Dieppe park loses shoreline to erosion
Dieppe Park, which is on the tip of the peninsula containing Habitat 67, is losing its shoreline. This part of the river is important for biodiversity, apparently, meaning you can’t just bring in a lot of bulldozers to pile it back up.
Was this peninsula a natural formation? Or was it created, or extended, as part of the Expo 67 earthworks? It certainly isn’t shown on this 1843 map, although this 1903 map has something labelled “guard pier” that might be involved.
qatzelok 11:22 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Like Cité du Havre, parc Dieppe was created with landfiill as an extension of a previously-existing jetty – a jetty that protected the Old Port from river currents. The construction of this park, Cité du Havre and the Expo islands increased the current in some places making the Estacade necessary to avoid ice dams forming.
There may be a clue in this as to why this little park is slowly dissolving.
MarcG 11:31 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
I layered the google map image over the 1843 map, using the bridge and Wellington street and the canal as my line-up points: https://imgur.com/a/lJolfnz. The 1843 map is obviously a bit imperfect so the angles are a bit funky but it seems like the pier lines up reasonably well.
Kate 11:52 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
qatzelok, that’s what I was wondering. Islands and shoals form naturally out of the shape of the river and its currents. You can create them artificially, but since the manmade ones didn’t aggregate out of natural forces, those forces may eventually tear them down.
MarcG, I think that’s the 1903 map, no?
shawn 11:54 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Yes, someone posted a lovely photo on Facebook looking out from the Old Port in the Old Days and that jetty wasn’t there. It was much nicer looking – if more dangerous for navigation, etc..
mare 12:11 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
That increased current might also help with the standing wave south of Habitat that is so popular with surfers.
(Only slightly related story:) I was resting in Parc Dieppe two weeks ago and there are tons of people fishing on the Port side there. I saw someone catch the biggest fish I’ve ever seen being caught with a normal rod. It was about a metre long, no idea what species. They had problems getting it out of the water because apparently the line was wrapped around its body. I expected it to go on a barbecue somewhere, there are always lots of North African families gathering and barbecuing there, but to my surprise they came back after 5 minutes and carefully put the fish back into the water. After a few seconds it swam away, hopefully not too traumatized. I guess they spent some time removing the line and the hook, took photos and that was it. (I’d have preferred they had eaten it, injuring animals as a sport is not really my cup of tea.)
shawn 12:15 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Yes, the standing wave only seemed to pop when they also expanded Saint Helens and built Ile Notre-Dame to create more of a bottleneck, but you’re right. It started with the jetty.
MarcG 13:41 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Kate: Oops, yes it is.
Andrew 14:07 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
So I think this drawing shows the Guard Pier under construction in 1889ish
http://www.ameriquefrancaise.org/media-2913/vieux_port_1889_petit.jpg
At some point it was renamed the MacKay Jetty and it looks a lot of terrain actually deposited around the original embankment.
https://numerique.banq.qc.ca/patrimoine/details/52327/2436797?docref=RmUJ-n7D-gK-w-mw_v3Z-A
walkerp 14:27 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Mare, I believe that it was a sturgeon. I think that`s what they fish in the fleuve and they can get quite big.
Blork 15:44 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Agree it was probably a sturgeon. That area is known for pretty good sturgeon fishing. I know a guy who claims to have caught a two-metre sturgeon under a bridge on Ile Ste-Hélène. He described carrying it home on the Metro, which must have been quite the sight.
I once saw a sturgeon jump out of the water just off a park in Boucherville and I swear it was about two metres long. Huge!
shawn 15:59 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Ha. I have a story about sturgeon too. Once, just once, I went fishing in Quebec. I drove up to Tremblay with some friends and somebody gave me a fishing rod and I lowered the thing into the lake. I guess it was Lac Tremblant or a smaller nearby lake?
I was almost instantly attacked by this monster. Huge and ugly and scared the crap out of me.
It broke or bit through the line, and I was so relieved. Absolutely no interest in ever repeating the experience.
dwgs 19:55 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
@mare catch and release is what most anglers practice these days. It’s doubtful that the fish was harmed, they’re tougher than you might think. If it was a sturgeon it wouldn’t have been very good to eat because a) they’re bottom feeders so bleh and b) big fish are old fish and old fish aren’t good eating. Also, as a friend of mine who is an avid sport fisherman says “big fish make more big fish”.
shawn 20:20 on 2023-05-25 Permalink
Yes I would not want to eat that. Aren’t there warning about eating fish from the waters near Montreal? And I believe a big fish is going to accumulate more toxins in its flesh.