Lennox Passage is a navigable waterway between

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...

and

Isle Madame Isle Madame is an island off southeastern Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. It is part of the Municipality of the County of Richmond. Once part of the French colony of Île-Royale, it may have been named for Françoise d'Aubigné, marquise ...

Nova Scotia, Canada Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

. Small craft use the relatively protected Passage (also correctly referred to as a

strait A strait is a water body connecting two seas or water basins. The surface water is, for the most part, at the same elevation on both sides and flows through the strait in both directions, even though the topography generally constricts the ...

) traveling to and from

St. Peters Canal The St. Peters Canal is a small shipping canal located in eastern Canada on Cape Breton Island. It crosses an isthmus in the village of St. Peter's, Nova Scotia, St. Peter's, Nova Scotia which connects St. Peters Inlet of Bras d'Or Lake to the n ...

at the village of St. Peter's and the

Strait of Canso The Strait of Canso (also Gut of Canso or Canso Strait, also called Straits of Canceau or Canseaux until the early 20th century) separates mainland Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island, in eastern Canada. It is a channel approximately 27 kilometer ...

to avoid sailing around the east coast of Cape Breton in the open Atlantic Ocean. The Passage is approximately in length from MacDonalds Shoal (near Janvrin Island) to Ouetique Island near D'Escousse with depths varying from 3 to 20 metres. The Passage is well-buoyed and marine interests should be aware that eastbound vessels leave the green buoys to starboard while making their way towards St. Peter's. 1936 Lennox Passage Swing Bridge

Bridging the passage

Initially crossed by two

ferries A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus. ...

, (one from the present location of the bridge and one from Grandique Point to

Grandique Ferry Grandique Ferry is a former community in Richmond County, Nova Scotia. Currently classed a " locality" by the provincial government, it is situated on the northern shore of the Lennox Passage near Louisdale, opposite Grandique Point on Isle M ...

), construction of a

swing bridge A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that can be rotated horizontally around a vertical axis. It has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravit ...

began in 1916 and was completed in 1919, connecting Isle Madame to Cape Breton. This bridge was horse-operated and according to Canadian yachtsman and author

Silver Donald Cameron Silver Donald Cameron (June 21, 1937 – June 1, 2020) was a Canadian journalist, author, playwright, and university teacher whose writing focused on social justice, nature, and the environment. His 15 books of non-fiction dealt with everything ...

, a former resident of D'Escousse) in his book "Wind, whales and whisky" (page 14), was powered by Stanley Forgeron's rather temperamental horse in 1967 when

Farley Mowat Farley McGill Mowat, (May 12, 1921 – May 6, 2014) was a Canadian writer and environmentalist. His works were translated into 52 languages, and he sold more than 17 million books. He achieved fame with the publication of his books on the Ca ...

sailed through the passage aboard ''Happy Adventure'' on his way to

Expo67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 28 to October 29, 1967. It was a category one world's fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most s ...

. In February 1970 following the grounding and subsequent breakup of the

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

n-registered tanker

Arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...

on Cerberus Rock in

Chedabucto Bay Chedabucto Bay is a large bay on the eastern coast of mainland Nova Scotia between the Atlantic Ocean and the Strait of Canso next to Guysborough County. At the entrance to Chedabucto Bay is the community of Canso at the head is the communi ...

and the resulting spill of 77,000 to 82,500 barrels (more than 2 million gallons) of

bunker C Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil (bunker fuel), marine fue ...

oil, the decision was made by the

Nova Scotia Government The Government of Nova Scotia (, ) is the government of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The powers and structure of the province are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867. In modern Canadian use, the term "government" refers broadly to the c ...

to construct two

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet T ...

s between Burnt Point and Burnt Island to stop the spread of the Arrow's spilled cargo into the lucrative fishing areas of the Passage as well as the coastline to the east. After the oil spill cleanup by the mid-1970s, the Government left one causeway in place because the 1919 bridge had rusted beyond repair and in response to the needs of marine interests built the Lennox Passage Bridge, a four-span, bascule bridge with two concrete spans, a counterweight span and an electrically powered single-leaf

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

carrying Nova Scotia Route 320. When closed, the bridge has a vertical clearance of at high tide, possibly as much as at a very low tide.

Bridge inoperable

Beginning in 2010, marine interests were advised that the heat of the day in summer months may make it impossible for the bridge operator to lift the span, forcing vessels to either wait at anchor or make the voyage around the east coast of Isle Madame. The Nova Scotia Government advised the public that repairs to the structure were scheduled as an ongoing project beginning in 2015–2016. By 2018 the repairs had still not been carried out and it was announced that the Lennox Bridge was inoperable and pleasure craft with an air draft of over at high tide would not be able to pass through. In the fall of 2018 a tender to repair the lift bridge at Lennox Passage was awarded at a cost of $4.54 million to Allsteel Coatings Ltd. of Port Hastings. The work had been scaled back slightly from the original vision after the only bid came back more expensive than anticipated. In 2019 a Navigational Warning was issued by

Fisheries and Oceans Canada Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO; ) is a department of the Government of Canada that is responsible for developing and implementing policies and programs in support of Canada's economic, ecological and scientific interests in oceans and inland ...

advising the air draft under the Lennox Passage bridge was reduced to 10 feet (3.3 metres) at high tide until September 5, 2019. In August 2019 in an interview, Lloyd Hall, district bridge engineer with Nova Scotia Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal, explained while it was originally hoped the work would conclude in time for the bridge to reopen for the 2019 boating season, the work now isn't expected to be finished until mid- to late-October 2019. In September 2019, the Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure renewal announced that the bridge would be open for the 2020 boating season.

References

;Notes *

Nautical chart A nautical chart or hydrographic chart is a graphic representation of a sea region or water body and adjacent coasts or river bank, banks. Depending on the scale (map), scale of the chart, it may show depths of water (bathymetry) and heights of ...

br>#4279 ''BRAS D'OR LAKE - LENNOX PASSAGE''
published by

Canadian Hydrographic Service ''Retired Canadian Hydrographic Service logo or crest'' The Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) is part of the federal department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and is Canada's authoritative hydrographic office. The CHS represents Canada in ...

, 28 August 1998

Bridging the passage

Bridge inoperable

References

Further reading