When to go fishing in winter

There's plenty of perch under the ice at Petrie Island

... ice fishing, that is.

The tributaries of the Ottawa River are frozen now, more or less. There's a rumour that the Rideau Canal will soon be open for skating, and the ice fishermen will also be getting impatient to practise their sport on the Ottawa River itself.

I came across a website that reports the current depth of the ice on the Ottawa near Petrie Island, a popular ice fishing spot. The ice there is already 10" (25cm) thick in places. This website is run by The Petrie Island Ice Fishermen's Association, PIIFA, an organisation that's been in existence for 10 years now.

It all started back in 2004 with a few ice fishermen sitting in a hut discussing ideas on how to combat the increase of vandalism, thefts and break-ins of that season. A few beers were shared and many ideas were tossed around. In the end, the group decided to start an association of ice fisherman. The main task of the association would be to bring hut owners together, so everyone could get to know each other and become a more tight-knit group for better security.

It has become, as they say, "huge" (and popular). Their website includes a fish catalogue, a page of wood stove recipes, and an Angler's Gallery of the proud fishermen with their catches.

The ice has to be 30cm thick before you are permitted to erect a hut on it. (Any day now.) All fishing huts must be off the ice by March 15th, but that leaves you plenty of time to catch fish till then.

A future for the Chaudière Falls

Chaudière Falls from the air, summer 2009

Great things are being planned, it seems, for the lands around Ottawa's Chaudière Falls, and about time too. Much of this industrial landscape has been lying there unused since 2005. The Windmill group of developers has signed a purchase deal with Domtar, who used to manage the site, and will turn the area into a major tourist attraction. Their plans include:

...establishing waterfront restaurants, cafés and public parks, setting up public gathering places that provide views of the river, building a mix of low-rise, highrise and affordable housing, redeveloping some of the heritage buildings, and creating various historical installations honouring the area’s logging and industrial history.

The company also says the project will be carbon neutral and will include on-site stormwater management, the use of solar, wind and other ecologically friendly systems. And it will be connected to a “safe and cohesive” pedestrian and cycle network, a “seamless” public transit system, and, to top it off, “an uninterrupted tourist experience.”

It will offer marvellous views. Because much of the site is in the middle of the river, on the Albert and Chaudière Islands beside the falls, Windmill is calling its project The Isles / Les Îles and is intending to apply some Algonquin names to the new features; the Algonquin people, who are being consulted, have a historic claim to this land, which they see as sacred ground. A spokesman for Windmill promised they

would not neglect First Nations’ concerns. He pointed out that as part of its due diligence Windmill has already consulted with interested parties, including the Algonquins of Ontario and the Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg band of Algonquins. Both groups have been positive in their responses to the company’s plans, he said.

(Ottawa Citizen)

"Various historical installations" within the new development will recall the site's logging history as well.

Back to winter

On our return, late on November 30th, we found the Rideau River already frozen over in our neighbourhood, with snow on the ice. It's an early winter in Ottawa this year. We missed a very cold week last week, apparently. The Ottawa River is still mainly clear of ice. The ducks and geese seem to have gone now.

The WaterStreet condo development has begun, with the old houses knocked down and the ground cleared for the new building work on Bruyère Street.

Here, for the sake of contrast, are some houses on the bank of the Parramatta River in Sydney, Australia (photo taken last week):

The westernmost of our Minto Bridges is under cover again, and a security guard sits there in his or her car day and night to keep guard over whatever is under the tarpaulins, which makes me wonder. Are we still in Phase 2 of the "rehabilitation" or is this the start of Phase 3? Possibly they're just doing more work on the new road surface. Anyhow, the road over the bridges is blocked again but at least pedestrians can get by on the boardwalk, unlike last year. We now have a small roundabout at the King Edward / Union street intersection, near the foreign affairs (Lester Pearson) building which will make for an easier flow once the Minto Bridges are open to traffic again.