Brockville to Prescott
Note: click on images for larger view.
Friday June 5th and it is a lovely sunny day with a bit of a breeze from the SW so ideal conditions for a paddle I have been meaning to do for sometime as it will complete my paddling experience of the St. Lawrence from Kingston to Prescott. It is not the most interesting section of the river as the 1000 Islands with their beautiful settings and properties really begin and extend westward from Brockville, whereas this section is devoid of islands.
As this trip is almost 20 km I am getting dropped off at the Henry St. ramp in Brockville and will phone for pick up on arrival in Prescott.
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| Henry St. ramp |
Just one young lady with her rec kayak and when she pushes off I have the ramp to myself, no pushy boaters to contend with;great! By about 11:10 i'm off and paddling along the Brockville waterfront, past the Tall Ships condo then a nice panorama of the Brockville skyline and downtown.
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| Tall Ships |
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| Downtown Brockville |
There actually are three small islands mid-stream called the 3 Sisters, not that you would want to visit them as they are home to roosting Cormorants which leaves them stinking and desolate. The Canadian shoreline is quite built up with many waterfront properties so it does not offer much in places to land, its either private or not suitable due to topography and when scanning google aerial photography I was unable to determine anything suitable for a lunch stop. So I will be keeping a sharp lookout for something suitable as I get near my mid-way point.
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| Nice property |
Of course one thing you are likely to see here is the seaway traffic, which although not close enough to be a bother does provide some photo ops.
I thought I might find somewhere to stop at Maitland a small community about 7 km east of Brockville but no luck. Being hungry I was getting a bit anxious as I didn't feel like going the whole distance without eating but just after the 10k mark I spot what appears to be a road coming downhill through the trees to the water. Not knowing if this be private I head over to investigate and lo and behold it seems to be a ramp but with traffic cones at the top barring entrance.
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| Ramp closed |
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| Perfect for lunch |
Up the hill to check out the signs; closed for construction and Covid 19 warnings so just perfect, nobody going to be driving down while I have lunch. If I didn't want to go further this would also be perfect for my pick up as it is just off highway 2. Lunch over and a pit stop, I am much refreshed and ready to continue my route to Prescott. Turning back into the river I can now see the bridge to the U.S. in the distance.
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| Social distancing at its best? |
Still a good breeze but perhaps veered a bit to the south and I am making good time. I can see Ogdensburg on the U.S. shore and now can make out a ship parked at the Canadian Coast Guard station in Prescott.
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| Ogdensburg N.Y. |
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| Prescott Coast Guard |
If you look closely at the pic above midway between the ship and the bridge you can just discern the red roof of the windmill of "Battle of the Windmill" fame, the last attempt by the U.S. to invade Canada November 1838. Prescott is also known as the fort town home to Fort Wellington built 1813-14 and around 1830 garrisoned by a detachment of the 79th reg. of foot my GG-grandfather's outfit when he was stationed at Fort Henry in Kingston. So clear sailing for me into Prescott and I arrive at 15:00. There is a decent ramp and parking area right at the west end of Prescott but I plan to use the small beach a little farther east as I can easily slide the kayak onto the sand and unload. The beach being closed due to the current pandemic restrictions I wont be disrupting any bathers.
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| Prescott boat ramp |
Prescott beach
After a quick call to home to set my ride in motion I start packing up. A fellow comes down the beach and asks if he can give me a hand bring the boat up. He was a one time kayaker but now with a young family he has let it slide. I take him up on the offer and we get the yak up onto the grass verge where the wife can park and she will be happy being spared the additional carry. So ends another nice day on the water.
Happy paddling
from
KayakJock
