The new pedestrian bridge across the Rideau River linking Carleton University and Vincent Massey Park was lifted into place on July 23, 2022.

Before the spring thaw, City of Ottawa crews are working to prepare and cut the ice on the Rideau River. As a result, the Rideau River may be unstable and dangerous. Please stay away from City crews and off the ice for the remainder of the winter season.

After a beautiful summer in the nation’s capital, the thoughts of those of us at the Rideau Winter Trail (RWT) have definitely turned to winter. The RWT is a volunteer run not-for-profit in the heart of the city, running along the Rideau River from Donald Street (where the Rideau Sports Centre is located) to Bank Street (more on this below!), offering approximately 12 kms of groomed trail for cross-country skiing, snow shoeing, fat biking and walking.

Joining the western side of Brewer Park to the Carleton University campus is a well-used footbridge tucked alongside the Rideau River. The construction material is quintessentially Canadian: the railings are made of wooden hockey sticks!

The commemorative plaque, somewhat worn and graffitied, installed on the bridge reads:

“It was amazing,” commented Old Ottawa East resident Jamie Brougham after skiing the new groomed trails on the east side of the Rideau River. “In areas that I’ve skied on for years too often with my tracks being the only ones, to having real trails is like a dream come true,” says Brougham.

In early January, the Rideau Winter Trail was extended from the Adàwe footbridge in Overbrook to a turn point just opposite the end of Centennial Boulevard in Old Ottawa East. The groomed trail network goes about three kilometres along the river but with numerous loops – especially in the wild area opposite Old Ottawa East – there is a total of about nine kilometers of trail.

Almost a hundred years ago, Brighton Beach in Ottawa South was touted as one of the best places for bathing in the city. This clipping is from The Ottawa Journal on June 17, 1921, where plans for the opening of the diving tower and accompanying party were revealed.

The City of Ottawa is seeking comments on the planned footbridge over the Rideau River joining Carleton University & Vincent Massey Park.

Longing for a cool place in these dog days of summer? A nearby swimming hole would  be an ideal place to spend some time. In the past, the residents of Ottawa South had a wonderful spot, a beach at the end of Brighton Avenue, now a park with grass and trees, but formerly a haven for aquatic activities on the Rideau River.

Recently on March 1st, as a Saint David's Day tribute, the Bytown Museum posted an historic photo of the Lewis Williams family. Lewis Williams came from Wales in 1817 and settled along the Rideau River in then Nepean Township; the heritage-designated Williams house still stands at 96 Southern Drive, in Old Ottawa South.

This story from the September 1994 OSCAR by David Bouse notes some of the similarities along the Rideau River over the many years of settlement in Ottawa South. An 1830 watercolour by artist James Pattison Cockburn inspires some comparisons.