Winterlude - Ottawa's Winter Festival

This is the last weekend of Winterlude in Ottawa. It's a winter festival that's held every year during the first three week-ends in February. I took the kids to the Rideau Canal for a skate during the first weekend, couldn't coerce them to return last weekend, but managed to convince them to take one last trip to the city before the end of Winterlude. In fact, everybody went -- the whole fam damily, as the locals here would say.

We parked behind city hall and walked through the courtyard to Confederation Park. Confederation Park played host to the ice sculptures again this year. Two weekends ago we watched artists give birth to these creations and here they were, in their finished glory, beautifully backlit by changing colours as people passed by them and marvelled at their elegance.

If you haven't been to a winter festival, you probably haven't seen anything like this.


This is a mermaid swimming with a dolphin in the surf. Awesome!

Below here is the sculpture that won first prize. It's a clown fish in an anenome with coral trailing off behind. The picture just doesn't do it justice. It really is incredible. It's about 6 feet tall and another 6 feet across.

This sculpture was in another part of the park and I believe it was part of a different contest. I believe it won in its category as well. Initially I thought it was a winged figure, but I think it's a hunter running alongside a wolf, with a sword in one hand and a fur cape flying behind him; the cape has a hood. The details are extraordinary.

The ice sculptures were amazing -- a water goddess, the march of the penguins, an RCMP officer on his horse, a woolly mammoth, polar bears dancing and eagles hunting. There were dozens to see. We browsed and "ooooh-ed" and "aaaah-ed" with everyone else. It was neat to see during the day, but it was truly spectacular at night.

We got a little hungry so we crossed the canal, and walked up to the Byward Market to find someplace to eat. We walked up Colonel By Drive towards Rideau Street and passed between the Rideau Centre and this building. I think it's the Government Conference Centre. I thought it was pretty so I took a picture.

I love the city at night. I was so cold I was shaking, which meant lots and lots of bad shots, but I managed to salvage a few in between shivers.

We ended up having a great meal at a little Italian restaurant in the market. Afterwards we returned to the canal and bough some hot coffee, while son skated on the canal. We followed him about a kilometre down the ice before turning back.

It was a beautiful night.