Battersea (Ontario)

Battersea is a community in the township of South Frontenac, Ontario, 20 km north of Kingston. Battersea is well known for its fishing and outdoor activities as it is close to Loughborough Lake, Dog Lake and the Rideau Canal Waterway.

Understand

History

Henry Van Luven, a veteran of the War of 1812 Battle of Lundy's Lane, was the founder of the village of Battersea in 1840 when he bought 1,200 acres (4.9 km²) of Crown land at the time of the development of the Rideau Canal. He called it Van Luven's Mills, then Rockland. The post office requested it be renamed to avoid confusion with a similarly named city elsewhere in the province. His first choice was to name it after a section of London, England and that was accepted. He gave 200 acres (0.81 km²) to each of his six sons and lots in the village of Battersea to his daughters. Henry built the stone mill in Battersea.

The large Van Luven family home is on a rise at the entrance to what is now Battersea. In 1912 the home was converted into a fishing lodge, now called the Holiday Manor Northern Lodge.

Get in

From Kingston and Kingston Mills, take Battersea Road (Montréal Street, 401 exit 619) northbound to Battersea.

From elsewhere in the Rideau Canal system (including Smiths Falls), take 15 south and cross the canal near Brewers Mills (any of Burnt Hills Road, CR12 - Sunbury Road or Washburn Road join Hwy 15 to CR 11 - Battersea Road). While the Battersea Road continues north to end at Highway 15, this becomes a winding road and progressively more difficult as one continues north through Frontenac County.

From Westport, take CR 10 - Perth Road south to Inverary, then turn east.

Get around

This is a large rural area with small villages, most or all of which are only reachable by motorcar. Greyhound does operate daily Voyageur bus service with limited stops on Highway 15 to link Kingston to Ottawa, but there's no bus on the west side of the canal.

See

• The Rideau Canal. is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with museums along the canal 
  • Lockmaster's House Museum, Chaffey's Lock ((35 km north). 
  • visitor's centre in Smiths Falls
  • blockhouse in Merrickville.

Do

• 🌍 Loughborough Lake Marina, 2279 Loughborough View Road (off Battersea Road), ☎ [phone], fax: [phone]. M-Sa 8AM-4PM. Docking and storage, boat sales and rental, ATVs, trailers, fuel. Adjacent to Loughborough Inn. 
• Evergreen Golf Course, Wolfe Lake Road, RR#2 Westport (on Wolfe Lake, 1.5 km west of CR 12), ☎ [phone]. 

Buy

Eat

• Creekside Bar & Grill, 2261 Wellington, Battersea, ☎ [phone]. W-Sa 11:30AM-10PM, Su 11AM-10PM. Live music on the weekend, homemade pub food (with vegetarian choices), good selection of drafts and beverages, great summer patio. (updated Jul 2018)

Drink

Sleep

• Holiday Manor Northern Lodge, 5208 Battersea Rd, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone]. 22-room inn and marina at the base of Loughborough Lake with lounge, pool room, games room, tackle shop and boat rentals. $150-160/person/day, meals included, $100/person reservation deposit. 
• Loughborough Inn, 2340 Loughborough View Road, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone], fax: [phone]. Lakefront cottages and chalets near marina on Loughborough Lake. Cabins from $200-300/night, with 2-3 night minimum. 
• Opinicon Lodge, 1697 Chaffeys Lock Road, Elgin K0G 1E0, ☎ [phone]. Historic resort on the banks of Opinicon Lake, restored and re-opened in 2017. Private cottages, local food served daily in the restaurant, pub, and ice cream parlour. Paddleboard, fishing, biking. The lakes are suitable for swimming, canoeing and kayaking. 
• 🌍 Lake Sun, 6566 Lakesun Lane, RR #1 Perth Road Village K0H 2L0, ☎ [phone], [phone]. Late May to 1 October (weather permitting). Quiet lakefront camp ground with sandy beach; gasoline motors are not permitted on the lake. Accommodates RV/caravans up to 25 ft; 30 serviced camp sites (15A electricity, no running water), 25 unserviced sites, one cottage and three small cabins. Established 1960 as a seasonal family naturist (nudist) club, As of spring 2017 Lakesun is no longer naturist. 

Connect

Nearby

See also Kingston (Ontario)#Outside the city

Sydenham

• Frontenac Provincial Park, 1090 Salmon Lake Road, Sydenham, ☎ [phone]. 30 minutes north of Kingston by car, provides opportunities for walking and picnicking, fishing, canoeing, wildlife viewing, boating, swimming and cycling. Winter activities. 

Go next

• Westport, a rural village with various stores selling crafts on the main street, as well as motel and bed and breakfast accommodation.
• Rideau Canal and Kingston