Free tours for the whole family this summer - Rapides-Farmer generating station, witness to the log drive

CANTLEY, QC, July 16, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - This summer, Hydro-Québec welcomes you to Rapides-Farmer generating station. Bring all the family and discover this heritage site and its industrial remains, with a tour guide as your host.

Gatineau Power Company

Gatineau Power Company was formed in 1926 by the Canadian International Paper Company to build three hydroelectric power plants on the Rivière Gatineau. Rapides-Farmer generating station was commissioned in 1927 and acquired by Hydro-Québec in 1963. This historic gem is still in operation today.

Log driving

The Rivière Gatineau is one of the routes used to transport logs from where they were cut to pulp and paper mills downstream. The former log chute, 2,134 metres in length, originated in the left wall of the Chelsea dam and crossed the woods between Route 307 and the river, depositing logs several dozen metres below Rapides-Farmer generating station. Dismantled late in the 1990s, this was Hydro-Québec's longest log chute between two power stations. Will you be able to identify its remains during your visit to Rapides-Farmer?

Learn how electricity is generated

A tour with our knowledgeable guides, who can explain technical matters clearly, will help you understand how electricity is generated at a run-of-river power plant in an urban environment. You'll get a chance to see a generating unit in operation and deconstruct some myths about electricity.

For more information on our summer programming and opening hours, go to www.hydroquebec.com/visit or call our toll-free number: 1 800 365-5229.

Louis-Olivier Batty
Media relations
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Email : [email protected]