Peace Bridge, Calgary

Sammy Hudes, Calgary Herald

At 8:30 a.m., a snowblower finally breaks the silence.

It’s the beginning of April, but in Calgary, winter hasn’t gone too far.

Feeling like -23 C with the wind chill, visitors are few and far between at the Peace Bridge, one of the city’s most recognizable spots for its bright red, finger trap-like esthetic.

Down below, chunks of ice softly float along the stream of the Bow River, as geese who make their home at the adjacent Prince’s Island Park each rest in one spot, occasionally calling to one another.

Like so many in the city, even they seem bored; restless too, as they sit idly in isolation.

For the lonely pedestrian bridge, this calm isn’t how things were supposed to be.

No tourists taking selfies in sight. No commuters crossing over to the downtown from the nearby Sunnyside neighbourhood. No e-scooters zipping back and forth. Instead, quiet.

Until the snowblower takes their place, that is, as it zooms back and forth three times to clear the walkways on either side, along with the centre cycleway.

The noise emanating from the machine is almost disruptive of the tranquillity — the peace — that has swept so much of Calgary in recent weeks.

It’s a reminder of the “old” normal, before the days of social distancing and the “stay at home” mantra that now echoes throughout empty office towers in the city core.

Those days weren’t too long ago.

And it’s a reminder that although no one can predict precisely when, there will come a day when the sounds of spring return to the Peace Bridge; when it’s once again overcrowded with joggers and cyclists and yes, people who just want that artsy backdrop for their photo.

Maybe by then, the snow will have cleared.