No ice in Ottawa?

March 5, 2008 8:10 PM

I'm going to Ottawa tomorrow, and I just found out that the Rideau Canal is officially closed for the season. What? It's -9C in Ottawa and is staying below zero for the next few days. So, what are my chances of getting some ice skating in?

I also saw maintenance dudes driving their pickup on the ice today on the canal webcam, so this seems to be more of a policy issue than a safety one. I'd love to know if it's possible to skate on parts of the canal when it's "officially" closed or if there are any other ponds or great places for ice skating in the Ottawa area.

posted by kamelhoecker to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (6 answers total)

Well, you can answer most of your questions using the information they provide at the link you posted:

Mild weather forecasted this week will weaken the ice to the point that the Rideau Canal Skateway will become unsafe and unpredictable. Maintenance crews have already begun dismantling some of the equipment on the ice surface. The NCC urges skaters and pedestrians to keep personal safety in mind and remain off the Skateway. They are also asked to respect barricades and signs installed at access points.

Conclusions:

1. The Canal Skateway is likely to be unsafe.
2. Some equipment will be dismantled.
3. There will be barricades and signs to stop people from skating.

If you read between the lines, it seems likely that some people will skate anyhow, otherwise they wouldn't waste their breath pleading with people to reconsider.
posted by limon at 8:48 PM on March 5, 2008

There is a fine for going on the Canal when it is closed, in the order of $100. One other thing to consider is that we got a foot of snow today that won't be cleared from the Canal now that it's closed, so skating would suck anyway.

As for other skating places, Brewer's Park Speed Skating Oval is also closed for the season. Beyond that and indoor rinks, there might be a community outdoor rink still open somewhere, but it's getting hard to maintain a decent surface.
posted by cardboard at 8:59 PM on March 5, 2008

Dittoing cardboard. The snow is a huge problem: if you don't trust me or cardboard, it even says so on the website you provided: "Due to the mild temperatures and abundant snowfall expected in the Capital Region this week...." To put this another way: I was wading through snow up to my knees Wednesday, just to get home.

Even if you want to ignore the NCC, have fun skating through that snow. I think your best bet is indoors, in which case just figure out where the nerest community center is to wherever you're going to be.
posted by flibbertigibbet at 6:19 AM on March 6, 2008

Slight derail: This was my second winter away from home. How was the canal this season overall? Was there decent conditions for Winterlude?
posted by smcniven at 6:55 AM on March 6, 2008

smcniven, the season sucked :(. 34 days was how long the Canal was open for. I got on three times, didn't even get to do a length. And although I phoned and checked Canal conditions ten times, not once was there an 'excellent'.

Summary: You didn't miss much.
posted by storybored at 12:20 PM on March 6, 2008

So, yes, the canal was very closed. All access points had a little minimum $100 fine warning, although I did see a few people quickly walking across. There was a clear track down the middle that was plowed, so snow wasn't the problem. The surface must have softened a bit in the last few days as the ice was full of ruts and bumps from the snow plow tires. But, nothing a bit of zamboni wouldn't fix. Maybe they decided they needed to save money for snow removal since they are expected to get up to 50cm more snow today.

I ended up renting cross-country skiis at MEC and going over to Gatineau for the day. That was an excellent outdoor fun alternative if you're ever in Ottawa area.
posted by kamelhoecker at 7:28 AM on March 8, 2008