Big Splash: Dozens of swimmers plunge into the Lachine Canal
Posted July 12, 2026 5:12 pm.
Dozens of Montrealers jumped into the Lachine Canal on Sunday to cool off, but above all to demand public access to the city’s riverbanks.
The Grand Splash is an annual event organized for the past 23 years by the Rivers Foundation, an organization that advocates for the protection and enhancement of the province’s waterways.
Under a clear sky, bathers, all wearing life jackets, began to dive in waves around noon when the mercury read 26 degrees Celsius.
Lifeguards watched over the participants from the docks, while children splashed their parents. The more daring children launched themselves into the water, performing somersaults, while others floated on inflatable animal-shaped floats. Parents could be seen tossing their children into the water from the docks, all in a friendly and lively atmosphere.
“The water is disgusting, the water is warm, the water is good!” exclaimed Sébastien Pagé, a Lachine resident who was finishing his swim.
“We do it so we can swim in open water, because the banks belong to the citizens,” said Catherine Saint-Cyr, who was drying off near the dock.
“I think it’s also important for people who don’t have air conditioning to be able to come and cool off here,” she added.
The summer tradition usually takes place at Montreal’s Old Port, but this year the Rivers Foundation has partnered with On veut se baigner — Lachine, a citizen initiative that is calling for the implementation of an open water pool where the waters of the Lachine Canal flow into Lake St. Louis.
The bathers echoed this demand, repeatedly chanting “open water swimming” from the canal.
The borough of Lachine, under the governance of Projet Montréal, had begun the process of allowing swimming in this waterway, but the new administration decided to abandon the project, deeming the development costs too high.
The current borough mayor, Julie-Pascale Provost, elected under the Ensemble Montréal banner, stated that the City would have to spend $500,000 on facilities and salaries to allow swimming in Lake St-Louis.
The citizens’ group On veut se baigner — Lachine rejects these estimates. According to documents consulted by members of the organization, notably through the Access to Information Act, the actual costs would be $236,000, indicated Valérie Léger, spokesperson for On veut se baigner — Lachine.
This sum includes “four docks, ladders, the salaries of the lifeguards, a sanitary block for changing and signage to communicate temperature warnings as needed,” explained Léger.
The general manager of the Rivers Foundation, André Bélanger, argued that it was more expensive to build a municipal pool than to provide safe public access to the riverbanks.
The estimated cost for a public pool is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, while a municipal pool costs millions of dollars, explained Bélanger.
The Canadian Press sent a request for comment to the Lachine borough council, but had not yet received a response.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
