Out and about Active options in fall and winter

Some may think that it’s easier to be active in the summer months but in Ottawa, it’s easy to stay active all year round.

Gatineau Park—which celebrates its 75th anniversary throughout 2013—is an outdoor playground for Ottawa throughout the year. In fall, the colours of the changing leaves are stupendous and you can enjoy them with a brisk hike or even a picnic. Once the snow flies, you can indulge in downhill skiing or snowboarding and be on the slopes in less than half an hour from downtown!

For cross-country skiing fans, many of the roads through the park are groomed into trails of varying degrees of difficulty. Pack a lunch and ski or snowshoe into one of the many huts and yurts in the park. Not ready to strap on the skis? Explore the trails on snowshoes—if you can walk, you can snowshoe!

And while you’re waiting for the Rideau Canal Skateway to freeze and become the world’s largest skating rink (7.8km / 4.8 miles through downtown Ottawa), why not practise your technique on the new Rink of Dreams outside Ottawa City Hall? Built with the assistance of the Sens Foundation (the charity arm of the Ottawa Senators National Hockey League club), the refrigerated surface offers free skating from roughly mid-November to mid-March.

Have you ever tried ice fishing? Ottawa River Guided Fishing offers guided outings by boat in the fall, spring and summer but once the Ottawa River downstream from Ottawa freezes over, you can enjoy the great Canadian pastime of ice fishing. Skilled guides will equip you with appropriate gear, shelters and even refreshments for your adventure. Pike, muskie, walleye (pickerel), and sturgeon are just some of the species on offer from the frozen depths. The company even offers a fish guarantee!