Visitors to Port Colborne, Ont., will find a beautifully redeveloped waterfront with excellent facilities for recreational boats and a community that is becoming less reliant on heavy industry. Still, the Welland Canal largely defines the town’s existence and remains a major drawing point.
For a few pleasure boaters and virtually all Great Lakes commercial ships, the canal is the gateway to Lake Ontario.Visiting cruisers can get a taste of the canal without actually taking on a passage by pulling up for the afternoon at town docks located just up the canal on Port Colborne’s historic West Street.
The first Welland Canal was built in 1833 with locks to get around Niagara Falls. Port Colborne, the canal’s southern terminus, was named after the province’s then Lieutenant Governor.The canal used now was built in the early 20th century, but two past canals are still visible at Bridge 21, the lift bridge in the middle of Port Colborne.
West Street has restored buildings, shops, restaurants, and a front row seat on the canal. For visitors, watching the parade of ships still provides hours of entertainment, says Greg Poisson, owner of the Canalside Pub and Eatery.“It’s a beautiful thing.We say you can sit here and watch the world going by.” For overnight stays, the pleasure boat basin – just west of the entry to the Welland Canal – is home to the municipal Sugarloaf Harbour Marina and the privately owned Marlon Marina and Yacht Harbour.The two operations share the basin and fit well together, with Marlon offering fuel, service and a chandlery and Sugarloaf concentrating on dockage, promotion and events.
There’s a long central shared dock with Marlon to the east and Sugarloaf to the west. Boaters from both marinas use shower and washroom facilities in the marina complex. Sugarloaf ’s extensive grounds and restaurant welcome the boating and non boating public alike.
Marlon Marina and Yacht Harbour is a full service facility with 250 slips for transients and seasonal boaters, a 35-ton Travelift, repair shop, boat brokerage, boat rentals and an extensive chandlery.
Yachts of up to 130 feet can be accommodated on the central dock, but most visitors stay in front of the chandlery and repair building, with power and running water. Barbecues and a picnic deck are nearby. Most of the marina’s boaters come from the Niagara Peninsula area, but many also visit Marlon regularly from marinas or yacht clubs around Buffalo – about 20 miles across the lake.
Greg Gregovski, co-owner of Marlon Marina and Yacht Harbour, says “just getting out of the big city” is the main attraction for many boaters from the Buffalo area. During boating months, Marlon’s fuel dock is a busy place, with gasoline and high-speed diesel pumps.
Sugarloaf Harbour Marina is a 500-slip facility owned and operated by the city of Port Colborne.As manager Denise Carpenter explains,“It’s about a 50-50 split between transient and local boaters,” with a slate of summer events ranging from fishing derbies to theme dinners to a boat show aimed at bringing cruisers to town and locals to the waterfront.
Sugarloaf’s docks are wide and comfortable,with shelters that give boaters a place to congregate.Visiting yachts up to 100 feet and trailer boaters are equally welcome.
As well as boaters heading into or just completing a transit of the Welland Canal, Sugarloaf draws visitors from Canadian and American ports around the lake. Seasonal boaters are organized into loose interest groups.The marina’s waterfront pavilion is abuzz with activity all summer long. Arriving boaters are offered a concierge service for local restaurant or theatre reservations. Closer at hand, the On The Waterfront restaurant has fine and casual dining and there’s a children’s playground and a ’50sstyle diner with ice cream, fast food and mini golf nearby.
Some of Port Colborne’s visitors are happy to enjoy the marina’s hospitality and the town’s attractions. Many also head further west to Port Dover, Ont., and the marinas and anchorages of Long Point Bay.