January 4, 2022
The Montreal Port Authority officially inaugurated the start of a new year of activity by presenting the Gold-Headed Cane to Captain Felino D'Souza of Hapag-Lloyd's ship Quebec Express, the first ocean-going vessel to cross the Port of Montreal's downstream limit without a stopover in 2022.
The Quebec Express, a container ship, left the Port of Hamburg in Germany on December 19. The 12-day voyage ended at the Port of Montreal's MGTP Cast Terminal very early on January 1, 2022.
At the Port of Quebec the Gold-Headed Cane was to be awarded to Captain Kandangama Deniyegedara, of the vessel Federal Hunter, the first ocean-going vessel from a foreign port to dock at the Port of Quebec docks in the New Year.
The Federal Hunter arrived at the Port of Qubec from Russia on January 2, 2022, at 3:30 p.m. This bulk carrier docked at Section 107 of the Sollio Agriculture facility to deliver a cargo of fertilizer. Built in 2000, the Federal Hunter is operated by Fednav International Ltd.
The tradition of handing out gold headed canes to the captains of the first ships arriving at ports along the St. Lawrence river started in the days when the river froze over in the winter. The first ships - sail ships in those days - did not make it up the river until the spring thaw. Nowadays the St. Lawrence is kept open year round by Coast Guard icebreakers.