First day of the Rideau Canal skating season (2015). Photo by James Peltzer via the OttawaStart Flickr pool. Did you catch the first 2020 weekend of Rideau Canal skating? A portion of the Rideau Canal Skateway was opened on Saturday, January 18. ...

Public domain photo Working out is an incredibly rewarding experience. Not only does it help keep you in shape, but exercising is great for your mental health too because it simulates chemical activity in your brain like dopamine and endorphins, according to Healthline. ...

On the Rideau Canal. Skating is a great way to get a cardio workout. (Photo by Matthew Fournier via Unsplash) Next month is Heart Month, and there is no better way to celebrate your heart than to ensure it’s as healthy as possible. ...

#throwbackthursday OC Transpo tweeted this on Thursday with a question: “Can you guess the year of the system map seen here?” A couple of people were pretty close, with some guesses for the 1960s or late ‘50s. Kudos to Andrée LaFontaine who correctly guessed 1954 or 1955. ...

Cross-country skiing along Ridge Rd. Photo by James Peltzer from the OttawaStart Flickr Group If you’re a downhill ski fan, you have plenty of hills to choose from nearby. We’re also within a day’s drive of some great hills further north in Quebec, or in the Eastern United States. ...

Monsters and Music at the National Gallery By Lisa Wall Christmas may be over, but “You better watch out” if you visit the National Gallery of Canada on January 25th, 2020. Why? Because… there be monsters. In fact, Monsters are already on display at the Gallery, in a special exhibition titled Beautiful Monsters in Early European Prints and Drawings (1450–1700), which runs until March 29th, 2020. ...

A map of current bushfires in Australia. (MyFireWatch/Government of Western Australia) (Press release) Skrub Home Cleaning Services, an eco-friendly home and office cleaning company located here in Ottawa, announced today that they will be pledging 1⁄4 of their gross profit in the months of January & February 2020 to aid in the relief and rebuild of Australian Wildlife by donating half to the Australian Red Cross and half to the RSPCA New South Wales. ...

Photo: The O-Train in testing during winter 2019. Train roofs on Line 1 will see improved cleaning after an accumulation of filth on them caused a power issue that held two trains up on New Year’s Eve. Ken Woods, who works in OC Transpo’s train control room, tweeted that trains have been getting pulled off the line and into the maintenance yard for chemical-based cleaning on their roof. ...

“New Flyer” Photo by Justin S. Campbell, via Flickr. (Used under a Creative Commons License.) OC Transpo’s winter service starts on Sunday, January 5 and includes schedule changes and improvements to bus service. Visit octranspo.com and use the Travel Planner to see if your regular trips will change. ...

A screengrab of the Citizen’s HQ from Google Street View. Happy birthday to the Ottawa Citizen, which turns 175 this year! The Ottawa Citizen started out as The Packet in March 1845 and was renamed to The Ottawa Citizen in 1851. ...