The Rideau Canal

[rocketphish]

Parks Canada riding a slow boat to new Rideau Canal services

Don Butler, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: May 13, 2016 | Last Updated: May 13, 2016 4:42 PM EDT

New tourist experiences and services along the Ottawa section of the historic Rideau Canal are coming. More slowly than Parks Canada first promised, but coming all the same.

In March 2015, Parks Canada invited bids from companies able to provide a package of “innovative experiences and leading edge services” on and along the canal from the Ottawa locks to Hartwells locks at Carleton University.

The move effectively shut down the canal tours that Paul’s Boat Lines had been operating for 66 years and left the nation’s capital bereft of boat tours on the UNESCO World Heritage Site last summer.

The Parks Canada tender said all the new experiences and services had to be offered by May 20, 2016 — the official start of this year’s canal boating system. But with that deadline less than a week away, none of the promised improvements are yet in place.

Not to worry. That schedule was extended after Parks Canada signed a 42-year lease last September with a new operator, Ottawa Boat Cruise, said Jewel Cunningham, director of the agency’s Ontario Waterways unit, given that the company had to build two new 100-passenger electric boats.

The first boat is still under construction and won’t be launched until mid-June at the earliest. Company president Robert Taillefer said he wants to test it for a month or two before starting construction on the second boat, which won’t be operational until next summer.

By starting the season late, the company will miss cashing in on the lucrative Tulip Festival tourist market. But Taillefer said that was unavoidable.

“Building a ship usually takes close to a year or a year and a half. We’re trying to do it in a couple of months. We’re pushing everything, but we want to keep everything to Transport Canada standards while making sure it’s well done.”

Once the tours begin, passengers will be able to hop off or on at Lansdowne Park and Dow’s Lake, though they’ll have to pay a $5 surcharge on top of the $27 adult tour price.

They’ll also be able to catch a free shuttle that will pick up customers at 12 downtown hotels and book tickets online at rideaucanalcruises.ca — a service not offered by Paul’s Boat Lines.

As well, a new smartphone app will provide details and photos of attractions in the National Capital Region in nine languages.

Ultimately, Ottawa Boat Cruise hopes to operate, with its partners, a full range of tourism services, including bus and walking tours, accommodations and packages with attractions such as the Museum of Nature. “We want to have a complete service,” said Taillefer, citing Banff-based tourism giant Brewster Travel as a model.

But all of that will take time.

“We still need to work out a lot of details,” Taillefer admitted. “There’s a lot of stuff in (Parks Canada’s tender) that we can’t produce in the short time since we signed the lease. We need to go step by step and make sure that every step is done properly. How long that will take, time will tell.”

While some of the new services may be delayed, Cunningham said Parks Canada was excited by Ottawa Boat Cruise’s plans and is confident that it will be able to offer the expanded array of experiences the agency originally envisioned.

Even the enhanced cruise operation will open up new opportunities, Cunningham said. The barge-style construction will facilitate the romantic dinner cruises and charters the company is planning to offer, she said.

The lease makes Ottawa Boat Cruise the sole tourism operator on the urban stretch of the canal, something Parks Canada thinks will help tourists by giving them a sole point of contact for canal-related activities.

Other companies could still propose additional experiences or services, Cunningham said, but would have to do so in partnership with Ottawa Boat Cruise.

[email protected]
twitter.com/ButlerDon

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news...o-new-rideau-canal-services-and-thats-ok

[On Edge]

There should be a year-round shuttle of some sort along the canal with stops at Lansdowne and Dow's Lake. A train a bus a boat, something.

[rocketphish]

Terrace on the Canal officially opens in spot formerly occupied by 8 Locks' Flat

Aidan Cox, Postmedia
Published on: June 18, 2016 | Last Updated: June 18, 2016 6:15 PM EDT



A new Rideau Canal bar and hangout spot, described as a cross between a downtown patio and a community park, opened Saturday where 8 Locks’ Flat used to stand.

Terrace on the Canal will serve as a community-oriented spot for grabbing coffee, food, beer or just enjoying the ambience, said Sharif Virani, the bar’s marketing director.

“We saw there’s a lot of traffic on the canal; people are jogging, walking. We wanted them to have a place to do other things as well,” he said.

Every weekend, Terrace on the Canal will feature an Ottawa food truck to satisfy patrons’ appetites. Meanwhile, the bar will be manned by Terrace’s own staff and will serve local beers and drinks such as Urban Juice Press, an Ottawa-based company that makes organic fruit juice.

Angry Dragonz, a food truck serving Asian cuisine, will be parked right next to the expansive wooden patio that is decked out with benches and tables.

One feature that sets the new venue apart from 8 Locks’ Flat is that there will be no kitchen, meaning only food trucks will be serving meals. The arrangement gives the trucks the opportunity to capitalize on business that is generated in the area without having to pay a fee, Virani said. Another new attraction will include live music.

The venue is also available for corporate events and weddings, of which three have already been booked for the summer, said Aydin Kharaghani, the co-owner.

“It’s a way to support local businesses in Ottawa, from local food people, to Urban Juice Press, to craft beers and local breweries,” said Kharaghani.

Terrace on the Canal is located at 191 Colonel By Dr., and Virani said the hours will be dependent on the weather.

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news...n-spot-formerly-occupied-by-8-locks-flat

[rocketphish]

Parks Canada pushing back new Rideau Canal management plan until 2018

Don Butler, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: December 16, 2016 | Last Updated: December 16, 2016 3:50 PM EST

A new management plan for the UNESCO World Heritage Site Rideau Canal, already long overdue, will be delayed another year, Parks Canada says.

In a Dec. 15 letter addressed to “Rideau Canal Confrères,” John Festarini, Parks Canada’s associate director of Ontario Waterways, revealed that the target completion date for the plan has been pushed back to March 2018 from March 2017.

In the letter, Festarini says Parks Canada received considerable feedback during public information sessions about the new management plan this past summer, “including a desire for stakeholders to have more occasions to be engaged and provide comment.”

In light of that, Parks Canada will present a draft version of the management plan at open houses in communities along the canal during the 2017 navigation season to get further comment.

The current management plan for the canal dates from 2005 and was originally to have been updated in 2010. However, the former Conservative government extended that to 2015, meaning the plan will be three years overdue if Parks Canada is able to meet its revised timetable.

The management plan establishes the long-term strategic vision for the canal. Among other things, its purpose is to ensure the “commemorative integrity” of the canal, guide appropriate public use and conserve its natural values.

Hunter McGill, chair of Friends of the Rideau, a non-profit volunteer organization, said the decision to delay the new plan to allow more time for consultations was “not a bad thing.

“It seems like a sensible thing to do,” McGill said in an interview, noting that Festarini was appointed to his job less than a year ago and had “inherited a difficult situation.” His impression, he said, was that Festarini “is really anxious to do this properly.”

A lot has changed since 2005, McGill said. Most notably, UNESCO designated the 202-kilometre canal a World Heritage Site in 2007 — something not reflected in the existing management plan.

Though the federal government announced spending of $40 million in 2015 and a further $57 million this year to make badly needed repairs to the canal’s physical infrastructure, McGill said it has done little to address the need for presentation and interpretation along the 184-year-old heritage waterway.

McGill flagged that issue in a letter last month to Catherine McKenna, the minister responsible for Parks Canada, saying presentation and interpretation of the canal’s history for visitors “is still woefully underfunded and understaffed.”

To mark Canada’s 150th anniversary in 2017, Parks Canada is waiving lockage fees on the canal, which is expected to prompt a large increase in the number of people using the canal, McGill’s letter says.

Such commemorations “offer wonderful opportunities” to present the canal as a vital component of Canada’s history, he told McKenna.

“But these chances will be missed if there are inadequate numbers of heritage interpretation staff to tell the story. There is no substitute for live interpretation, delivered by a team dedicated to that task.”

Though McKenna has not yet responded to his letter, McGill said he hoped the minister “will be able to encourage Parks Canada management to make that happen.”

[email protected]
twitter.com/ButlerDon

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news...-rideau-canal-management-plan-until-2018

[rocketphish]

Rideau Canal closed to boaters until May 26 due to high waters

Megan Gillis, Postmedia
Published on: May 18, 2017 | Last Updated: May 18, 2017 10:41 AM EDT

Citing the threat to boaters’ safety posed by high water levels after “extreme” amounts of rain, Parks Canada has pushed back the start of the 2017 navigation season on the Rideau Canal by a week to May 26.

Until then, the canal and Trent Severn Waterway are closed to all boat traffic and all kinds of water-based activities are discouraged in a bid to protect boaters and prevent shoreline erosion and property damage.

An exception is Rideau Canal Cruises’ vessel, the Queen Elizabeth Drive, which has been out on the water with Parks Canada’s permission since last weekend.

Parks Canada says it will keep adjusting water flows to restore safe water levels and warns people to be careful with high water levels and fast flows.

People can still enjoy the canals’ lock stations, which will be open to visitors on May 19 with lock staff ready to greet them.

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news...-boaters-until-may-26-due-to-high-waters

[zzptichka]

Judging by today's NCC board meeting agenda they will be installing railings along the Canal between Dow's Lake and Hog's back.
Wish they widened the path as well. It's super busy and tight during rush hour.

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by zzptichka

Judging by today's NCC board meeting agenda they will be installing railings along the Canal between Dow's Lake and Hog's back.
Wish they widened the path as well. It's super busy and tight during rush hour.

I assume you mean on the eastern edge where the path is only separated from the canal by a small curb. I remember 20 years ago being nervous riding my bike along that stretch, as I am sure that if you even bumped your wheel on the curb, you would be going for a swim. The path along the western edge at least has a strip of grass between the path and the canal.

I agree that widening the path would be nice (maybe even a separate bicycle path), but I am shocked that it has taken this long for a railing.

[zzptichka]

New 2.4 km #RideauCanal railings to resemble existing. Installation from October to December 2017

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by roger1818

I agree that widening the path would be nice (maybe even a separate bicycle path), but I am shocked that it has taken this long for a railing.

Especially in Ottawa, where everything fun has been lawyered away.

[Buggys]

Originally Posted by zzptichka

Judging by today's NCC board meeting agenda they will be installing railings along the Canal between Dow's Lake and Hog's back.
Wish they widened the path as well. It's super busy and tight during rush hour.

About 5 years ago, I saw a girl fall down there while on her bike. Thankfully her bike stayed on shore and the water level was low (she couldn't swim). If memory serves me correct, I called 911 and the fire department brought a ladder. She was shaken but did not seem to have major injuries.

[MarkR]

Originally Posted by Buggys

About 5 years ago, I saw a girl fall down there while on her bike. Thankfully her bike stayed on shore and the water level was low (she couldn't swim). If memory serves me correct, I called 911 and the fire department brought a ladder. She was shaken but did not seem to have major injuries.

I once watched a guy ride his bike along the TOP of that edge. He seemed very zen about it, while everyone else quietly waited for him to fall either onto the path or into the water...

[rocketphish]

Rideau Canal's downtown stretch declared contaminated site
Tests of sediment revealed heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

CBC News
Posted: Nov 02, 2017 3:03 PM ET Last Updated: Nov 02, 2017 5:27 PM ET

A picturesque part of the Rideau Canal running through downtown Ottawa is now on a list of contaminated federal sites, Parks Canada announced Thursday.

That dubious designation is the result of tests done on sediment from the canal bed between the Ottawa Locks and Bronson Avenue. The tests were conducted after the discovery of heavy metals such as lead and cadmium, as well as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which have been linked to various cancers.

The latest round of tests was conducted to identify the extent of the contamination, and to be able to put in place measures to protect the environment, Parks Canada said.

Parks Canada calls the discovery of contaminated sediment "not unexpected" given the long history of industrial use and the urban location of that part of the canal. Over the last century the downtown stretch of the canal was home to a paint factory and has seen both trains running along its edge and steam-powered boats hauling industrial goods.

Parks Canada, the federal department in charge of the canal, said it would work with the City of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission to find ways to deal with the affected section of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The risk to human health is low, according to the department, as long as people don't have direct contact with the sediment at the bottom of the canal. Boating, paddling, skating and recreational use of the canal pathways will continue to be encouraged along, Parks Canada said.

Parks Canada temporarily halted repairs along a section of the canal after workers turned up canal-bed toxins while laying bricks last November.

Repairs resumed in the winter but were restricted so as not to disturb the sediment.

Parks Canada said future construction work would proceed with mitigation measures in place to protect the environment and public safety.

Thursday's statement didn't mention the canal's marine life, which includes carp, muskies and other species popular with urban fishers.

Earlier this year, Parks Canada acknowledged that fish can ingest sediments, however, fishing is monitored by the Ontario government. The province told CBC News last spring it was assessing the situation.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rideau-canal-contaminated-downtown-ottawa-1.4384345

[Acajack]

Anyone know why it's taking so long for the Rideau Canal to open for skating?

The last time the temperature was above freezing was Dec. 19 and that was only +4 and was for a few hours.

The last time Ottawa really got any rain was on Dec. 5.

So what gives?

[McC]

We had a fair bit of snow before it got really cold. i wouldn't be surprised if there was some kind of vicious circle where the ice wouldn't have been thick enough underneath to get equipment out to clear the blanket which continued to insulate the ice despite all the cold we've had, slowing the thickening of the ice. That's my guess.

[rocketphish]

Rideau Canal closed to boaters until June

Megan Gillis, Andrew Duffy, Ottawa Citizen
Publishing date: 19 hours ago • 1 minute read

The Rideau Canal, a national historic site, will not open to boat traffic until June at the earliest.

The canal’s mooring sites and all of its boat launches and lockstations will remain closed until at least May 31 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The navigation season on the Rideau Canal normally runs from Victoria Day to Thanksgiving.

Meanwhile, bridge operations for boats travelling under the LaSalle Causeway at Kingston won’t start until May 12 because of province-wide travel restrictions. Public Services and Procurement Canada announced Thursday that it will operate the bridge for commercial marine traffic on request.

On April 15, Parks Canada announced that the Rideau Canal’s visitor facilities will remain closed and that group activities and events will be cancelled “to help limit the spread of COVID-19.” Lockstations, visitors centres, parking lots, day-use areas, trails, boat launches and mooring areas are all closed until at least May 31.

Using the waterway is “discouraged and at one’s own risk,” Parks Canada said, noting that there may be unmarked hazards and aids to navigation may be missing, off-station or inoperable.

Built between 1826 and 1832 to assist in military defence and to ensure a supply route between Montreal and Kingston, the Rideau Canal is a 200-kilometre waterway that connects the Ottawa River and Lake Ontario.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-new...cm/8a58f778-9c5e-4d81-a609-a7e88625ff7d/

[rocketphish]

NCC board: Tram preference on Wellington, new pathways at LeBreton Flats, master plan for Gatineau Park

Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen
Publishing date: Jan 21, 2021 • 50 minutes ago • 4 minute read


<snip>

Rideau Canal Skateway could be days from opening

The Rideau Canal Skateway is on track to open early next week, according to Nussbaum.

Nussbaum said the agency is trying to open the major attraction for recreational purposes while following public health advice.

The NCC is asking people to only use amenities that are close to their homes, which would suggest the skateway might be unofficially off limits for residents who don’t live near the canal.

Nussbaum said the NCC doesn’t want to see, for example, 30,000 people on the 7.8-kilometre skateway on a Saturday afternoon, a typical volume during Winterlude festivals.

Public health agencies recommend people keep two metres apart from each other to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Anyone using the canal skateway will be asked to wear a mask.

[email protected]
twitter.com/JonathanWilling

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-new...eton-flats-master-plan-for-gatineau-park

[rocketphish]

Slush cannons, ice probes among ideas to extend Rideau Canal skating season
Working on an earlier start seen as more effective than extending season's end

CBC News
Posted: Jan 21, 2022 4:00 AM ET | Last Updated: 9 hours ago



The National Capital Commission (NCC) wants to find ways to open the Rideau Canal Skateway earlier in the season and will be working with Carleton University to try out some ideas — including something called a "slush cannon."

The NCC has been working for years to figure out how climate change affects attractions like the canal so that it can better manage them.

A 2020 report said one of the problems of warmer, wetter winters is a shortened Rideau Canal skating season. Seven of the last 10 skating seasons have been shorter than the average of 59 days.



In its news release on this year's opening, the NCC said it concluded it would be more effective to try moving up the start date of the skating season, which in recent years has happened in mid-to-late January, than trying to extend its end.

The collaboration between the NCC and Carleton is set to run for four years. This year, the team is gathering baseline data about the canal conditions to inform future pilot projects that could give skaters more time on the ice.

Shawn Kenny, a professor of environmental engineering at the university, says they'll look at ice temperature and use ground-penetrating radar to measure ice thickness.

The temperature sensors were only installed this week, dropped into holes drilled in the ice. The probes will take temperature readings from the mud at the bottom of the canal, the water and the ice, he said.

Kenny said the team will look at several factors unique to the skateway. One is the effect of run-off water and effluent from road bridges over the canal, while another is the fact the canal isn't the same depth along its whole length.

He said he could imagine tweaking how the canal is insulated, flooded or cleared of snow, but subzero temperatures will still be key as he doesn't think refrigeration is viable — financially or environmentally.

One way to extend the life of the skateway would be to promote thicker ice earlier — and that's where "slush cannons" could come in.

Similar to snow cannons used on ski hills, they would spew very cold water or even slush onto the ice, according to Bruce Devine, a senior manager with the NCC.

"Just imagine: if the water is cold enough to start building some ice, and we can build it [so that] even if the temperature rises we don't lose the ice, then we can achieve our 30-centimetre thickness possibly sooner," Devine told CBC's Ottawa Morning.

The idea was discussed at a Thursday NCC meeting, where CEO Tobi Nussbaum also mentioned playing around with the canal's water depths.

The team intends to study if deeper water affects the freezing or melting speeds of the ice.

The NCC also recently partnered with civil engineering students from the University of Ottawa to tackle a problem spot near the canal's northern end that doesn't want to fully freeze over.

Nussbaum said there should be an update in April on the NCC's wider work on climate change, and particularly the agency's vulnerabilities.

With files from CBC's Ottawa Morning and Sara Frizzell

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rideau-canal-skate-climate-change-1.6321738

[J.OT13]

That's cool. Love to see the NCC working with local universities.

[rocketphish]

You can now buy drinks on the Rideau Canal Skateway – and we're not talking hot chocolate
Locally owned and operated Dunrobin Distilleries has its own cocktail kiosk on the world's largest skating rink

By: Caroline Phillips, OBJ
Published: Feb 11, 2022 11:30am EST



Sometimes you really do need a stiff drink, especially after skating the entire 7.8-kilometre distance of the Rideau Canal on a really cold day against a strong headwind.

So, go ahead and have one. Dunrobin Distilleries has made history as the first craft distillery to serve its locally made spirits on the world’s largest skating rink. It's come up with its own signature winter cocktail, called the Northern Spike, made from hot maple sap with a shot of Dunrobin’s award-winning whisky, served in 12-ounce biodegradable cups.

And you thought hot chocolate was a good pairing with BeaverTails.

Word is slowly getting out about the new Dunrobin Cocktail kiosk, which is set up at the north end of the canal at the Concord rest area between Pretoria Bridge and the National Arts Centre.

“The feedback has been very positive,” Dunrobin Distilleries co-owner Mark Watson said. “Sales have been good. They’ve been very good, I would say.”

The Rideau Canal Skateway is managed and maintained by the National Capital Commission, a Crown corporation. It's temporarily closed due to the mild weather.

The Dunrobin-based business says it approached the NCC in 2019 with its idea to offer a uniquely Canadian alcoholic beverage that could warm skaters up, similar to a hot toddy.

The pitch went over well, thanks to the Canadian focus, said Watson.

“It’s not very interesting to have just a rum and Coke on the canal. It's more interesting to have something that's only available in Canada."

The business was selected through a request for proposals process that Watson described as long and extensive.

“You had to jump through a thousand rings of fire to get accepted,” he said of all the requirements, including proof of bilingualism, environmental considerations and health and safety protocols.

Dunrobin Distilleries has a fenced-off licensed area in which customers can enjoy their drinks. There are places to sit that are kept properly lit after the sun goes down. Beverages are served from an Airstream Caravan mobile bar by employees with Smart Serve certification.

The location is meant to be a place for skaters to enjoy a nice drink – and not a boozy watering hole.

“In a perfect world, people would be skating with their cups,” said Watson, who’s just happy the NCC gave the distillery permission to sell its spirits on the canal this winter. “It’s the first time in history they’ve allowed alcohol to be served. It shows them as being very progressive.

“Everybody that stops by is very excited by the concept.”

Along with the $9 Northern Spike cocktail, skaters can order $5 shots of the distillery’s assortment of spirits, which include its whisky, gin, vodka and limoncello. It also serves a non-alcohol green tea with maple sap drink that’s full of antioxidants.

Sales have been “on track” with expectations, said Watson, who hopes to expand the distillery's presence on the canal next year, provided Winterlude activities are back on. The multi-day winter celebration is one of Ottawa's most important tourist draws, attracting an average of 600,000 visitors each year.

Dunrobin Distilleries was co-founded by Watson and his business partner and longtime friend Adrian Spitzer about four years ago on Watson's small organic farm in the rural west-end community of Dunrobin. It grows and harvests many of its own organic ingredients that Watson and Spitzer combine with their passion for the art of distilling.

“I’ve been distilling since I was in high school, and so has my partner,” said Watson.

The business has a team of 20 full- and part-time employees. Its leadership includes former Royal Oak Pub Group CEO Jonathan Hatchell as vice-president.

"We're growing, and we're trying to become one of Canada's premier producers of spirits," Watson said.

January's cold weather meant the skateway was open for 27 consecutive days in 2022, almost as many as last year’s season total of 29 days.

This past week hasn't been great for business, though. The kiosk was shut down earlier due to the downtown "Freedom Convoy" protests, followed by a warm spell that has temporarily closed the skateway. Temperatures are expected to start dropping again on Saturday.

Weather permitting, the Dunrobin Cocktail kiosk operates 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday as well as Monday through Wednesday, and from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Watson has gone skating a bunch of times this season, using blades that he attaches to his cross-country ski boots.

“It’s been wonderful,” he said of the exercise and fresh air. “Now, after I do that 11-kilometre workout, I reward myself with [insert Robbie Burns accent here] a wee dram of Dunrobin whisky.”

– [email protected]

https://www.obj.ca/index.php/article/loc...-canal-skateway-and-were-not-talking-hot

[acottawa]

There is a cold snap in the long term forecast for next week, but it is hard to see a scenario where it persists long enough to counteract this week's mild temperatures and late February/early march sun.


Rideau Canal Skateway
@NCC_Skateway
·
50m
Persistent above average seasonal temperatures and current ice conditions will prevent us from opening the #RideauCanal Skateway this week.

We’ll reassess conditions at the end of the week.