The boating season on the Rideau Canal opened this past Victoria Day, and it was a very busy weekend on the lake.

The BRLA has installed 108 buoys to mark hazards and shoals this year. Boaters noticed, however, that several Parks Canada navigation buoys are out of position, having migrated over the winter to different positions on the lake. In bringing this potential safety hazard to the attention of Parks Canada, BRLA President Brian Hawkins received the following response: 

"I want to assure you that we are working hard towards getting all the floating aids to navigation in their advertised positioned over the next week. There is an active Notice to Shipping for the Rideau Canal that some markers are off position due to the winter months and spring freshet.

I will forward the concerns on to maintenance regarding the two bifurcation buoys. In the future, I encourage you and your members to submit these types of requests to our general information inbox (rideaucanal.info@pc.gc.ca) to be actioned. They will aways be forwarded to the appropriate person who is on duty during the navigation season.

As a reminder, safe navigation on the Rideau Canal is a shared responsibility between vessel operators and Parks Canada. Parks Canada cautions all vessel operators not to rely solely on buoys for navigation purposes. Aids to navigation are always to be used in conjunction with other marine publications and information. In particular, nautical charts, Notices to Shipping (NOTSHIP), Notices to Mariners (NOTMAR), sailing directions, the Canadian Aids to Navigation System and other Government of Canada publications or services."