Ottawa, Canada

February 2024

I love ice skating so much I flew to Ottawa to skate on the Rideau Canal, the world’s largest ice skating rink. It’s been on my bucket list for years so when I found a house/petsit (trustedhousesitters) for a week in February everything fell into place. However, there was the possibility that I could get up there and the canal not even be open. Last year was the first year the canal skate way didn’t open in its 53-year history due it not getting cold enough for long enough. So before my trip I had my fingers crossed that it would be cold enough to open when I got there. And let me tell you, my wish came true—it opened the afternoon after I arrived and closed the night before I left. I feel extremely grateful I was able to skate everyday that week, which turned out to be the only week it was open all season. Even thought only a 2-3km section of the canal was open I skated back and forth with one day totaling over seven miles. I felt as if I had to skate as much as possible cause who knows if I’d ever have the opportunity again.