This week’s Heads Up post will point you a new trampoline attraction in Val-des-Monts, a new bike shop in Brockville, a classical music series in Cornwall and the NCC River House. You’ll also find out about Kemptville’s latest street piano and learn which beloved Carleton Place café is closing its doors.
Park filled with trampolines and more opens in Val-des-Monts
You may remember that a previous Heads Up post, I mentioned Uplå, a new adventure park under construction at Arbraska Laflèche in Val-des-Monts, Quebec. The cool-looking attraction opened to the public on June 7 and features 12,000 square feet of nets, along with trampolines, slides, tunnels and more. It will be open weekends only until June 23, and from Labour Day to November, and it will be open daily in July and August.
NCC River House is open for swimming
The free, enclosed swimming area at the NCC River House on the Ottawa River is now open for the season. The building is located at 501 Sir George-Etienne Cartier Parkway, on the northeastern edge of Ottawa’s Rockcliffe Park neighbourhood.
From June 6 to September 1, the accessible swimming area is open from 7:30am to sunset daily. However, note that lifeguards are on duty on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only. (See the building’s website for current hours, which vary throughout the summer.) The building and the swimming area are both accessible, with facilities including a chair lift and accessible change rooms. The swimming area has a maximum capacity of 150 people and the NCC doesn’t take reservations, so come early in the day for your best chance of getting in. The building also has a licensed café serving snacks and light meals.
Prefer to paddle? You can use the River House public dock to put your kayak or canoe into the water. If you don’t have your own paddle craft, you can rent one from Escape Tours and Rentals, which has a kiosk just east of the River House.
Kemptville is getting a new street piano
Since 2022, a piano located on the terrace outside the Kemptville branch of the North Grenville Public Library has helped musicians offer free outdoor summer concerts. That beloved piano has been retired to a new home inside a greenhouse at the Kemptville Campus, but don’t worry, music lovers. A new Kemptville Street Piano, painted with a design of maple leaves by artist Aleta Karstad, is set to be installed in the same location by Friday, June 20. The 2025 summer concert schedule will be released soon.
Subscriptions are available now for Cornwall Concert Series
The 2025–26 Cornwall Concert Series features five classical and dance performances, including a concert by the National Arts Centre Orchestra in the fall and a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream next spring by Ballet Jörgen. All shows will take place at the Aultsville Theatre in Cornwall. Subscriptions for the full season are available now, and single tickets go on sale on June 30.
Popular Carleton Place café is closing
Petra Graber started The Good Food Co. café in Carleton Place on August 16, 1997, when she was 28 years old. And on its 28th anniversary this August, the café will close its doors and Graber will move on to new adventures, as she explains in a lovely Facebook post. The post also notes that between now and August 16, the café’s hours will be shorter; it will be open from 8am to 3pm, Tuesday through Saturday.
Brockville has a new bike shop
1000 Islands Cyclery (165 King Street West, Brockville) opened for business on June 10. It offers spin classes, and bike repairs and maintenance, but perhaps the service of most interest to day trippers is its bike rental service. As I write this on June 10, the shop’s website still says it’s open by appointment only, but the store’s Facebook page says it will now operate on regular retail hours.
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.
