Chambly!

First, a little house keeping. When we entered Canada, we had to change our Verizon phones and internet access to a Canadian plan to avoid roaming charges, which are quite substantial in Canada. As long as we are on the Canadian plan, the charges for voice are about the same, but the charges for data are astronomical!!!

A Canadian couple I know from the Cruisers Yachts forum on the internet recommended that we just go to the local Canadian wireless provider, Belle Canada, and subscribe to their data plan, which is priced similar to our US plan. Well - we tried, but they would not take our credit cards, as they are not Canadian or International Cards. I asked if $100.00 bills would suffice for a pre paid plan. Nope - can’t take cash!!!

On top of all that, Pat’s replacement iPhone does not work properly. It powers off and on intermittently, and the battery will not charge all the time. Verizon would not ship another replacement to Canada. Only to the States. So now our house sitter will have to forward the phone to us. Thanks Linda - you’ve been very helpful watching our house, forwarding our mail, and helping with other things we can not do from where we are!!!

To sum up - we will be relying on open WiFi connections for data. Most marinas and some restaurants have them. Blog uploads to the site can not be uploaded until we find an open WiFI. So please be patient - we will create our blogs as usual, but it may be a while until you see them. And be sure you look through the archive list of blogs to make sure you see them all.

The Chambly Canal consists of 9 locks which bypass rapids on the Richelieu River, which runs from Lake Champlain to the St Lawrence River. When we were near the first lock, #9, I radioed the lock to request passage. The lock-master asked how many boats we had in our group, and the sizes. I told him two, with a 52 footer and our 39 footer. He responded that he wanted the larger boat to enter first and prepare for a port tie, and we should prepare for a starboard tie.

We soon discovered why! As Jackets II pulled in ahead of us, it looked like they barely fit!!!

After Jackets II was secured, we pulled in, and had to snuggle right up to their stern, with our bow between the lock wall and their side, so our back end would clear the gates! I don’t think that they envisioned this size boat traversing these canals back in 1831!!

With a few minor exceptions, these locks have been maintained to their original construction details. The gate doors are wooden timbers, and the mechanicals are hand operated. The lock attendant below is cranking the gates closed.

These cranks are on top of the lock gates, and move wooden “doors” in the gate walls open and closed to let water into and out of the lock to raise and lower the boats.

We now know why Canada refers to their locks and canals as the “Heritage Canals”. We will also be traveling the Ottawa River and Rideau Canal, and transiting 99 locks on this system. We purchased Canal Passes and Mooring Passes, which let us transit the locks, and stay overnight at the lock and canal walls. 

After transiting 6 locks, we arrived at the wonderful town of Chambly, and tied to the wall for Friday & Saturday nights.  Blue Heron joined us later.

Chambly is a very scenic little town that caters to walkers and bicycles. There are many paths and trails to walk and ride. We rented bikes, and spent a day with Stephen and Charlotte  from Jackets II exploring the area. 

One of the sites we stopped at is Fort Chambly, which sits at the bottom of the rapids on the Richelieu River.

And of course, we had to stop for ice cream. Everybody likes Ice Cream! Even French Canadian little girls!

The Province of Quebec is French Canadian. We were a little concerned about a language barrier, but soon discovered that many also speak English. One of the younger men we met told us that English is mandatory in their schools. The locks are run by Parks Canada, and all the lock attendants have badges that say they speak both French and English. It is interesting to listen to the chatter on the VHF marine radio. Much is in French. We received a DSC emergency man overboard alert on the radio. The Canadian Coast Guard then came on the radio to verify and explain the situation, and give the GPS coordinates of the event. They spoke in French first, then English.

We have found the Canadians to be very friendly. The lock-master for the lock just below where we are tied up came over to greet us, and gave us some tips on what to see and where to eat while in Chambly. 

If you look at the picture above, you can see a road bridge over the waterway just above the boats. 

The bridge sits just above this flight of three back to back locks, which will take us down to a small lake below, called the Basin De Chambly. In Ottawa, we will traverse a flight of ten back to back locks right in downtown Ottawa!

After our bike ride, Pat & I were walking, and were going to walk across the bridge. Just as we approached it, the lock-master who had talked to us was lowering the gates to block the road and sidewalk so he could swing the bridge to let boats pass for a lockage. Well - he asked Pat if she wanted to operate the bridge! SURE! she said. Pat turned levers to swing the bridge, pushed buttons to raise the gates, and switched the stop and go light on and off at the direction of the lock-master.

Now Pat has done it all! She raised and lowered the water in a lock in Waterford when we were with Jim & Linnea in 2006, and now has opened and closed a bridge! Maybe she should apply to Parks Canada to be a lock-master!

On Saturday, we were all invited to Jackets ll for wine and snacks before dinner. It was Stephens birthday! Pat made up a boat of fruit, decorated with toothpicks made by daughter in law Melissa!

We had a nice Italian dinner at Le Colori in Chambly. 

On Sunday, we headed down the Richelieu to a marina just short of Sorel. Our last lock on this system had a floating dock! It made for an easy lockage. Jackets ll & Blue Heron decided to stay at the lower lock wall for the night. We headed to the marina so Pat could do laundry, and I could wash the boat. 

 

 

All of the churches along the way had silver steeples. 

On Monday, we will head to Sorel where we will turn onto the St Lawrence Seaway, and head to Montreal for a few days of sightseeing. Stay tuned for more of the adventure!

Captn Ken