The Strait of Canso has long served as a maritime shortcut between the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Atlantic Ocean. In 1955, the Canso Canal opened as part of the engineering works for the new Canso Causeway that had finally established a permanent link for Cape Breton Island with mainland Nova Scotia. With the road-and-rail causeway blocking the strait, tidal locks allow the yacht to navigate the powerful currents into the 250-meter-long waterway. At the canal’s southern end, a long swing bridge opens up to allow maritime traffic through.