The first Sunday in Winterlude was overcast and snowing. I went down to the farmer's market in the Glebe, and decided to come back along the Canal when I reached it over at the Pretoria Bridge. This is a view from the north, taken from beneath the freeway bridge that neighbours it.
Here we have a view from on the bridge itself, looking south onto the skateway.
I then proceeded down towards the ice surface, first capturing a view of the bridge framed by trees. This bridge dates back to 1915, and is a vertical lift bridge- its central section can be raised to allow taller boats to pass beneath. It was extensively reconstructed in the 1970s to match its original look. The bridge takes its name from Pretoria Avenue, which passes over it- the origin of that name is in honour of veterans of the South African War of 1899-1902. A large sign can be found closer to the Canal explaining the story of the bridge.
There's a staircase here to descend down to ice level.
Here we have views again from the north side of the bridge. The second one, taken at a further distance, shows both the Pretoria Bridge and the 417 freeway bridge. From here I walked downtown on the ice surface. I'll show you more of this walk tomorrow.
...bridges over frozen waters.
ReplyDeleteNice bridge. These almost look sepia-toned, except for little bits of color here and there.
ReplyDeleteImpressionante o congelamento do rio.
ReplyDeleteUm abraço e continuação de uma boa semana.
Andarilhar
Dedais de Francisco e Idalisa
O prazer dos livros
Lovely winter scenes.
ReplyDeleteBridges are so beautiful in winter.
ReplyDeleteJanis
GDP
That's a pretty amazing sight William. So there's a period each year when normal shipping activities on the canal come to a halt! How long would that be?
ReplyDeleteLove this winter scene!
ReplyDelete@Tom: very frozen!
ReplyDelete@Linda: that's true.
@Francisco: thank you.
@Marianne: they are!
@Janis: I agree.
@Grace: the canal's open season tends to go from May through October. That was the same when it was originally built for shipping and military purposes, though today it's recreational boat traffic that makes use of it.
@Marie: thank you!
Winter!
ReplyDeleteI like to see all the skaters taking advantage of the canal for some good skating. You have used the bridge as a central part of your post and then added detail by showing the surroundings.
ReplyDeleteThis so beautiful!!
ReplyDeleteI'm longing for real winter weather and next week is another chance. So who knows ... perhaps I can skating is possible overhere as well for a few days ...
That is quite a delightful looking bridge. It has a sort of fairytale look to it.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful bridge & a great part of the city's heritage.
ReplyDelete@Cloudia: winter's the best season!
ReplyDelete@Red: I think we had a fairly decent season this time out. I'm not sure if the canal will reopen- it closed up for warmer temps on Tuesday, so we'll have to wait and see.
@Jan: take advantage of it if you can!
@Sharon: it does. The turrets do that.
@Christine: it certainly is.
Nice looking bridge. I love seeing those skaters!
ReplyDeleteI saw on the news this morning that they had closed the canal!
ReplyDeletelooks like such fun. can you sleigh ride or like do some kind of ride or is it just skiing? ( ;
ReplyDeleteVery attractive bridge. I like how your framed it between the trees in the third photo. The winter scenes are always a nice sight to see.
ReplyDeleteThanks William!
Amazing, amazing!
ReplyDelete"Winterlude" what a nice word to describe your part of the world at the moment William.
ReplyDeleteI have not been there for so many years. And it is not too far from where I live.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful even in the winter.
: )
Wonderful wintry shots ~ have fallen in love with that canal ~
ReplyDeleteHappy Weekend to you,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
I love these! They've transformed the canal from defense to recreation.
ReplyDeleteSnow is beautiful...in photographs!
ReplyDeleteI've been waiting for photos of frozen canal! It must be cool to ice skate under the bridges.
ReplyDelete@Lois: I do as well.
ReplyDelete@RedPat: it sometimes happens that a warm up will make the powers that be decide to end the season completely. This year it remains open at present, and we'll see how long that lasts.
@Beth: skating for the most part, but you can rent a kind of sleigh that can be pushed by someone on skates. Very handy if someone's not a skater but would like to experience what it's like on the ice.
@Bill: you're welcome.
@Joan: indeed.
@Joe: it's a great festival.
@Catarina: I love it here.
@Carol: I love the canal too.
@Jennifer: they have indeed.
@Norma: snow is wonderful!
@Klara: it would be! I walk it.