2019 #WheresWilly Fall “Dam” Road Trip

    Willy (our Jeep) and our team hit the road to complete our first Fall #WheresWilly "Dam" Road Trip.  While we have completed two summer versions of these dam road trips, this was the first fall one and took us way up into Northwestern Ontario. Starting in Burlington we traveled up to Dryden and Vermilion Bay before turning to head home, hitting 11+ dams and waterpower generating stations along the way. The age of the sites we visited date range from over from 3 to over 100 years old. It was truly amazing to see the differences in the equipment, technology and even architecture over the ages. One of the things we noticed with the older plants was the...

Read More

Spring Has Finally Sprung in 2019!

With the winter finally over, we have brushed the snow off of Willy and are back on the road for another year of the #WheresWilly team touring Canadian waterfalls, dams and waterpower stations. Our first stop in 2019 was a very wet and rainy one at the Marmora Generating Station on the Crowe River east of Peterborough.  This waterpower plant was constructed in 1992 at the site of a couple of old mills and adjacent to the Crowe River Conservation dam. Now is the perfect time for dam owners to be thinking about seeing how their structures fared over the long cold winter, with respect to impacts from ice, debris from the spring runoff, and washouts from high spring water...

Read More

#WheresWilly team moves inside for a rainy day discussion about Dams

On Friday, our #WheresWilly team took a break from the sites and sat down with some dam owners and operators to discuss the importance of rehabilitation of aging dams, preventative maintenance, and monitoring. Too often waterpower generators get tunnel vision, focusing on the mechanical and electrical systems when it comes to budgeting for upgrades. This is understandable given their direct correlation to the financial bottom line. However, neglecting the structural elements of a facility can add up to huge repair bills and possible downtime if deterioration is left unchecked for too long. During our road trip this summer, we have seen many dams that are in desperate need of some attention. MKE and its WheresWilly team cannot stress enough the...

Read More

Busy Day for WheresWilly Crew > Parry Sound and Sequin

What a day for the WheresWilly team! We conquered 6 dams in one day, covering Parry Sound and Sequin areas and including one waterpower station at Cascade Street. These dams are vital to the area by supporting renewable energy and controlling water levels for recreation and fisheries. We ended the day at Jimmy's in McKellan for some Kawartha ice cream, then on to Otter Lake for some supper and a swim. Tomorrow we will be staying in Sequin and Muskoka for anther 3 dams, starting with Whitefish Dam near Rosseau. No rest for Willy till Saturday.

Read More