A peaceful end of the day in Britannia Bay

As the sun went down yesterday afternoon, we walked down the bike path from the Andrew Haydon Park's parking lot to Britannia Beach and back, enjoying the view upriver and the glow of the light on the water and on the banks, bushes and trees. A sprinkling of snow earlier this week had not altogether melted and had mixed with ice at the water's edge. This didn't seem to deter the water birds: ducks foraging close to the shore and geese landing for the evening, further out.

In fact, thousands of geese were landing on the Ottawa River, especially just after the sun had sunk below the horizon. They arrived in flocks and in families, all flying a sort of circuit in formation, overhead the landing area, then downwind, then turning base for a final long or short approach to land, just as human pilots would. Britannia Bay seems to be a major airport for the geese!

Britannia Beach, at the far end of this long, straight bikepath was not quite deserted, with people like us taking a walk there, but looked nothing like it did in August, when we were last there. No human swimmers at this time of year, no white-water rafts setting off. The snack bar is shut and the patio cleared of furniture, but the central part of the facility in the main building (the Ron Kolbus Lakeside Centre) is still open throughout the winter, from 9-5 every weekday; community recreational activities take place there. Later this winter I'm going to take some friends snowshoeing from there.

Returning the way we'd come we did not have dazzling sunbeams in our eyes because the sun had set beyond the distant ex-Nortel building at Crystal Bay. In place of the sun, a thin crescent moon appeared, high over the silhouetted leafless branches of the trees that line the bike-path. The shapes of the landing geese were silhouetted too against the fading sky and river water and the evening was filled by their loud voices. By the time we got back to our car it was altogether dark.

Water levels

Water levels on the Ottawa waterways are remarkably variable this year. For the last couple of weeks they've seemed low, the Rideau Canal drained in advance of winter, the Rideau River showing its muddy bed along the edges, ducks' footprints showing, but this morning it's different, river water lapping over the roots of the trees. We are at the end of a "significant rain event", with two weather systems merging, one from the southeast and one from the south (the remnants of Tropical Storm Philippe). At the Ottawa airport, winds are gusting to 45 knots today (85 kph). This wet and windy weather is reminiscent of the thunderstorms and micro-burst at the end of last month that had a shocking number of large trees down along the John A. MacDonald Parkway near Westboro, near the Ottawa River, and in the vicinity of the Britannia Yacht Club.

During thundery weather conditions, storms sweep southeastwards down the Ottawa Valley from Pembroke, more or less following the course of the river, but cyclones (low pressure systems full of moisture) more usually come from the south east. The famous Ice Storm of January 1998 was one such depression.

This morning, a parking lot near Billings Bridge was deep underwater, and 9000 Ottawa households were without power. Close to our house, under the St. Patrick Street bridge, the cycle track (Rideau River Eastern Pathway) was underwater, just as it usually is during the spring thaw.

Somebody read this blog!

The author of Wild. Here. nature in your neighbourhood mentioned in one of her recent posts (also drawing attention to other like-minded, local bloggers) that she has read my River Diary and seems to like it! Thanks, Katherine.

Alison Hobbs has created a thoughtful and observant journal of life by a river or actually a confluence of rivers both those here in the city and some in her travels.  She offers a very detailed account throughout the seasons and provides personal and current commentary interspersed with photos including aerial ones!  She talks about city development, aurora borealis sightings, city events, wildlife, geological details, snowshoeing, biking and occasional boating outings also.  It's great that the archives are still up and available to read as it includes a total of 238 posts!

So now, 239 posts. I think it is time I resurrected the diary / blog and added further posts, because our rivers continue to flow, and what happens in, on, or around them continues to change and catch my eye. An obvious example is this season's Mìwàte sound and light show at Ottawa's Chaudière Falls, happening every evening from 6:30pm until November 5th. We have not been to see it, yet.

It would have been really dramatic to run the show in early May, when we had tremendous floods at this spot, but it was obviously too dangerous then.

Dragon boats in Mooney's Bay

It's been three months since I published a blogpost here. We're now in mid-summer, June 21st, and the Ottawa rivers look totally different. This weekend the Dragon Boat Festival takes place in Mooney's Bay on the Rideau River with crowds of competitors and their supporters there, thousands of people making a noise.

From downtown, I cycled up the bike trail by the Rideau Canal to see them, returning along the Rideau River trail, a ride that only took about 40 minutes each way, and I'm not a speedy cyclist. Some of my friends from the Ottawa CFUW were paddling in the races but so many people were there, I never spotted them. Some teams were just there for a laugh; others were taking it very seriously, limbering up with team chants, arm-waving exercises, press-ups. All participants wore a uniform and life jackets. The marshalers lined them up to wait for their turn in the boats, which had dragons' heads and tails as in the Chinese tradition on this day–– Duānwǔjié (端午节). During the races a drummer in the prow of the boat beats a rhythm for the oars and a steersman or woman stands at the back. At the end of the race came the cheers and mutual congratulations, high fives.

On the bank were many tents and stalls. The results tent listed the teams that had competed so far this morning, among them some silly or witty names: Blazing Paddles, Rowdiculous, Girls on Fire, Sea of Troubles, Release the Krakens, Holy Ship, Fire Breathing Rubber Duckies and even My Arms Hurt.

Photo by CW Clark

This afternoon Chris and Chuck are flying above Mooney's bay in our Cessna so that Chuck can capture pictures of the boat races from the air.

(Added later.)  See one of these pictures on the right. Click to enlarge and you can clearly see the wakes of the dragon boats and a close finish for 1st place in this race ...

A couple more pictures created by CW Clark are attached below.

The whole of Mooney's Bay, also showing the Hog's Back Falls and canal

Dragon boats returning from a race, with the Festival site beyond

Ice-breaking: a slow process

This month's ice-clearing operations on the Rideau River, upstream from the Rideau Falls, have so far only reached as far as the Chinese Embassy. As usual, dynamite was used first, then the amphibious excavator, but it's taking more time than usual because the ice is so thick this year and because the ice is piling up to a huge extent at the base of the falls.

I took some photos yesterday:

They've begun

The ice-breaking crews have sprung into action on the local rivers. The amphibious excavator has created a semicircle of ice floes beneath the Rideau Falls and this morning my husband 'phoned to warn me that the bridge on Sussex Drive across the Rideau River was being closed, so that the dynamiting operations could begin just above the Rideau Falls. As the Minto bridges are also closed at present, this means quite a long detour for people wanting to access the Rockcliffe Parkway.

Anyhow, they have a nice, bright day for it. Windy, but sky clear.

Mo's Fly-in, on the river!

Last weekend, Feb. 22nd, was the date for Mo's Fly-in on the Ottawa River, the aircraft landing on ice. It was good weather for it! The sun shone and melted some of the surface ice, but the ice beneath was strong enough for a runway to be ploughed and even aircraft not fitted with skis could land for the event, the 25th one of its kind.

Here's a video made by Yves Grenier of the ground operations, this year:

The event started at 1000 hrs and ran all day on the Quebec side of the Ottawa River, 1 mile west of the Ottawa VOR. The Canadian Owners and Pilots Association published the following details about it:

Coordinates: 45°26'57" N, 75°55'48
Runway: Runways 34 & 16, 3500' x l00'
Frequencies: ground 122.75 MHz, air 123.20 MHz.
Notes: Ski landing recommended. Landing is at your own risk.

Boats are back

My MacKay Street friend Susan reports that the "boats are back in the dog park" on her side of the Rideau River, ready for use by the ice breaking team. There's no accessible water to float them on yet, though. The Weather Network reports that the "polar vortex makes a return this week" and the current temperature out there is -12º (feels like -17º)

What to do along the river

I meant to write this blogpost sooner; my post of yesterday reminded me.

Towards the end of January, Kelly Egan of the Ottawa Citizen wrote an opinion column about what could be "done" with a river (the Ottawa River in this case) to make it "less sleepy"––more animated. The white water rafting wasn't on his list of ideas, but he had some good suggestions nonetheless. He mentioned water taxis, which have already come into operation through my favourite boat company, Au Feel de l'Eau. Other possibilities, he thought, were

• gondolas, crossing the river from the bottom of the Rideau Canal locks to the Gatineau bank
• floating bonfires with music in the background
• giant chess boards on the banks
• wi-fi spots at regular intervals along the shore
• playgrounds and skateboard ramps
• places for practising yoga
• places for indulging in chalk art
• ice cream sales points and a beverage service
• kayak rentals from Bate Island

He also mentioned the possibility of flea markets and farmers markets close to the river bank. Perhaps this will happen more readily when the Chaudière Falls area is developed.

Musician on the South Bank of the Thames, in London

I thought of this article when walking along the South Bank of the Thames the following weekend, where a huge amount of activity was drawing the London crowds. Admittedly that's a far bigger city, but the principle is the same.

Coming soon: white water rafting through the city!

The national capital region has a huge amount of potential that could be far better exploited by the tourism industry, if people put their minds to it. The Ottawa River is a good example of this under-use of natural resources, but maybe things are about to change. CBC Ottawa announced this week that this summer there will be a new attraction in town. Wilderness Tours, a white water rafting company that normally operates from much further upstream, near Cobden,

Ottawa River with the city ahead, from the Remic Rapids
below Bate Island, spring 2013

will begin offering tours down the Ottawa River right in the heart of the nation's capital beginning in June [...] The company has been given permission to take customers downstream through the Des Chênes and Remic Rapids from Britannia to Lemieux Island, just west of Chaudiere Island.

It sounds like a good idea that will especially appeal to visitors from elsewhere in Canada or from overseas, because:

... tour guides will also inform participants about aboriginal, fur and lumber trade history [...] "You're not just being told about the history of the Ottawa river. You're experiencing it for yourself."

A sight worth seeing

I have never seen the Rideau Falls as iced-over as they are this year. The snow has also piled up around the base of the falls to a phenomenal extent. This afternoon, on a relatively mild but windy day, we walked over to take a look at it.

Pedestrian access to the bridge is sealed off at present. The men in helmets and red jackets in the middle of the bridge are the officials, trying to decide what to do about that much ice, I presume.

Crossing the river on foot

Mid-week I walked over the Rideau River from our house to the New Edinburgh Park. Other people were doing likewise, and vehicles have been on the ice too, in preparation for the ice-breaking operations.

For the record, I stopped half way across the river to take photos in all four directions.

Straight ahead, the river bank and the New Edinburgh Park

To my left, the Minto Bridges and Green Island

To my right, looking up-river

Behind me, Bordeleau Park, Cathcart Street and the city

An ice-breaking party

Nancy and John invited us and all the other neighbours on Cathcart Street to an impromptu party last weekend, which we very much enjoyed. The wording of the invitation was topical, referring to the icebreaking operations on the Rideau River that will start in a week or two and which several of our neighbours will be able to observe all day long from their homes. The dynamite blasts will certainly rattle our homes, as they do every year. And apparently I'm not the only person who worries about the effect this also has on the local wildlife.

The invitation, including a picture of the demolition team in their orange jackets at work by the river, read as follows:

It's almost that time again.

The boys will soon be on the river playing with their toys and making lots of noise.

That means it's time for our own ice-breaking party where we start to say goodbye to winter and say hello to each other after a long season of semi-hibernation.

Join us [...] for beer, wine, sherry and snacks ... 

A nice idea, John and Nancy! Thanks.

A black and white day by the river

We walked home from town along Sussex Drive this afternoon, during the latest snowfall. Across the river, artificial snow makers are adding to the amount for the sake of the Winterlude playground (aka Snowflake Kingdom, the biggest snow playground in North America!) being constructed over there, in Jacques-Cartier park. The machines are in operation night and day.

Below is a picture of the Ottawa side of the river, showing Nepean Point and the Alexandra Bridge over the frozen, snow-covered river. The bridge is currently closed to traffic because it's being given a new coat of paint, to prevent steel corrosion. On an average day, when it's open, this interprovincial bridge is crossed by 22,000 vehicles.

The pictures on this page, by the way, are colour photos, not black and white ones.

Good news for Au Feel de L'Eau

Aqua Taxi on the Gatineau, last summer

The Aqua Taxi service owned by Au Feel de L'Eau has had some good news this month. They are not only going to be sailing on the Ottawa and Gatineau Rivers this summer. They've also been granted permission to run their electric water taxi on the Rideau Canal.

Du nouveau pour 2014! Nous sommes très heureux d'annoncer que nous offrirons un service d'Aqua-Taxi électrique sur le canal Rideau dès la saison prochaine.

I'm very pleased to hear this. There are already cruises available through town from May to October, up the Rideau Canal to Dows Lake and back, but no opportunity to get off the boat at the far end. Your only option is to disembark at your starting point. The Aqua Taxi will change that. Since there isn't a convenient bus running from downtown to Dows Lake, it's a service Ottawa tourists and residents have needed for years.

I wonder if I shall see them bringing their boat up through the eight locks by Parliament Hill.

An exercise in patience

Waiting for a bite

According to her status update, a Facebook friend of mine went ice fishing with a friend near Rockland today. She called it "The ultimate exercise in patience."

A lot of the river ice is slush covered at present, in poor condition because of the mild week we've had, wet and slippery on the surface, but the ice is still 18" thick on average (45cm).

New Year and very cold

The other night, out of doors at 30 below, we saw a girl set off to walk her dog across the Rideau River to the park on the other side. There's no danger of people falling through the ice now as it must have thickened considerably during the last couple of weeks.

The average thickness of the ice in Baitshop Bay by Petrie Island, on the Ottawa River, is now reported to be 30cm. Last reported ice condition: "excellent" for fishing.

Today the Rideau Canal was opened for skating which means the ice is of a good thickness there too.

All 7.8 kilometres of the Rideau Canal Skateway are now open between Rideau and Dows Lake, including Patterson Creek and the Hartwell Locks. Last night a full sweep and flooding was completed. Sweeping operations were completed this morning. We ask that skaters use extra caution this afternoon. There are many areas with very rough patches of ice and with the volume of skaters, the condition of the ice will continue to deteriorate throughout the rest of the day.

Happy New Year, Ottawa!

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.