La Chute
Ride on!
FLOATER’S BLOG: Ottawa River Float Date, July 31st, 2026
This past weekend in Ontario was a three-day holiday weekend, so I went to Quebec. Not that I ever want to kill a bird but if I can get two of them with one stone then I’m looking at things in an opportunistic manner.
I have four sets of amigos in the Ottawa / Gatineau area, so when I am visiting one I try to arrange to see all four. On this recent adventure only two were available, both in Quebec, but that is still a win-win.
It’s a four-to-five-hour drive, east-north-east from downtown Toronto to the capital region. The first stop, well actually two stops, were on the road there. I planned my route so I would pass through a couple of little towns with small brewery operations. In Madoc, I made a stop at Gold Rush Brewing and later in Perth I popped into Bridge Masters. At both locations I came away with a small array of products for future sampling. (Don’t tell anyone but I’m actually tasting the “3rd’s a Charm” IPA from Bridge Masters as I write this. A little fruity, not too hoppy, a bit of a haze and easy on the palate. At 5.7 ABV I’m not sure if having a third is a charm for everybody!)
The friends I visited first live in Gatineau, a city of about 300,000 directly across the Ottawa River from Canada’s national capital, Ottawa. I had been there before but this time I was in for a joyful surprise on the late afternoon of my arrival. As they are just two streets up from the shoreline, we took an easy stroll down to Moussette Park where I saw that water conditions were ideal at the Little Chaudière Rapids to create a short natural chute for someone who thrives on exploring floating experiences in different locales. I didn’t even know this existed before so you can imagine the grin which curled up on my big yellow face!
Evening was approaching so we planned for a white-ish water float the next afternoon with a cycle around the area’s riverside trails in the morning. Conditions were excellent for both activities with clear blue skies on a hot but not humid day. We did about 20 km on our bikes before having a light lunch, then it was time for water sports.
You couldn’t ask for a better location with views of the city across the river while we were on the beautiful natural rock terrain of the Canadian Shield and all this just steps from the house! Water level in the river was ideal for an easy and safe float but like any other rapid whether doing a beerfloat, canoeing or kayaking you should always scout the rapids and plan for a prudent pull out. (This rule also applies in a somewhat different manner to unwanted pregnancies.)
With the flat rock surface just below the edges of our shallow channel and the moderate current it made for an easy exit before running into some less than inviting rocks at the bottom of the rapids. Getting in was even easier with a broad shelf to walk out on which even had some rocks arranged like steps for entering the deeper water of this Little Chaudière chute. Chaudière translates to ‘boiler’ and I can imagine at higher water levels this rapid would be much scarier.
Here is an image from Google Maps on which I have indicated the direction of flow as well as where we would enter and exit on our circular inflatable rafts.
When we arrived at the park with our gear and beer, we were greeted by a monument to Saint Jean de Brébeuf who I can only assume is the Patron Saint of Whitewater and Protector of Floaters based on the implement he is holding in his hand. Left hand, that is. In any case, now I felt even safer stepping into the river.
It was very pleasant having a couple of willing participants joining me for this float, and luckily, I had three flotation devices in my vehicle as I knew I was headed for a cottage lake on the next leg of my journey. Unfortunately, none of these floats were manufactured to whitewater standards as I did not know I would come upon this miracle. From now on, I will be better prepared. Scout’s honour!
So, into the current we went and a good time was had by all.
I launched first and the run was as true as expected. Keeping your feet forward and staying in the center line is the key to any rapid run and with this gentle flow it was easily achieved with a couple of arm paddles and/or leg kicks. I returned to the launch site and mentioned a couple of boulders which I recommended avoiding then watched as my hosts took their first go at this wonderful waterway. The sun-drenched rock ledge shoreline provided excellent viewpoints for a smattering of sunbathers and merriment makers who became our curious audience.
It was such an easy ride I was able to open a cold wobbly pop for the next few runs, and I made it down without spilling a drop. Cheers to me!
The whole ride was only about 50 meters (look it up Imperialists!) which meant an easy walk of equal proportions back to the launch with one small simple climb of an embankment. We did have one minor mishap as one of our pool toys took a mesh-ripping scrape which reinforced the need for a more rugged craft, but no humans were harmed in the making of this damage.
During one of my returns to our launch point I came upon a surfer who was bound for a large standing wave out in the middle of the river known as the Dessert Wave. While doing research for this writing I investigated that wave but also found that the chute we were paddling is known as the Sewer Wave during high water levels. You can check out a variety of videos on the web.
See any similarities?
As opposed to a controlled environment pool float in which the entire experience can be a calm sun basking experience a whitewater float calls for an ‘après float’ or in the case of newbies who are hesitant to carry a bevy on board, the recently popularized, ‘hydration break’. In the pool this is a ‘beer fridge run’ but riverside this means setting up some collapsable chairs and opening the portable cooler. However, under special circumstances like this particular city rapid your refreshment of choice can be a cocktail made at home and carried back to the shore. Ah, simple pleasures.
While in this relaxed repose we spoke with a bikini clad spectator who told us she was going to attempt a float in the chute next week with her friend. Two new subscribers to the beerfloat blogs, I am sure.
As the sun was getting lower, we plopped back down for a final float before prepping for a nice dinner in town on what was a perfect day in Gatineau.
The other half of my travels didn’t work out quite as well.
Although we had a great visit, my planned relaxing float on Lac Superior near Mont Tremblant was nixed due to lousy weather. It was one of those days that was warm enough for a float but there was so much drizzle coming down that an open beer can gets diluted very rapidly. I need to complete an invention of a stein styled koozie with a flip top lid which I hacked together at beerfloat.calm headquarters a.k.a. The Villa in San Juan Del Sur a couple of years ago. This would relieve the effects of party pooping weather.
The difference between these two segments of my out-of-town trip demonstrate clearly that life isn’t always perfect. That is why you should live it to the fullest every chance you get.
Ride on!
Corliss
beer float.calm = beerfloat.netnot beerfloat.com
