Shortest season ever: NCC calls it for the 2024 season of Rideau Canal Skateway

First day of the Rideau Canal skating season (2015). Photo by James Peltzer via the OttawaStart Flickr pool.

After just 10 days in total of skating, with plenty of interruptions due to poor ice condition and warm weather, the Rideau Canal Skateway is closed for the season. This makes 2024 the shortest season ever for the Skateway, and follows a disappointing 2023 where it did not open at all.

If you’re reminiscing about better (more skate-able) days, there’s an interesting page on the NCC’s website with a timeline of the Rideau Canal Skateway’s history. There is also an article in the Citizen about the origins of the Skateway.