Until Lake Diefenbaker freezes, the Riverhurst ferry carries Highway 42 over the water 24 hours a day, free: by day the east shore gets a boat at each o'clock and the west shore at each half past, and at night it runs on demand. Riverhurst's own Hotline entry, refreshed at 11:40 on 19 October 2026, had it in normal service, with an 82,000 kg weight limit.
Pattern from the ministry's Riverhurst page and the Highway Hotline, checked 23 October 2026. Runs while the lake is open (usually April to November); no 2026 closing date announced. Government of Saskatchewan – Riverhurst Ferry · 2026-10-23
Autumn decides how long this crossing lasts. The Government of Saskatchewan runs its ferries from roughly April to November, and the real end date is set by ice on Lake Diefenbaker rather than by a calendar. On 19 October 2026 the Riverhurst boat was still in normal service; by late winter the same stretch of Highway 42 may be crossed on an ice road that the province maintains on the frozen lake.
Between those two states there is a gap. The ferry cannot work once ice forms, and the ice road only opens when it is safe to drive. In 2025 the province opened the approximately 2 km Riverhurst ice road on 18 February and closed it on 8 March; in 2026 it was still closed on 12 February. As a rule, the ministry says, its ice roads run from some time in February until late March, with the weather setting the actual dates. Outside those windows there is no direct crossing here at all.
While the water is open, this is the most generous ferry service in the province: 24 hours a day, 18 cars per trip, and enough capacity for most trucks at secondary highway weights. Around 30,000 vehicles use it each year, according to the ministry.
A pickup with a fifth-wheel, a combine on a lowboy, a family sedan: all cross at no charge. The Hotline names Wollaston Lake's northern barge as the one provincial vessel that bills its users, and Riverhurst is run directly by the Ministry of Highways with no ticket of any kind.
| Car or pickup with driver | Free |
| Truck within the posted weight | Free |
| Foot passenger | Free |
Free as of 23 October 2026 Saskatchewan Highway Hotline – ferry list · 2026-10-23
The crossing sits north-west of Moose Jaw, where Highway 42 reaches the long reservoir of Lake Diefenbaker. Riverhurst is on the east shore; the road continues on the far side towards Lucky Lake. When the province marked the ferry's fiftieth year, its minister called it Saskatchewan's only ferry linking one numbered highway to another, Highways 19 and 42.
The other provincial crossings of the South Saskatchewan are smaller boats on the open river. Downstream of the lake, north-east of Saskatoon, the Clarkboro ferry moves more traffic than any of them on a deck a third of this size.
Highway 42 leads west out of Riverhurst to the east-shore ramp. Boats leave this side on the hour by day, so arriving at 13:50 means a ten-minute wait at most, unless the deck is already full.
The landing is in the RM of Maple Bush No. 224. The ferry's direct number, 306-353-6250, is the one to ring if the boat is not where the timetable says it should be.
On the Lucky Lake side the departures fall on the half hour. This shore lies in the RM of Canaan No. 225, and Highway 42 carries on from the ramp towards Lucky Lake.
From the Riverhurst side, aim for a few minutes before the hour; from the west, a few minutes before the half hour.
After dark the boat goes when there is traffic rather than on the clock. The province does not publish the cut-over time.
The ministry says most trucks at secondary highway weights fit. The posted figure in the 19 October 2026 update: 82,000 kg.
A rise or fall in Lake Diefenbaker can change both service and weight limits at short notice, the province says.
A provincial ice road of about 2 km replaces the boat once the ice is thick enough, typically from February to late March.
The ferry's own line. The ministry's customer service centre is 1-844-754-4929.
The ferry was commissioned on 14 July 1967. At its fiftieth anniversary in 2017 the province's release quoted the mayor of Riverhurst, himself a provincial ferry operator, on why it matters: local farmers would otherwise face a much longer drive to reach the other side.
Two government figures for the ship's maximum load do not match — the ferry's web page and the Hotline differ by a few hundred kilograms — so neither is repeated here. The number that matters on the day is the Hotline's posted limit: 82,000 kg on 19 October 2026.
By day, from the east (Riverhurst) shore on the hour and from the west shore on the half hour. At night it crosses on demand, and it operates around the clock.
Yes. Its Hotline line read normal service when updated at 11:40, 19 October 2026. It stops when Lake Diefenbaker freezes; no date had been announced.
A provincial ice road of about 2 km across the lake. In 2025 it opened on 18 February and closed on 8 March; in 2026 it was still closed on 12 February.
The ministry says it can take most trucks at secondary highway weights. The Hotline's figure for 19 October 2026 was 82,000 kg; look it up before loading.
Eighteen cars, in the ministry's figures.
No. The crossing is free for every vehicle and passenger.
The east shore, in the RM of Maple Bush No. 224. The west shore terminal is in the RM of Canaan No. 225, on the way to Lucky Lake.
Since 14 July 1967. It marked fifty years of service in 2017.