Montrealer Kevin Tetreault was meant to be in Florida to sell his boat to an American customer, but he’s been stuck in a Quebec marina for two weeks.
“It’s frustrating, now we’re stuck over here,” he said.
Boaters have been trapped in a marina on the Chambly Canal — some, like Kevin, for two weeks, others for a few days — after Parks Canada was forced to lower water levels, making it impossible to leave.
The locks are closed from Chambly, Que., about 25 kilometres south of Montreal, all the way to Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.
Parks Canada says unauthorized work on a nearby dike made it vulnerable and water levels had to be lowered and locks closed while repairs are ongoing and a new pipe is installed. It expects the canal to be open to boaters “sometime next week,” it said in a news release.
This canal is the only safe way for boaters to travel further south, leaving many wondering when they can return home or get to their destinations.
Tetreault says he was told the canal would reopen “a couple times” already and is impatient to make his way south.
Simon and Linda Hameka, an American couple who spent the last nine years living and travelling on their boat, said they’ve made friends with other boaters as they help each other out.
They just wish Parks Canada had been better at informing them on what was happening so they could adjust their route before the nights get colder.
“It’s not knowing, and that’s the hard part with this,” said Simon.
“They were kind of tight-lipped about what was going on and didn’t really release much information so we couldn’t make a decision as to what to do.”
One Massachusetts couple thought ahead. They got someone with a hydraulic boating trailer to bring them over so they could travel over to Montreal.
“I was a little bit nervous, but the guy that we hired got us here safely,” said Sue Sacco, adding their trip was delayed by a couple days.
Meanwhile, the Chambly marina says the closure is costing them about $700 a day. Losing all reservations during Labour Day weekend — their busiest weekend of the year — has been a huge blow, according to maintenance worker Saul Ramirez.
“People understand … but of course they want to go home,” he said. “This has never happened before.”
Despite having their travels brought to a halt, the energy at the Marina was still convivial. Those stuck there said they had everything they needed and even took the time to stop at local restaurants.
“We know we’re eventually going to get through,” said the Hamekas.