The Sonic Runway light-art installation on William Street in the ByWard Market. It's part of the festivities for Winterlude. (Josh Pringle/CTV News Ottawa)
CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at things to do in Ottawa, eastern Ontario and western Quebec during the first weekend of February.
The Rideau Canal Skateway remains closed for skating this weekend.
LIST OF: Closures and cancellations in the Ottawa area due to the extreme cold
Winterlude cancels all outdoor activities on Friday due to extreme cold
Winterlude
The 45th edition of Winterlude kicks off this weekend in Ottawa and Gatineau.
The popular winter festival includes ice sculptures on Sparks Street, the Snowflake Kingdom in Jacques-Cartier Park and interactive art installations and other features in the ByWard Market. All outdoor activities, including the Snowflake Kingdom, have been cancelled on Friday due to the cold weather.
Events this weekend include the Canada Remembers the 1998 Ice Storm exhibit at the National War Memorial, the Kids Zone in Jacques-Cartier Park, Snowphy Trophy in the Glebe, sleight rides around the ByWard Market, Winter Fun at the Bank of Canada Museum, Ice Dig at Jacques-Cartier Park, and Jessy Lindsay and Qattuu on Saturday and Sunday on Sparks Street.
The first weekend of events are underway at the Ontario Winter Games across Renfrew County.
Events this weekend include Ringette in Arnprior, Futsal in Petawawa, artistic swimming in Petawawa, curling at the Renfrew Curling Rink in Renfrew and men's hockey in Renfrew.
The Rink of Dreams at Ottawa City Hall is open daily from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. (weather permitting).
Lansdowne Park skating court is open daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. (weather permitting).
The Jim Tubman Chevrolet Rink (Canterbury) is open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (weather permitting).
Ben Franklin Place Skating Rink (101 Centrepointe Drive) Open daily (weather permitting).
Here's a look at downhill skiing and snowboarding runs in the Ottawa area. Visit each resort's website for conditions.
Camp Fortune in Chelsea, Que. is home to more than 20 different downhill runs. (Camp Fortune has cancelled night skiing on Friday night due to the cold weather).
Ski Vorlage features 18 different runs in Wakefield, Que.
Sommet Edelweiss features 20 runs in Wakefield, Que. (Edelweiss will be closed on Friday due to the cold weather).
Mont Cascades Ski Resort in Cantley, Que. is home to 20 runs that range from easy to extremely difficult
Mount Pakenham is located 45 minutes west of downtown in Pakenham, Ont. with 10 runs.
Calabogie Peaks Ski Resort in Calabogie, Ont. features 24 different trails that range from easy to expert.
Mont Ste-Marie features nearly 30 runs, including a ski-snowboard cross run.
Gatineau Park has snowshoe trails and snow biking trails available for outdoor enthusiasts.
Gatineau Park has close to 80 kilometres of snowshoe trails, ranging in level of difficulty from easy to very difficult – with about half of the trails shared with snow bikers.
For more information about snowshoeing in Gatineau Park, click here.
Optik is an interactive installation that utilizes lights and sounds to create a colourful symphony of music with just a spin of the wheel.
Optik runs until Feb. 10.
University sports
The University of Ottawa Gee-Gees women's hockey team hosts Montreal Friday night at the Minto Sports Complex. Game time is 7 p.m.
The Carleton Ravens women's hockey team hosts Bishop's Friday night at the Ice House. Game time is 7 p.m.
The Queen's men's and women's volleyball teams host Western Friday and Saturday night at the main gym. The women's game starts at 6 p.m., followed by the men's game at 8 p.m.
The Queen's women's hockey team hosts York Friday night at the Memorial Centre. Game time is 7:30 p.m.
The Queen's men's hockey team hosts Ontario Tech Saturday night at the Memorial Centre. Game time is 7:30 p.m.
Queen's hosts the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees in OUA basketball action on Sunday at the main gym. The women's game starts at 1 p.m., followed by the men's game at 3 p.m.
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived Thursday evening in Ottawa for a whirlwind 27-hour visit expected to focus on both the friendly and thorny aspects of the Canada-U.S. relationship, including protectionism and migration on both sides of the border.
Canada and the United States are negotiating a deal that could see asylum seekers turned back at irregular border crossings across the border, including Roxham Road in Quebec.
As the federal government looks to renegotiate the Safe Third Country Agreement with the U.S., an eastern Ontario mayor says his city needs more help from Ottawa to deal with the influx of asylum seekers arriving through irregular crossings like Roxham Road.
Amid renewed questions over the pervasiveness of alleged interference by China in Canadian elections and affairs broadly, opposition MPs voted Thursday afternoon to affirm a parliamentary committee's call for the federal government to strike a public inquiry.
A majority of Canadians have seen a mistake on their grocery receipts in the last year, according to a new survey conducted by Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University.
An asteroid discovered just last week will pass closer to the Earth than the orbit of the moon this weekend, an occurrence so rare it happens only once in a decade, according to NASA.
The number of Canadians receiving employment insurance benefits are at record lows and down 44 per cent from last year, new figures from Statistics Canada show.
Two Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) sisters from Montreal are on a mission that is close to their hearts: to save their ancestors' first language by developing video games young and old can play.
The Tim Houston PC government remains firm in their promise they'll fix the health-care system by spending more taxpayer money on health than any previous government before.
Potato farmers on Prince Edward Island are taking the federal government to court due to the decision to restrict the movement of P.E.I. seed potatoes.
An Ontario man said he was shocked when his truck was stolen not once but twice, and the second time it was taken he was surprised to discover he was no longer covered for theft.
For the first time, the owner of a building in Old Montreal has responded to questions about the fire — through his lawyer — addressing allegations that the building was unsafe.
The political class at the National Assembly has condemned the 'violent' and 'hateful' remarks that columnist Gilles Proulx allegedly made about Quebec solidaire MNAs during Richard Martineau's show on Qub radio in recent weeks.
The co-owners of a new liquidation store in North Bay, Samuel Quesnel and Chloé Boivenue, say they want to bring a treasure hunt shopping experience to the city.
The new provincial budget features items specific to southwestern Ontario, including a new English public elementary school in London, Ont. that will serve 556 students and include 88 licensed childcare spaces.
A young Strathroy, Ont. man believes there's a promising way forward in the effort to fight his disease. But, he's being told, right now, that path isn't open to him. Friends and family are stepping up to try and make a case for Kyle McPhee to receive immunotherapy treatments.
Manitoba First Nation police have arrested a man connected with a shooting on March 19 on Long Plain First Nation that resulted in the community going on lockdown.
Manitoba’s labour force is growing at a rate to supply enough workers for available positions into 2026, according to the province’s labour market outlook.
The ‘Catch the Ace’ jackpot is still up for grabs in Hagersville. There was no winner Thursday night so the total prize money is now an estimated $1,526,067.
The resurrection of Zellers is officially underway with the Cambridge location opening its doors to eager shoppers who lined up ahead of the store's official reopening.
The Alberta Energy Regulator has cited an energy company for causing a series of earthquakes, including the largest recorded tremblor in the province's history.
An alleged victim of a former staff member of Legacy Christian Academy can now be identified after she successfully petitioned in court to have a publication ban lifted.
In the weeks leading up to Wednesday’s provincial budget, school divisions in Saskatchewan were expecting funding levels to increase, with the province repeatedly touting its $1 billion surplus.
The Alberta Energy Regulator has cited an energy company for causing a series of earthquakes, including the largest recorded tremblor in the province's history.
Following a court appearance Thursday, a B.C. woman facing more than 20 charges – including manslaughter – in connection with alleged druggings of men who used escort services was remanded into custody.
The man killed in West Vancouver earlier this week was a retired urologist who was involved in several legal disputes over valuable real estate, CTV News has learned.
A recent report from the province’s privacy commissioner says the Métis Addictions Council of Saskatchewan Inc. (MACSI) failed to take appropriate steps after patient treatment files were discovered in a recycling bin.
The Sonic Runway light-art installation on William Street in the ByWard Market. It's part of the festivities for Winterlude. (Josh Pringle/CTV News Ottawa)
