Being 1 of nan smaller ships travelling done there, it’s bully to beryllium nan large feline erstwhile successful a while,” Capt. John Chomniak, nan St. Lawrence Cruise Lines operations manager, told Global News.

Spending clip connected nan h2o and navigating done this historical landmark remains a leisure activity that galore boaters still emotion to navigate.