Waterway | Trent-Severn Waterway |
---|---|
Country | Canada |
Maintained by | Parks Canada |
Operation | Patent slip (1919-1964) chambered lock (1964-present) |
First built | 1919 |
Latest built | 1964 (railway patent slip replaced) |
Length | 36.6 m (120.1 ft) |
Width | 9.7 m (31.8 ft) |
Fall | 47 m (154.2 ft) |
Coordinates | 44°51′24″N79°32′22″W / 44.8565861°N 79.5394955°W |
Swift Rapids Marine Railway was one of two patent slips used on the Trent-Severn Waterway using the same plan design. Built in 1919 as temporary solution by Orillia Water Light and Power Commission next to their hydro dam (the slip foundation was a lock) [1] and was later staffed by two operators from Transport Canada [2] and replaced in 1964 by the Giant Lock to take vessels up and down the 47 m (154.2 ft) difference. [3] It is located in Swift Rapids, a community within the township of Severn, Ontario.
Unlike Big Chute, Swift Rapids was only accessed via water (Swift Rapids Road from Severn, Ontario is used by railway staff and currently serves service vehicles from Parks Canada and Orillia Power) and did not become a tourist attraction. Houses built to house power station staff are mostly unused (2 in use by lock master and power station operator), school closed in 1960 and general store/post office in 1985.
Orillia is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is in Simcoe County between Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. Although it is geographically located within Simcoe County, the city is a single-tier municipality. It is part of the Huronia region of Central Ontario. The population in 2021 was 33,411.
The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name Rideau, French for "curtain", is derived from the curtain-like appearance of the Rideau River's twin waterfalls where they join the Ottawa River. The canal system uses sections of two rivers, the Rideau and the Cataraqui, as well as several lakes. Parks Canada operates the Rideau Canal.
The Trent–Severn Waterway is a 386-kilometre-long (240 mi) canal route connecting Lake Ontario at Trenton to Georgian Bay, Lake Huron, at Port Severn. Its major natural waterways include the Trent River, Otonabee River, Kawartha Lakes, Lake Simcoe, Lake Couchiching and Severn River. Its scenic, meandering route has been called "one of the finest interconnected systems of navigation in the world".
Trenton is a large unincorporated community in Central Ontario in the municipality of Quinte West, Ontario, Canada. Located on the Bay of Quinte, it is the starting point for the Trent-Severn Waterway, which continues northwest to Peterborough and eventually Port Severn on Georgian Bay.
Coboconk, often shortened to Coby, is a community in the city of Kawartha Lakes, in the south-central portion of the Canadian province of Ontario. The village lies at the junction of Highway 35 and former Highway 48, on the northern tip of Balsam Lake, the highest point on the Trent–Severn Waterway. Coboconk has a prominent role in the logging, limestone, and tourism industries of the Kawartha Lakes region over the past 150 years.
The City of Kawartha Lakes is a unitary municipality in Central Ontario, Canada. It is a municipality legally structured as a single-tier city; however, Kawartha Lakes is the size of a typical Ontario county and is mostly rural. It is the second largest single-tier municipality in Ontario by land area.
Severn is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, located between Lake Couchiching, and the Severn River in Simcoe County.
The Municipality of Trent Lakes is a lower-tier township in the rural, mostly wooded northern section of Peterborough County, Ontario, Canada. The municipality has a primarily cottage and tourist industry based economy but has grown year round residency due to its commute distance to the Greater Toronto Area.
Fenelon Falls is a village in Ontario, Canada, part of the city of Kawartha Lakes. Nicknamed the "Jewel of the Kawarthas," it has a population of 2,500 permanent inhabitants, which swells in the summer due to tourism and cottaging. Fenelon Falls is home to lock 34 on the Trent-Severn Waterway between Sturgeon Lake and Cameron Lake. It is primarily a tourist town and therefore is most active during the summer season. The main street of Fenelon Falls is called Colborne Street.
Bobcaygeon is a community on the Trent–Severn Waterway in the City of Kawartha Lakes, east-central Ontario, Canada.
Severn Bridge is a small community in the Town of Gravenhurst, of the District of Muskoka in the province of Ontario, Canada. It is located approximately 160 kilometres north of Toronto, on the Severn River, roughly halfway between Orillia and Gravenhurst. Its population was around 300 in 1992. It was founded in the nineteenth century. The village is served by important road, rail, water links and its postal services and rural route are handled in Washago, Ontario.
Big Chute Marine Railway is a patent slip at lock 44 of the Trent-Severn Waterway in Ontario, Canada. It works on an inclined plane to carry boats in individual cradles over a change of height of about 60 feet (18 m). It is the only marine railway of its kind in North America still in use, and is overseen by federally operated Parks Canada. This railway is vital for those cruising the 6,000-mile (9,700 km) Great Loop route.
Hastings is a community within the municipality of Trent Hills, Northumberland County, in the province of Ontario, Canada. It is situated on the Trent-Severn Waterway and the Trans Canada Trail in what is considered to be Ontario's "cottage country". It can be reached from Highway 401 by exiting at exit 474 at Cobourg and going north on County Road 45. It can be reached from Highway 7 at the Norwood exit going south.
The Severn River is a river in central Ontario, Canada. Its headwaters are located at the north end of Lake Couchiching. It drains Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. The river flows generally northwest into Georgian Bay, a large bay of Lake Huron.
The Township of Verulam was a rural municipality within the former Victoria County, now the city of Kawartha Lakes. It was bounded on the north by the geographic township of Somerville, the south by the geographic township of Emily, the west by the geographic township of Fenelon, and the east by the County of Peterborough. For the purposes of government, land surveying and reference, it is now properly referred to as the "Geographic Township of Verulam".
Burleigh Falls is both a geological feature and a small community in Peterborough County, Ontario, Canada. The falls form the boundary between the municipality of North Kawartha to the north and the municipality of Selwyn to the south.
Canal Lake is a lake of Ontario, Canada, situated in the City of Kawartha Lakes. The lake is triangular, roughly 8.4 kilometres (5.2 mi) long and 2.6 kilometres (1.6 mi) at its widest point, with an area of 2,136 acres (864 ha). The depth ranges from 4.44 feet (1.35 m) to a max depth of 15 feet (4.6 m). Canal Lake is a medium size lake with a large diversity of fishing spots.
Doug Downey is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario during the 2018 general election. He represents the riding of Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, and is a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Downey was named Parliamentary Assistant to Finance Minister Vic Fedeli shortly after the government was sworn in. He was appointed to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs on July 26, 2018, vice-chair of the Select Committee on Financial Transparency on October 3, 2018; deputy government whip on November 5, 2018 and Attorney General on June 20, 2019.
Little Lake is a small lake on the Otonabee River in the city of Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. The lake is in the downtown of the city and is used for fishing, swimming, boating, and for various special events. The lake lies on the water route from Lake Ontario to the Kawartha Lakes. The area around the lake was first settled by Europeans around the start of the 19th century. Steam- and water-powered saw mills were built on the lake and on the river upstream to prepare lumber for shipment overseas. Sawdust and other debris from the mills polluted the lake, killed the fish and clogged up the navigable channels. The smell was so noxious it drove residents near the lake to move. These problems were resolved by the end of the century, when the lake became a hub on the new Trent-Severn Waterway from Lake Ontario to Lake Huron. However, industries attracted by cheap hydroelectric power, such as General Electric used the lake for disposal of industrial chemicals for many years. The pollutants seems to be mostly contained in the sediment, and the lake is now considered safe for recreational use.