One thing you have to say about the last year (and I know we could all say plenty): It has opened up the world to us through our computers. I have a big list of things you can enjoy from home this week, including two music festivals, a craft sale, a webinar about butterfly-friendly gardening and a book festival. And if you’re looking for ideas for safely exercising outdoors, I have a few of those, too—such as a new off-road bike trail and lots of hiking trails. Enjoy!
Groove to a grassroots music festival
The 2021 Ottawa Grassroots Festival (April 23 to 25) is happening entirely online this year. You can buy tickets to single shows starting at $10 per person, or passes for the whole weekend starting at $15, and the daytime programming is free. Performers at the family-friendly event include Kristine St-Pierre, James Keelaghan, and Jessica Pearson and the East Wind. Check out the video above, by Dene singer/songwriter Leela Gilday, who will also be featured during the event—her soaring voice is amazing, as are the sweeping views of the Northwest Territories landscape where it was filmed.
Register for a virtual program
Registrations are now open for the City of Ottawa’s spring virtual recreation programs. Classes available over Zoom include everything from a LEGO Minecraft club for kids to ballet lessons for adults. Meditation, karate, wine tasting—it’s all here. Options include a wide range of activities for adults 50+.
Registrations open at 10am on Wednesday, April 28, for the late spring sessions of Carleton University’s Lifelong Learning Program (formerly Learning in Retirement). The online classes include courses on classical music, 1960s rock, Atlantic Canadian literature and more. I’m leaning toward one called Ottawology, myself.
Go off-road cycling in Cornwall
If you live in the Cornwall area, there’s a new place to get some outdoor exercise. Late last fall, city staff and a group led by Cornwall cyclist Pat Clarke built 10.5 kilometres of mountain biking/fat biking trails through Guindon Park in the city’s west end. The wooded trails have something for off-road cyclists at all levels, from kids and beginners to intermediate- and expert-level riders.
Listen to a francophone digital festival
This year, Gatineau’s Festival de la Radio Numérique (April 22 to 24) is all online, allowing anyone anywhere to tune in to the eclectic lineup of Québécois musicians, authors, poets, podcasters and many more. This article in Apt613 provides more details.
Shop for items by local makers
Want to support socially conscious artisans, makers and crafters while buying a little treat for yourself or another (a Mother’s Day gift, perhaps)? Then check out the online Pride Not Prejudice craft and community fair (April 22 to 25), where you’ll find everything from blankets and bath bombs to jewellery and greeting cards. Among the more eye-catching things I spotted: a pair of Drake earrings and a heal a broken heart spell jar. Perhaps, if you have an unrequited crush on Drake, you could buy them both.
Learn how to bring butterflies to your yard
The Ottawa Horticultural Society wants to help you attract butterflies and caterpillars to your garden, so it’s presenting a free webinar on that subject on Tuesday, April 27. Speaker Trish Murphy will tell you about the nectar-producing plants that feed adult butterflies and plants such as milkweed that nurture caterpillars (which turn into adults).
Discover new authors
One of the mixed blessings of the past year is that so many writers festivals have moved online. On the minus side, we don’t have the chance to meet authors in person. On the plus side, events hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away are now as close as our computers, and tickets for many of them are free or inexpensive.
For instance, this weekend you can “attend” Maryland’s Annapolis Book Festival (April 23 to 25), which spotlights 50 authors—including Austin Channing Brown, Ann Patchett, Rudy Ruiz, Annabelle Gurwitch and Bill McKibben—over three days. Books to be discussed include novels and short stories of all sorts, as well as non-fiction takes on 9/11, the opioid crisis, the healing power of nature and more.
You could also spend some time planning your schedule for two upcoming online book festivals. First up is the Brampton-based Festival of Literary Diversity (May 1 to May 15). As the name implies, its schedule focuses on authors from diverse communities, including BIPOC and LGBTQ+ writers. Eden Robinson, Jane Igharo and Ben Philippe are among the featured writers this year.
Next is Britain’s enormous Hay Festival (May 26 to June 6), which features more than 200 authors—many, but not all of them, British—writing everything from poetry to political commentary. I’ve already signed up for four talks, including a session with one of my favourite authors, Marian Keyes. This event has been on my radar for decades, so I’m over the moon to be able to enjoy it online this year.
Hit the trail
Looking for a new-to-you trail to explore? You don’t need to leave your village, town or city limits to find one. (And, due to the stay-at-home order, please don’t leave your community anyway!) If you do live in one of these places, here are some routes to check out—if they’re not too crowded.
- Brock Trail: This 10km trail runs through a number of Brockville city parks and is accessible to users with mobility issues.
- Cataraqui Trail: This 104km rail-to-trail (so largely flat) route starts in Smiths Falls and meanders through several communities—including Portland and Chaffey’s Lock—before ending in Strathcona, near Napanee.
- City of Ottawa rural pathways: The City of Ottawa website has basic information on three routes connecting Ottawa’s urban and rural areas—the Prescott-Russell Pathway from Blair Road to Canaan Road; the Osgoode Pathway from Leitrim Road to Osgoode; and the Ottawa-Carleton Trailway from Bells Corners to Carleton Place (which is actually beyond the city’s borders).
- Cycloparc PPJ: Cyclists and hikers alike can follow this 92km route through the Pontiac region of the Outaouais, from Bristol to l’Isle-aux-Allumettes. It’s another rail-to-trail conversion.
- Great Lakes Waterfront Trail: This enormous—over 1600km—path passes through roughly 155 communities across Ontario, including Gananoque, Prescott, Morrisburg and many others.
- Kiwanis Way: Looking for something easy and gentle? This 2km paved path takes you from Pembroke’s Riverside Park to the Pembroke Marina.
- Ottawa Valley Recreational Trail: This long route cuts through multiple communities—such as Carleton Place, Almonte and Renfrew—in both Lanark County and Renfrew County (it’s called the Algonquin Trail in the latter).
- Rideau Trail: Perhaps the best known of Eastern Ontario’s long-distance trails, this 387km route passes through many communities between Ottawa and Kingston.
Looking for more ideas for things to see and do in our region? Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter and check out my soon-to-be-published local guidebook.