The Quyon Ferry reopened for the season this week, running its first trip at 5:30 a.m. on the morning of Thursday, Mar. 26. 

This is the same date it opened last year. In 2024, the ferry set a record for earliest opening on Mar. 7. 

“We always open as soon as Mother Nature allows us,” said owner Ralph McColgan. 

“We’re watching for [the Ottawa River] to open up, and then the water has to move in closer and closer to shore where we know we can cut our way in with chainsaws.”

He said while it usually only takes his crew a few hours to cut through the ice between where the ferry is parked for the winter and the open channel on the river, this year it took much longer. 

“This year we were three and a half days at it.” 

The ferry leaves its Quyon dock every 20 minutes, starting at the top of the hour. It accepts debit or cash.