Scott Island ferry - Photos, info and stories

Ontario has a pretty interesting selection of ferries, but the Scott Island crossing doesn’t rate very high on that list. Scott Island is about mid-way between Kingston and Ottawa in the mass of lakes, islands and waterways that characterise this part of the Canadian Shield. The ferry to the island crosses a channel only about 40 wide, with Clear Lake to the north and Indian Lake to the south. This channel is part of the Rideau Canal system that Colonel By built between 1826 and 1832 to connect the Ottawa River with Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence—which means in summer there is plenty of recreational boat traffic passing through.

I had challenged users of this site to tell me about any ferries I wasn’t aware of, and in March 2022 I was pleased to get an email from Wes C. telling me about Scott Island, especially as it was only a 45 minute drive from my place on North Otter Lake. Even so it still took me another 16 months before I was able to get there, en route to our relatives’ cottage on Dean Island, near Jones Falls.

We drove up from the south west passing through Chaffeys Lock—a pretty spot, but that beauty has brought with it plenty of tourists and related businesses. A couple of kilometres past Chaffeys we branched off the main road and drove a bit further through wooded country, punctuated by cottages. Finally Isthmus Road took us over the isthmus before ending at the water’s edge facing the ferry—which was moored on the opposite bank of the channel.

I knew that the ferry was self-operated, and I had seen photos that indicated that a boat operating licence was required to use it, and so I had brought mine just in case! But at first sight the ferry didn’t really look like it was operational, nor were there any signs about how to operate it, other than a weight limit. But by the water’s edge there fresh marks where the ferry ramp had landed and where a vehicle had spun its wheels driving on or off, so it must have been functional.

The ferry itself is as basic as it gets; a simple barge with room for one vehicle, a liftable ramp at each end and a chain connected to each shore that the user pulls on to move the ferry across the channel. I had expected based on Wes’ email that the ferry would be electrically powered, but there was no sign that anything other than muscle power moved it.

The ferry is actually owned by the Township of Rideau Lakes. Scott Island appears to be populated just by summer cottages. I’m sure their residents know how to use the ferry, but when I was there I was unsure what to do, so just stayed on the shore and looked. There used to be a number of ferries in the area—witness the nearby community of Rideau Ferry where the actual ferry was replaced by a bridge in 1874. Now this is the only ferry I know about in the land between the Ottawa and St. Lawrence rivers.

Seen from either land or water it’s a pretty, but not spectacular part of the world to visit, especially when the sun shines (which it didn’t the day I was there). But you are unlikely to be using the ferry here unless you are an island resident or visitor. Or you are coming to fix the hydro!

INFO

Some local information - history and operation

Courtesy of Rick B., a Scott Island resident and user of the ferry.
October 2024

Before it was Scott Island the area was a part of the mainland, but then the construction of the Rideau Canal put a cut through the isthmus, isolating the people who lived there. To compensate for this, the federal government committed to providing a ferry to cross the canal, paid for by the government but given to the municipality (currently Rideau Lakes), which was then to be responsible for its maintenance.

I believe the current ferry dates back to the mid 1960s. It was originally rated at 14 tons capacity but has since been downgraded to 5 tons. It is still actively being used, mainly by the cottagers of the island.

The ferry is always secured to either shore by chains. To operate it:

Disconnect the shore chains.
Raise the ferry ramp using the hand-winch.
Pull on the chain, which runs through the side rails and is connected to both shorelines. This pulls the ferry across the channel.
When on the other shore, lower the ramp using the hand-winch and re-attach the shorelines.

The municipality is currently looking into upgrading the operation of the ferry to include a manual winch pulling system. Although the ferry is inspected and recertified every few years, there will come a time in the near future when it will need to be replaced by the federal government.

See outlining the agreement to provide the then Township of South Crosby with a replacement ferry – interesting background reading!

Location

Ferry info

Operating: on demand, when weather is suitable
Crossing: 40

The boat

Hand propelled by chain, one vehicle scow

Cost

Free

Operator

Township of Rideau Lakes

When I visited the ferry

July 2023

External links related to the

There is very little on the web about this ferry; these are links I have found:

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