It’s another packed Heads Up post this week! Find out which beloved Ottawa Valley tavern is the subject of a new documentary, which Outaouais sites are well adapted for visitors with disabilities, how to save money on registrations for a canoe race, which local museum is running an Easter scavenger hunt and where you can learn to turn old books into beautiful journals. Plus, did you know that Montreal is getting a new(ish) airport in June? Read on for details.
Table of contents
- Save money on paddling race registrations
- Westporch 2026 has been cancelled
- Cumberland museum has organized some Easter fun
- Get tickets to Burnstown concerts before they're gone
- Tourisme Outaouais has a guide to accessible attractions
- Seeley's Bay to host 20th annual StoryFest
- Top comics are coming to Ottawa
- Cobden ladies' night tickets are on sale this Saturday only
- Beloved Ottawa Valley tavern lives on in new documentary
- Montreal is getting a "new" airport
- You can turn an old book into an art journal in Carleton Place
Save money on paddling race registrations
The Raisin River Canoe Race (Saturday, April 11) is one of the longest such races in Eastern Ontario. Despite the name, it’s open to both canoeists and kayakers, who will paddle 30 kilometres from St. Andrews West to Williamstown. The waters are high with spring melt at this time of year, so you should be a strong, skilled paddler to tackle this one. Register online in advance to avoid disappointment (and to save $10 to $20 off your registration fee). Note that online registration ends at 11:59pm on Wednesday, April 8.
Westporch 2026 has been cancelled
Sad news from the Rideau Canal community of Westport: this year’s Westporch free music festival has been cancelled. The organizers were keen to continue, but new requirements from town hall made it too onerous to do so.
Cumberland museum has organized some Easter fun
Tickets are still available for Hop Into Spring, an Easter event at the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum on Saturday, April 4. Aimed at kids aged 3 to 8 (although older and younger siblings are welcome to join in the fun), the day’s family-friendly activities will include a scavenger hunt and the chance to meet the Easter Bunny, all while exploring the heritage village and learning a little history.
Get tickets to Burnstown concerts before they’re gone
The Neat Coffee Shop in Burnstown is a cool, intimate place to see live music—so cool and intimate, in fact, that shows often sell out. Case in point: two April shows by Grapes of Wrath founders Tom Hooper and Kevin Kane have already sold out, but tickets for a third on Sunday, April 26, are still available. I suspect tickets to shows by The Pursuit of Happiness on May 15 and 16 will also be hot commodities. And seats are gone for the Good Lovelies show on May 20, but you can still squeeze into their show on Tuesday, May 19. You can usually book dinner seats separately for concerts. Note that some shows are standing tickets only.
Tourisme Outaouais has a guide to accessible attractions
Tourisme Outaouais has just updated its very useful guide to accessible sites and attractions across the Outaouais. It includes tips on places that offer adapted sports equipment, a podcast app adapted for persons with hearing disabilities, barrier-free recreational paths and much more. And did you know that a companion leisure card is available that offers free admission to a number of Outaouais sites for persons with disabilities and their companions?
Seeley’s Bay to host 20th annual StoryFest
Tickets are available now for StoryFest, an annual celebration of storytelling in Seeley’s Bay, a small community north of Gananoque. This year’s event (Sunday, April 12) will feature the village’s resident storyteller, Dr. James Raffan, and Algonquin master birchbark canoe builder Chuck Commanda. The theme this year is “The Road to Reconciliation: Small Steps Toward Re-thinking Canada.”
Top comics are coming to Ottawa
Lots of big names in the comedy world will be doing shows in Ottawa this year. If you like to laugh, you might want to mark these dates in your calendar and get your tickets while there are still good seats available.
- John Mulaney, The Arena at TD Place, April 1: The comedian, talk-show host and former “Saturday Night Live” writer gives a great show (I saw him last time he was at TD Place).
- Mae Martin, Bronson Music Theatre, April 5: The Canadian comedian’s first show at the Bronson sold out, so the venue has added a second, later show the same night.
- Nate Bargatze, Canadian Tire Centre, April 17: The U.S. clean comedian is having a bit of a moment, with a hit Netflix special, a recent second turn hosting “Saturday Night Live” and a new game show-hosting gig.
- Jimmy Carr, The Arena at TD Place, October 22: British comedian and TV host Jimmy Carr is pretty much the opposite of a “clean” comedian—basically, there are few lines he won’t cross.
Cobden ladies’ night tickets are on sale this Saturday only
If you’d like to go to Cobden Ladies’ Night Out this year on May 1, heads up: You only have one chance to score tickets. The Cobden Agricultural Society will be selling them at the Cobden Agricultural Hall on Saturday, March 28, starting at 9am. When they’re gone, they’re gone! The theme for this year’s event is “Country Girl Shake It For Me!” and the evening will include a dinner catered by Backyard Gourmet BBQ and tunes by DJ Shannon. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Renfrew Victoria Hospital’s surgical unit.
Beloved Ottawa Valley tavern lives on in new documentary
On January 8, 2026, fire destroyed the building in the Ottawa Valley village of Douglas that once housed the Douglas Tavern. (In recent years, it had evolved to become the Douglas Trading Post and Douglas Diner.) The fire was a terrible loss to the community, as the building was a popular gathering place and live music venue.
If you’d like to relive its glory days, a new 8.5-hour video chronicles them in detail. And there’s an associated website called The Diddley (the tavern’s nickname), with music clips, interviews, a virtual reality tour captured on the pub’s last St. Patrick’s Day, and more. The website also divides the video into chapters, so you can dip in and out easily. From the beautiful, comprehensive website, it’s clear how much people loved this place.
Montreal is getting a “new” airport
Do you know about the new Montreal Metropolitan Airport (MET)? Well, technically, it’s the old Saint-Hubert Airport, which has been expanded and renamed. Beginning Monday, June 15, Porter Airlines and Pascan Aviation will connect the small airport on Montreal’s south shore to destinations across Canada.
You can turn an old book into an art journal in Carleton Place
This sounds intriguing: On Saturday, April 18, artist Anne Warburton will be leading a four-hour workshop at the Carleton Place Gallery on turning old books into beautiful art journals. Some materials will be supplied, but participants are also invited to bring any paper ephemera, fabric scraps and other materials they’d like to include.
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.
