Below Hogs Back

The Rideau Canal system is an enduring monument to the “elbows up” call to action that goes back over 200 years. While things settled down after the war of 1812, we are reminded that there are no guarantees.

Built in only 5 years (1827-1832) it stretches 126 miles from Ottawa to Kingston, features 47 locks, drowning rapids, deepening sections and connecting lakes making it a more easily navigable route from Montreal to the Great lakes – and a safer alternative to the St. Lawrence River with its rapids and a hostile country to the south. Sadly the human cost was high with some 1000 workers dying of mosquito borne and other diseases.

By far, the biggest challenge was the dam at Hogs Back which raised the water level 41 feet.

I wonder what the river looked like before the canal. Three Rock Rapids was a stretch of 2000 ft in length, dropping 6 feet. A limestone ridge in the middle of the Rideau was referred to as Hogs Back by raftsmen at the time. The lower half of Three Rock Rapids survives with the rest now under water in Mooney’s Bay.

Acrylic, 20×48 on gallery wrap canvas – $1,060

Spring Line Up

With the roller coaster weather we’ve been having, spring gardening has been touch and go. But between all the vagaries there have been those priceless days when the sun is out, the sky is a bright cobalt blue and the temperatures mild. Its a day for joy and optimism and garden plans. It was on just such a day back in June when we dropped by one the lovely greenhouses in our area. There they were:  isles and isles of instant garden beauty, like the fabled hanging gardens of Babylon. As they say, we were spoiled for choice but eventually came home with a few. Couldn’t resist taking photos for reference as well; the profusion of colour was intoxicating. 

(If you live in the area, checkout Cleroux Farm Produce on Navan Road. The people are wonderful and the quality is excellent.)

@Istvan Jobst

Acrylic, 30×30 on gallery wrap – $990