Heads Up: Tall ships, small halls and cocktails with wolves!

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Whether you’d like to feast in a field, learn about LGBTQ history, visit an island or gaze at the stars, this week’s Heads Up post can point you in the right direction!

Tickets to Oxford Mills farm feast are going quickly

Hustle if you’d like tickets to Soirée in the Field, a farm-to-table dinner in Oxford Mills on Saturday, September 14. Tickets just went on sale on August 12, and according to Eventbrite, only a few remain.

Some St. Lawrence islands are easy to visit

Perhaps you’ve taken a bridge over the 1000 Islands, or observed some of them from a scenic parkway or sightseeing boat, and wondered, “How can I visit them?” This post from the South Eastern Ontario tourism organization gives you all the details you need to visit five islands in the St. Lawrence River and at the eastern end of Lake Ontario, including Amherst Island, Wolfe Island and Hill Island.

Walking tours focus on Ottawa’s LGBTQ history

Queer History Tours of Ottawa is offering a 4km walking tour of downtown Ottawa on multiple dates in August. The two-hour tour includes monuments, murals, nightlife spots and more, and ends with a picnic. And the tour on Sunday, August 18, is pet friendly.

Brockville Tall Ships Festival is coming back

For those who like to plan far ahead, mark your calendars: the very popular Brockville Tall Ships Festival will be returning to Brockville from June 20 to June 22, 2025.

Some areas of Gatineau Park remain closed

Last Friday’s drenching rains did some serious damage in Gatineau Park. As I write this on August 14, part of the Champlain Parkway is still closed, the shuttle bus service has been cancelled until further notice and the NCC is recommending that everyone stay off the hiking trails until the full damage can be assessed. Other closures include the Meech Lake boat launch, O’Brien and Blanchet beaches, and parking lots P10, Dunlop, P11, P12 and P13. See the NCC website for the latest updates.

CityFolk and Small Halls fest have announced their lineups

The CityFolk music festival, coming to Lansdowne Park from September 11 to 15, has released its full lineup. Headliners include The Beaches, Greta Van Fleet and Rise Against. The video above from Greta Van Fleet isn’t exactly the folkiest song you’re gonna hear this year but, then again, Bluesfest headliners don’t tend to play the blues, either.

The Ontario Festival of Small Halls has also announced its fall lineup, with most shows taking place in October. Concerts include Sarah Harmer in Russell and Almonte, and Ron Sexsmith in Spencerville, and Harry Manx in Manotick, Burritts Rapids and Griffith.

The Outaouais is a great place to stargaze

To really see the night sky, you have to get away from the light pollution of big cities. Fortunately, there are lots of secluded places in West Quebec where you can do just that, and Tourisme Outaouais has a blog post pointing you right to them.

Parc Oméga offers cocktails with wolves

I’ve heard of dances with wolves, but cocktails? You didn’t misread that. Parc Oméga, the drive-through animal park in Montebello, is offering an event called Cocktails with the Wolves. Led by a naturalist, the two-hour experience includes the chance to watch wolves being fed. You’ll eat as well, as the event includes appetizers as well as cocktails. Offered on select evenings until mid-October.

Man travels from Vancouver to Mexico…on transit

Now this is a road trip! Vancouverite William Hui travelled from Vancouver, B.C., to Tijuana, Mexico, using only public transit. For an extra challenge, he didn’t use Greyhound buses or Amtrak trains, sticking solely to local or regional transit systems. It took him nine days.

Catch me on the CBC or in OBJ

If you missed my chat about local road trips with host Amanda Putz on CBC Radio’s In Town and Out last Saturday, you can listen to it on the CBC website. And if you subscribe to the Ottawa Business Journal, you can read my latest road-tripping column for them. It focuses on self-driving food trails. (I have a just-updated post on the same topic on the Ottawa Road Trips website.)

Looking for more tips on things to see and do in and around Ottawa? Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter or order a copy of my book, Ottawa Road Trips: Your 100-km Getaway Guide.

As the owner of Ottawa Road Trips, I acknowledge that I live on, work in and travel through the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg Nation. I am grateful to have the opportunity to be present on this land. Ottawa Road Trips supports Water First, a non-profit organization that helps address water challenges in Indigenous communities in Canada through education, training and meaningful collaboration.