Alternative Transportation

The Byward Market hosts Winterlude activities as well. Snow sculptures are found here during the festival, and this year had a transportation in Ottawa theme to them. There were four of them in total, but on the final weekend when I took these shots, a warm up had wrecked havoc on one, while another I couldn't locate. These two, in shade most of the day, were in fine shape. The first one depicts the LRT train, while the city's buses are represented in the second sculpture.

For a very different form of transportation, I take you down to Dow's Lake, where a long standing tradition was happening that weekend out on the ice. I took this view of the lake from Commissioners Park.

The event was the bed races, part of Winterlude for many years. When I arrived, the bed frames on wheels were just starting to be prepared for afternoon races down the course. This is where it would all start.

Tents were set up for crews to decorate their beds. Teams of four (plus one person on top of the whole thing) run down the ice in races with these. Some were just getting started, while other bed carts were decorated and rather elaborate. I approve of the score on the bed cart kitted out like a hockey rink.

Snow Sculptures In The Park

I am finishing this look at the activities around Jacques Cartier Park during Winterlude today. Large snow sculptures are always found here during the festival, and this year they had a theme linked to the Olympics. It started with two of them near the entrance.

Others included an Olympic torch.

The sport of curling also featured in one sculpture.

As did the bobsled.

Here are two final views in the park. Tomorrow we're back in Ottawa for more of the Winterlude activities. I still have a few posts left in the series.

A Winter Wonderland In Gatineau

Near where I left off yesterday in Jacques Cartier Park were these wood carvings, done by a local man.

The large mound created for the snow slides in the park were also carved with bas relief sculptures along its length, ideal for photo ops.

This included what was part of the snow sculpture theme in the park this year, focused on the Olympics. This cross country skiing sculpture honours Nancy Greene, an alpine skier who won gold in the 1968 Winter Olympics.

Food choices could be found here in the park.

The texture of this tree bark caught my photographer's eye.

As did this oversized chair.

This is another example of places for photo ops in the park, with an ice bench set up in this alcove on the mound of snow.

The Tradition Of The First Nations

There were displays in Jacques Cartier Park as part of Winterlude, items from the Anishinaabe First Nations. This included a large teepee set up.

There were three members of the tribe close by, with traditional items spread out on tables, speaking about the process of making these. Furs were spread out on racks around them.

This man spoke of traditional methods of using wood and crafting it into things like drums, snowshoes, or other items, demonstrating as he spoke. The wood they use can't be too dry; green wood tends to be more flexible, which suits its use far more.

Here we have something that goes back in time. The Anishinaabe, as well as other First Nations peoples, had a traditional method of refining maple sap in this area. The trunk of a tree would be first hollowed out in this fashion to create a trough. When the sap was running, it would be poured into these. Stones would be heated up in nearby fires as hot as possible, and then moved- through the use of deer antlers as a tool to pick them up- into the troughs, which would heat the sap up and result in maple sugar. Aside from using it for food, tribes would use maple sugar for medicine.

City Daily Photo Theme Day: Play

The first day of each month is always a theme day for members of City Daily Photo. For March, that theme is Play. You can see how others are interpreting the theme here. 

I am in the midst of a series on Winterlude, the February celebration of winter that takes place here in the National Capital Region, and decided that my take on this theme would be the ideal time to look at events over on the Gatineau side of the Ottawa River. Jacques Cartier Park is a large park taking up a good part of the shore across from Ottawa's downtown, and is traditionally the scene for a big winter snow playground, with slides, snow sculptures, and other activities. This year all of that was situated in the east section of the park. I went over on the second weekend of the festival, on what turned out to be a grey day. At a distance, one could see the large mound of snow that comprised the ice slides, useful for going down with sleds or inner tubes. There were sizable lines waiting to go up to the top on each side.

One of the other activities set up here was for young kids (such as under five) to learn the basics of skis or snowboarding- you can see that in the gentle slopes set up here.

Traditional sleds were also available for parents to take their toddlers out on. You can see the frozen Ottawa River and Ottawa itself beyond the perimeter of the park.

Here we have views of the slides from the east side. In the second shot, you can see someone at the left in the midst of a descent. I've done this before, and it is fun.

I've spent much less time in the east side of Jacques Cartier Park than I have in the west side, so I don't know if this particular piece of playground equipment is a permanent part, or was brought in as part of the festival.

At the eastern most edge of the park, a sled dog run had been set up, with teams of dogs pulling sleds for a different kind of winter experience. The building in the background, once a house, is a tourist information spot these days, renting bikes in the summer. Have a look at it in summer here. I will have more from this park over the next three days as I continue my Winterlude series.