Jones Falls – A Flight of Locks

Jones Falls is a Good Example of a Flight of Locks –

After leaving the anchorage at Morton Bay, we headed for the locks at Jones Fall. Boats were already locking through, east to west. So we tied up to the blue line on the long dock below to wait for them to finish locking down. Since Jones Falls is a series of locks near each other, called a “flight of locks,” we were there awhile watching the process.

Jones Falls is a Good Example of a “Staircase” Lock

The first three chambers, Locks 42-41 and 40 of Jones Falls, formed a “staircase” and the fourth, lock 39, was a short distance away, on the other side of the basin. This grouping of locks includes a staircase (of three locks) with the fourth lock separated from the others. Whenever you have locks near each other, they become a “flight.” We will reach the summit of the Rideau Canal, just like we did at the Kirkfield Lift Lock on the Trent Severn Waterway when we reach Ottawa. We will then lock down instead of up, all the way to Montreal.

The surrounding area is a beautiful shady parklike spot; we enjoyed a pleasant morning watching those boats go through the locking process in each chamber of the staircase. We think this was the first time we ever got off the boat to watch other boats go through a flight lock.

We did not stop here for the night, but it would have been a great spot to stay. Since it was still early in the day we continued on to Newboro Lock 36 to spend the night tied to the wall.