Fun day trips and weekend getaways from Ottawa for every day of February 2019

Wondering what you can see and do in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario, the Outaouais, Montreal and upstate New York in February 2019? Wonder no more! In a feature I’m going to start posting each month, I have an idea for something to do every day in February. From museum exhibits and plays to hiking trails and a ski marathon, I have something for everyone, including millennials, families, empty nesters and retirees. Intrigued? Read on! (And for even more ideas, don’t forget to check out my events calendar, sign up for my free weekly e-newsletter or follow me on Facebook.)

• February 1: Check out Winterlude’s first SubZero Electro DJ Night on the Rideau Carleton Casino stage on York Street East in the Byward Market (also happening February 2, 15 and 16).
• February 2: Take the kids to the free RCMP Musical Ride Stables Open House to meet the horses and learn about police work, or head to Fête Frissons winter carnival in Orleans. (Looking for more winter carnival ideas? Check out my list of more than 30 frosty fairs in and around our region.)

Photo credit: Serge Gouin, RCMP © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2016.

• February 3: Browse for furniture, folk art, jewellery and much more at Cabin Fever: The Kingston Winter Antique Show (also running on February 2).
• February 4: Rent skis or snowshoes at Relais plein air on the edge of Gatineau Park, explore the trails, then get a light meal or stretch out with a yoga class at the Relais.
• February 5: Catch a movie at the Reelout Queer Film Festival in Kingston (January 31 to February 14).
• February 6: See Alexander Calder: Radical Inventor at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts before it closes on February 24.

Alexander Calder: Radical Inventor exhibition, presented at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from September 21, 2018, to February 24, 2019. Copyright: © 2018 Calder Foundation, New York / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / SOCAN, Montreal. Crédit photo: Photo MMFA, Denis Farley.

• February 7: The Marianne Trudel Trio is one of many acts playing the opening night of the Ottawa Winter Jazz Festival (February 7 to 9).
• February 8: Join in all or part of the Canadian Ski Marathon, a 160-kilometre trek (it’s not a race!) from Mont Tremblant to Lachute (February 8 to 10).
• February 9: Cheer on racers in the world’s largest Ice Dragon Boat Festival at Dows Lake in Ottawa (February 8 and 9), or hear six emerging artists in concert as part of the Intimate Acoustics series at the St. Lawrence Stage in Morrisburg.
• February 10: See a documentary about a multi-ethnic motorcycle club in Bosnia-Herzegovina or a film about an Australian refugee camp at the Wakefield Doc Fest (February 2 to 24).
• February 11: Catch blues artist Andy Cohen in concert at the Merrickville United Arts Centre. (If you can’t make it that night, he’s also playing at the Arbor Gallery in Vankleek Hill on February 12.)

Andy Cohen is playing at the Merrickville United Arts Centre and Vankleek Hill’s Arbor Gallery this month.

• February 12: Check out Chimes, an interactive sound-and-light installation in the Byward Market. The illuminated attraction is free and will run throughout Winterlude (February 1 to 18).
• February 13: Join in the opening celebrations for Carleton Place’s 200th anniversary at the Carleton Place and Beckwith Heritage Museum’s annual fundraising dinner.
• February 14: Is your love also a cat lover? Then perhaps you’d like to celebrate Valentine’s Day with a date night at the Feline Café in Hintonburg? (Available from February 12 to 15.)
• February 15: Raise a glass of craft beer at the Winter Brewfest at Lansdowne Park (February 15 and 16).
• February 16: Cheer on the canine competitors in the Larose Forest Sled Dog Race in Clarence-Rockland, or go to an underground wine-and-cheese tasting at the Diefenbunker in Carp (tickets for the latter must be purchased by February 14).

Flickr/Creative Commons photo of sled dogs by Ralf Κλενγελ.

• February 17: Catch a performance of The Drowsy Chaperone at the Aultsville Theatre in Cornwall (February 15 to 23).
• February 18: Take the kids to the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum’s Family Day event, where they can meet a donkey foal, learn about rabbit care, make smoothies and more.
• February 19: Go see the disturbing ecological photographic exhibition, Anthropocene, at the National Gallery of Canada, before it closes on February 24.
• February 20: Join some really enthusiastic fans and cheer on on the Syracuse Orange, Syrcuse University’s NCAA men’s basketball team, as they play the Louisville Cardinals at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse.
• February 21: Catch Canadian country music star Paul Brandt in concert at the Leon’s Centre in Kingston (he’s also playing the TD Centre in Ottawa on February 16.)

Photo courtesy of Paul Brandt.

• February 22: Chuckle at Alone Together Again, a comedy about a pair of empty nesters whose parents suddenly move in with them, at the Studio Theatre in Perth (February 21 to March 3). Alternatively, catch the opening night of Out of Order, a British farce about a scandal-plagued government minister, at the Station Theatre in Smiths Falls (February 22 to March 3).
• February 23: Put on your skates and tartan, and go for a kilt skate in Maxville, or head to Montreal to enjoy a gospel brunch with the Imani Gospel Singers at Le Balcon Cabaret.
• February 24: Learn about the ecology of the St. Lawrence River and watch otters at play at the Aquatarium in Brockvillle.
• February 25: Grab your skis and check out the Sir John A. Macdonald Trail along the Ottawa River, west of downtown, before the snow melts.
• February 26: See Stitched: A Homecoming, an exhibition of textile art, at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum in Almonte (running until March 23), then have lunch at the Mill Street Crepe Company.

• February 27: Go for a winter hike in Foley Mountain Conservation Area, then warm up at wings and open mic night with Shawn McCullough at the Cove Country Inn in Westport.
• February 28: Hurtle down the Olympic bobsled run at Whiteface Mountain near Lake Placid, New York. (This is super popular, so reserve at least three days in advance. Also, be forewarned that it’s weather dependent.)

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