{"id":7274,"date":"2013-02-01T16:00:49","date_gmt":"2013-02-01T21:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/inbox\/?p=7274"},"modified":"2013-02-01T15:01:04","modified_gmt":"2013-02-01T20:01:04","slug":"ottawas-winterlude-begins-updates-on-skateway-and-snowflake-kingdom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/inbox\/2013\/02\/01\/ottawas-winterlude-begins-updates-on-skateway-and-snowflake-kingdom\/","title":{"rendered":"Ottawa’s Winterlude begins – updates on Skateway and Snowflake Kingdom"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Rideau Canal Skateway by night. Photo: National Capital Commission<\/a>, CC some rights reserved<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Winterlude<\/a> kicks off today, with a few small adjustments.<\/p>\n

This week’s weather swings forced a mid-week closure of the Rideau Canal Skateway. It was still closed this morning, in fact. But the NCC\u00a0opened the entire skateway – all 7.8 km – as of Friday afternoon at 2. Current ice conditions are available here<\/a>. (Just one small side route, Patterson Creek, remains closed as of this writing.)<\/p>\n

The opening of the\u00a0Snowflake Kingdom, at Jacques-Cartier Park in Gatineau, will be delayed until Saturday, February\u00a02 at 9\u00a0am.<\/p>\n

Word to the wise: official ice conditions ratings for the skateway always strike me as overly-generous.<\/p>\n

In my opinion, their “poor” = “horrific”<\/p>\n

“Fair” = “marginally\u00a0skate-able, with care”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Good” = “fair”<\/p>\n

“Very Good” = “great happiness”<\/p>\n

When the ice is right, it’s a not-to-be-missed\u00a0experience. When it’s bad – yikes! Beware!<\/p>\n

On the other hand, if the bumps and cracks are too much, you can always drape the skates over your shoulders and have a wonderful time simply strolling the skateway. For\u00a0uncertain\u00a0skaters, that’s actually much more fun.<\/p>\n

The good news for any regional winter festival is that it’s cold again. Ottawa’s\u00a0forecast<\/a> seems cool and stable in the near term to the point where all the snow & ice events may be just fine once more, or will be soon.<\/p>\n

I understand NCPR filled two buses with over 100 participants for a Winterlude expedition this Saturday morning. Hopefully that will be a fun time for all.<\/p>\n

While on the subject, the Saranac Lake Winter Carnival also opens today – it runs from Feb 1-10. If you missed Mark Kurtz’s excellent “All In” photo-essay on harvesting ice to build the ice palace<\/a> all these many years, do check that out too.<\/p>\n

May you enjoy pleasant skiing, skating, snowshoeing – or indoor viewing – where ever you are this weekend!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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