Its officially winter!
So the news from the Ottawa Valley is… its winter!Â
After an early snowfall, we usually expect a melt, then real snow beginning and staying around by mid December. Well, not so this year! Our late November snowfall is still here. Actually, its compounded with about a foot and a half of accumulation. We’re not burried, but we have snow and its stayin’.Â
So what next. Well, Ken Whiting, myself and many others are scrambling to get our back yard rinks up. Ken’s got this massive thing we play 2 vs 2 on, I’ve got a conservative 50 foot by 35 foot rink for the kiddies. End result, winter is here and we Canadians must switch into the proper mode.
 What does it mean for kayaking? Well … ice, bad. We had a last paddle on the Ottawa last weekend, I heard Jennifer Kellerman (WK ambassador for the region) had a group out… funny thing, it was a great Garberator level! Did about 5 surfs and then the chill hit… ug. The bottom bays are freezing and becoming dangerous, so most of us are off the river and skiing… oh yeah, the hills are all open now.