This week’s Heads Up post runs the gamut from art workshops and a Valentine’s dinner to the sad demise of the Kingston WritersFest. You’ll even find an intriguing story about the role the late Jimmy Carter played in saving Eastern Ontario from a nuclear catastrophe.
Valentine’s dinners in Beckwith are hot commodities
It’s never too early to plan ahead for Valentine’s Day. Case in point: the Valentine’s Day dinner on Friday, February 14, at Stonefields Estate in Beckwith (on the outskirts of Carleton Place) is already sold out. However, as of this writing there are still some tickets available for the festive dinner on Saturday, February 15.
Snowshoers can race each other in Denholm
Atlas Snowshoes and Bushtukah are the sponsors behind The Mad Trapper, a series of Saturday snowshoeing races in Denholm, Quebec. Each event is followed by a buffet dinner-social. The next two races are on January 25 and February 22.
You can choose from lots of art classes this winter
Want to combine a road trip with an art workshop or retreat? You’re in luck, because lots of artists are giving classes in the next few months. These events often sell out well in advance, so I’d check them out now if you’re interested. (P.S.: I’m working on a separate post about art-focused road trips—stay tuned!)
- January 18 and January 25: Find out how to spin yarn in these free morning workshops at the Ottawa Art Gallery.
- February 1: Paint a deconstructed mandala with Soul Sisters in Chesterville.
- February 7: Learn how to incorporate feathers, yarn, textiles and more into mixed-media pieces in Orleans.
- February 15 and 16: Take a two-day workshop on wabi-sabi, encaustic and embedding techniques with Amanda Pierce in Chelsea.
- February 21 to 23: Sign up for a weekend watercolour and card painting retreat in Appleton with Paint with Janet.
- February 21 to 23: Take a wildlife-focused acrylic painting workshop with Kristi Bird in Newboro.
- March 21 to 23: Join a weekend mandala and sacred geometry art retreat in Appleton with Paint with Janet.
News flash: January snow expected
In news to absolutely no one, Ottawa is expected to get some snow this week. (In fact, it’s snowing quite merrily as I write this on Monday morning.) What is newsworthy, though, is that we’re likely to dodge the worst of it yet again. Through until Wednesday, forecasters are predicting less than 5cm of the white stuff for Ottawa, but a bit more than 5cm for the Kingston area and a whopping 30cm to 50cm for the southeastern shore of Lake Ontario in New York state. The culprit? The much-discussed lake effect, which this Weather Network story on the week’s forecast does a good job of explaining.
Jimmy Carter once thwarted a meltdown at Chalk River
In the wake of former U.S. president Jimmy Carter’s death last month, the true story of his heroic connection to the nuclear reactor in Chalk River, Ontario, is making the rounds once again. In 1952, as a 28-year-old naval lieutenant, Carter led a team that unscrewed a bolt in 90 seconds to prevent a partial reactor meltdown from becoming worse. Chalk River is about 180 kilometres northwest of Ottawa on the Ottawa River.
Part of the Rideau Canal Skateway is open
A four-kilometre section of the Rideau Canal Skateway from Laurier Avenue to Bank Street opened on Saturday, January 11. If the number of people I spotted on the ice that day was any indication, it was an immediate hit. According to this CTV News story, the National Capital Commission is optimistic that a longer section of the canal will be open soon.
You can learn about songwriting in Carleton Place
Singer-songwriter Lynn Miles is giving an evening workshop about songwriting at the CP Gallery in Carleton Place on Wednesday, April 23. Tickets are available now.
Kingston WritersFest calls it a day
Sad news for book lovers: the Kingston WritersFest, an annual festival that has connected authors with readers for 16 years, has announced it is folding, citing insurmountable financial difficulties.
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.
