Winterlude warmup
Colder weather comes just in time for event
The canal may not be open for skating, but Winterlude will still begin Friday, and colder temperatures are in the forecast,
Winterlude kicks off Friday night at a new downtown venue as NCC officials prepare for another winter festival with a few added wrinkles in programming.
But as the 35th edition of Winterlude begins at the Rink of Dreams at Ottawa City Hall — moved this year from the Canadian Museum of Civilization — NCC officials are also keeping a watchful eye on the changing weather patterns. Wednesday’s record-breaking temperature forced the NCC to close the Rideau Canal Skateway.
Colder weather is expected on Friday and Saturday, with the daytime temperature expected to be around -10C. But the canal’s reopening is always “weather dependent,” said Jean Wolff, the NCC’s senior manager of communication, who wouldn’t speculate on when skaters will be allowed back on the canal.
“We hope for better weather as early as possible and a green light from the experts on the ice safety committee,” he said. Winterlude runs from Feb. 1 to 18. No changes are planned to the Winterlude schedule, although the NCC is taking precautions to preserve some of the giant ice sculptures at Confederation Park. The sculptures, one of a polar bear and the other a herd of muskox, have already been wrapped in thermal blankets to keep them cold. And the ice blocks to be used at the International Ice Carving Competition which begins on Friday, have been stashed in refrigerator trucks.
“Everything looks good, but our biggest concern in the parks is any kind of standing water that might freeze and create slippery conditions as the temperatures drop back down,” said Denise Leblanc, a NCC spokesperson.
The opening ceremonies begin at 7 p.m. and feature musical performances, aerial dancers, interactive projections, a public art illumination display, pyrotechnic effects and a DJ dance party with A Tribe Called Red. A free pancake breakfast sponsored by Enbridge takes place Saturday at 10 a.m. at City Hall. Skating performances and a DJ night will be also staged at the Rink of Dreams this weekend.
Winterlude events take place at the official sites including Marion Dewar Plaza at City Hall, Confederation Park, site of the Crystal Gardens and the International Ice-Carving Competition, and Jacques-Cartier Park, home of the Snowflake Kingdom and giant snow slides.
More than 75 programming partners from Ottawa and Gatineau are involved outdoor and indoor activities, said Leblanc.
Some of the events include the annual By Ward Market Stew Cook-Off, the second annual Ottawa Winter Jazz Festival, Spectacular NWT Days at the Ottawa Convention Centre, and concerts by Sarah Slean and The Lost Fingers at Centrepointe Theatre, Tricia Foster at Shenkman Arts Centre, and Elisapie Isaac at the Canadian Museum of Civilization. A comedy festival, Cracking Up The Capital, takes place at the National Arts Centre, Downtown Rideau hosts its Chill Factor, and there’s also the Wellington West Warm-Up at Cube Gallery.
New this year is the Lantern Garden, a 35-metre-long tunnel of over 1,300 lanterns presented at Crystal Gardens in Confederation Park, and also a WinterBlast Weekend for youth featuring DJs, films, museum tours, giant slides and dancing.
A free Sno-Bus shuttle will transport visitors on Saturdays and Sundays to the Winterlude festival sites. For more information on Winterlude go to www.winterlude.gc.ca