Day 10 - Lachine, QC to Contrecoeur, QC (Brian)

July 30, Contrecoeur, Quebec

 The winds that drove us yesterday stayed high all night and whisked us into the ten mile Lachine Canal. We rowed through an old industrial area of Montreal with some abandoned factories the size of Cathedrals. But even there the canal water was clean and lined with parkland and bike paths. We stopped for coffee, pastry and sandwiches at the Marche Atwater.

   The lock keepers are always good to us, and one of them today was an absolute babe. More than one of the lock keepers, although not the babe, have said they wish they were coming with us.

  Leaving the last lock, we were out there with the big boats and big water. There was a boiling, intimidating rip where the harbor opened to the St. Lawrence Seaway. We took one look and stopped to think about it. Then we put on our life jackets and within minutes were being carried at 8 miles per hour, sharing the sea lane with tankers and cargo ships.

  Our math is a little inexact, but we think we may have made 40 miles today.

 The St. Lawrence took us through the port, where ships were and unloading, before giving way to countryside, and colonial Quebec. Occasionally you come across an old "moulin", a stone silo-like building that was once a windmill.

  Somewhere along the way I heard a noise that sounded like a baseball stadium with a crowd. But we turned and it was an island with thousands of calling gulls.

 Contrecoeur is a little town with one main street and a pub. We negotiated tent space and a shower at the marina.

 Big chicken just arrived at the table. Au revoir.

  

Day 8 - Hawkesbury, ON to Saint-Placide, Quebec

Saint-Placide, QC

It sounds as though today was a tough row, as they did the entire 20 miles into a stiff headwind.  They are camped in a public park in front of a beautiful white church (Saint-François d'Assise).


Saint-Placide is a municipality in the Laurentides region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Deux-Montagnes Regional County Municipality, along the north shore of the Ottawa River.


It seems as though the highlight of Mr. Frei's day was during breakfast at a diner. He was served a beautiful, golden brown sausage, and he noticed that it was the same color as the back of his hand.


More to report tomorrow!


Kathy

Photo:

                                                                Photo:Louis-Philippe Rousselle-Brosseau

Lunch at Montebello on the Ottawa River (Brian)

Al at Montebello

June 27, Montebello, Quebec

We are having lunch at what is billed as the world's largest log cabin. It's big. This is the same place that Al pointed to on the map just yesterday and said, "we're not going there."

We went through the eight locks of Ottawa yesterday, like descending a grand staircase between the parliament and a cathedral down to the Ottawa River. We stopped on the other side, the French side, for sandwiches at Le Petit Episserie where they know what they're doing.

From there it was a long slog in the sun and I hit the wall at about 20 miles, with 10 still to go. Wasn't sure I would make it. We rowed nearly to sundown when Moe, the manager of a marina at Rockland allowed us to camp for the night. While others told us to keep going, Moe gave us a spot on the grass, showers, and a kitchen to warm up our Dinty Moore beef stew. Good, but a little heavy on the salt, Dinty.

The Ottawa River is broad and muddy, running through a wide flat Allen of farm land and low hills. Some of the farms come right down to the water. But there are few towns. Just mile after mile of rocky shoreline or swamp and rush grasses. We can hear many birds, but see few of them.

It's 2:10, and we have 18 miles to go. Al says were dawdling.