4th Welland Canal - 1932 to Present

This will be the canal you almost all relate to! While it is the Fourth Welland Canal, it is the one currently in use. Thousands of tourists flock to it each year to marvel at the engineering and the great ships that travels its waters. Consisting of only 8 locks, almost running in a perfect straight line, the canal itself is over 75 years old and still going strong.

You will have to forgive me for some of the pictures being kind of vague and boring, but with the increase in security, you have to respect the boundries and I did the best I could!

Here we go with our tour of the canal.

Lock One - St.Catharines, Ontario

Located to the left of Lakeshore Road East, just past Government Road West, we begin our tour with Lock One. This is the entrance/exit of the canal at Lake Ontario.

Here are some pictures of Lock One:

Lock Two - St.Catharines, Ontario

From Lakeshore Road East, Turn on to Bunting Road, follow this until you see Government Road West. Turn left on to said road, and follow it down until you come to a 4 way stop sign. This is Carlton Road. To get to lock two, you would make a left and go up the hill. Just at the bridge itself is Lock Two.

Here are some pictures of Lock Two:

Lock Three - St.Catharines, Ontario

After observing lock two, head back down the hill to the four way stop again. This time turn left back on to Government Road West. You will come to a set of traffic lights, keep heading straight. Around the bend you will see a big building on your left hand side. This is the Museum, pull in there, the lock is in the back of it!

Here are some pictures of Lock Three:

Lock Four - Thorold, Ontario

Lock Four is the begining of a set of locks called the Flight Locks. Generally given the name as they are essentially a staircase, as you exit one lock you are entered in to the next. Locks 4,5 and 6 are all part of the flight locks. To arrive at these, come out of the museum and turn left once again on to Government Road West. When you arrive at the traffic lights, you will need to make a right hand turn followed by almost an immediate left to get back on to Government Road West. There is no real parking for these flight locks, however there are pull offs here and there. Please be careful and respectful to other drivers.

Here are some pictures of Lock Four:

Lock Five - Thorold, Ontario

Next up in the flight locks is Lock Five. Being the middle lock I did the best I could to get some good shots.

Here are some pictures of Lock Five:

Lock Six - Thorold, Ontario

Lastly, we come to Lock Six in the flight locks. This can be classified as either the end of the flight locks or the beginning depending on which way you are travelling. The other interesting fact about the flight locks is that they are side by side.

Here are some pictures of Lock Six:

Lock Seven - Thorold, Ontario

At the very top of the hill, this would be Lock Seven. This is the last lock for quite some time until the ships arrive in Port Colborne to exit out to Lake Erie. There is no direct parking here however just around the corner on your right is the Lock Seven Viewing Center where you can park to take in the view of Lock Seven.

Interesting tidbit, situated next to Lock Seven on the other side of the canal, you can find the remains of Lock Twenty-Three of the Third Welland Canal!

Here are some pictures of Lock Seven:

Lock Eight - Port Colborne, Ontario

Lastly, or first once again depending on travel direction, we have Lock Eight. The entrance/exit to Lake Erie. One of the world's longest locks, this lock helps regulate the ships to the correct water level for Lake Erie.

Here are some pictures of Lock Eight:

Thus concludes our tour of the current Welland Canal.