Coteau du Lac

A pleasant residential community just 40 km (25 miles) southwest of Montréal, Coteau-du-Lac sits on the St. Lawrence River. It is famous for being the site of North America’s first canal lock system. Advantageously positioned on the main waterway into the heart of the continent, it was a portage used by nomadic aboriginals skirting the rapids long before the arrival of Europeans. Completed in 1781, the lock canal was a forerunner of today’s St. Lawrence Seaway. Its three locks counteracted a drop in the rapids of approximately two meters (more than six feet). A tour of the site, including the old blockhouse, will enlighten you on the ...

A pleasant residential community just 40 km (25 miles) southwest of Montréal, Coteau-du-Lac sits on the St. Lawrence River. It is famous for being the site of North America’s first canal lock system. Advantageously positioned on the main waterway into the heart of the continent, it was a portage used by nomadic aboriginals skirting the rapids long before the arrival of Europeans. Completed in 1781, the lock canal was a forerunner of today’s St. Lawrence Seaway. Its three locks counteracted a drop in the rapids of approximately two meters (more than six feet). A tour of the site, including the old blockhouse, will enlighten you on the strategic and economic importance of the St. Lawrence River and the birth of river transport technology in Canada.

About the Expert

Joanna Ebbutt is the author or editor of three Insight Guides to Toronto and Canada, and coauthor of Off the Beaten Track: Western Canada. She has been writing about travel for three decades, including chasing the aurora borealis in Northern Ontario.