It was wall to wall cars and trucks across from the bay once the sun began to set. People were promised a show and they got comfortable while they waited for it to begin.
Tinkess Photo

Terry Tinkess
Record Staff

LONG SAULT – A new community event took place in Long Sault on Sat., July 8, and judging by the number of people who came out to see what it was all about, it would appear to have been a success.

Luminous Long Sault 2023 is the creation of Long Sault resident Paul St. Onge, as a way of bringing the community together to enjoy a summer afternoon and evening. The event celebrates the beauty of the Long Sault area and surrounding waterway and highlights the summer fun in the area by inviting kayaks, canoes, motorboats, and sailboats to participate in a fun-filled evening on the bay, decorated with LED lights.

The event kicked off mid-afternoon with canoe races in and around Lakeview Park, then moved to the field in front of the Long Sault Plaza where local band Bordertown Catz entertained from 5:00 p.m. until about 9:15 p.m., when the “main event” was scheduled to take place.

As the crowd began to increase in number, St. Onge took to the stage to thank everyone for coming out. “This is just one big party for everybody to enjoy,” he said, “And, again, thank you for making this what it is. And if you can, please share the pictures, of what you’ve done, how you’ve enjoyed it, what it brought for your family, to bring them together and bring yourself down to the waterfront of Long Sault.

“This is a community of 1,800 people, right? And if we look around [and see] what’s happening, these are the moments that are really important, because we make great memories in this community. So again, thank you for being here.”

As the band packed up, and darkness began to fall, people made their way across Highway 2 to the open field, which provided the perfect viewing location. The number of small watercrafts that had gathered, displayed a variety of LED lights which were mirrored by the surface of the water.

The main event, and the thing most people came out to see was of course the drone show, which involved 72 drones flying in several different formations that symbolized important characteristics of summer in Long Sault, such as a sailboat, a canoe, a camper, a campfire, a bicycle, an eagle, and a butterfly.

St. Onge owns a drone and robotics company, they got together with Dronelight Show Canada to put on the performance, reportedly the first of its kind in Eastern Ontario. The show was run from Mille Roche beach by Anugrah Patel and Barsha Hardikr. Patel explained the process. “From the control station, they (the drones) are connected to Wi-Fi, and with co-ordinates from the satellite, sends data to the drones; once we launch it, it follows the path we have programmed.”

As public opinion moves us slowly away from the more traditional fireworks’ displays, drones are seen by many as the natural replacement. It isn’t difficult to argue that they are more environmentally friendly and less stressful on both domestic and wild animals, although drones don’t possess the “wow” factor that comes from rocketing multi-coloured explosives into the air. The increased number of forest fires in Canada and the US this year is also something that bears consideration when considering drones as an alternative way of celebrating.

Drone shows will increase in size and complexity, and as they do, so too will their entertainment value. St. Onge promised as much in saying he plans on doing it all again next year, just bigger and better.

Hopefully he will have a bit more help, as well. Kudos to him for the time and effort he put into getting this show off the ground. (No pun intended.) He was seen very early Sunday morning packing things up in the area.

There were reportedly as many as 3,500 people present by the time the drones took to the air. What better way to show your gratitude than by helping make Luminosity 2.0 an even bigger success.