Winterlude Weekend 2 Highlights

Submitted on February 08, 2012

Rogers Crystal Garden in Confederation Park

Second weekend of exciting activities includes: an interactive hockey zone, ice carving challenges, the Great Canadian Beaver Cup Pond Hockey Championship, cool science, electrojazz and 24 hour screenings of The Clock.

The National Capital Commission (NCC) wishes to remind residents and visitors that the second weekend of the 34^th edition of Winterlude, the Capital’s winter celebration, promises to be an exciting one. Winterlude continues in the Capital Region until February 20, 2012.

Here is a sampling of some of the activities taking place during the second weekend of Winterlude.

Rogers Crystal Garden in Confederation Park

This Saturday, visitors will learn the secrets of ice carving techniques and how the carvers use their tools to create a work of art from a block of ice. On Sunday, professional ice carvers face off in an ice-carving championship. Kids and adults are invited to make their mark on an ice graffiti wall, using ice-carving tools.

Visitors to the Rogers Crystal Garden can take in a majestic ice sculpture to mark the 20th anniversary of Canadian military service in the Balkans. Also new this weekend, a unique ice sculpture specially made to celebrate the upcoming 41st Annual JUNO Awards to be held in Canada’s Capital, March 26 - April 1.

Ice sculpture enthusiasts will also want to take in the crystalline masterpieces created at the 25^th Rogers International Ice-Carving Competition during the first weekend of Winterlude and vote for their favourite sculpture for a chance to win a round trip for two people to any scheduled WestJet destination in Canada.

Confederation Park will also be a popular evening destination this weekend, thanks to the Sub-Zero Music Series which will get the audience dancing and moving.

Snowflake Kingdom in Jacques-Cartier Park, Gatineau

Presented by the Ville de Gatineau and the NCC, Snowflake Kingdom is North America’s biggest snow playground. It is the ideal destination for the young and the young at heart. This family friendly paradise features giant snow slides and an outdoor amphitheatre.

On Winterlude’s second weekend, visitors will have the chance to:

find their way through the A-maze-ing Fort Wellington;
learn about the life of the people who lived in 1812 through interpretation, demonstrations and games;
take part in a day in the life of a Coast Guard employee;
test their physical fitness in the Canadian Forces Winter Obstacle Course;
experience downhill skiing with qualified instructors;
feel the rhythm at the Snowflake Stage featuring talented performers and acrobatic stunts;
visit the Adventure Zone, where they can try Jumpaï trampolines and rock climbing;

The Rideau Canal Skateway

Open for its 42^nd season on January 15, this fantastic 7.8-kilometre ice surface offers families and fun-seekers alike a wide variety of services including rest areas, food concessions, skate and sleigh rentals, skate sharpening, and boot check services this weekend.

Skaters at Dows Lake are invited to visit Eco Art at Dows Gallery, an outdoor space in Canada’s Capital where youth express themselves through art. The exhibit features photographic artwork with an environmental theme. These works of art will be exhibited for the duration of the skating season.

While at Dows Lake, visitors can test their skills at the hardest shot, most accurate shot, obstacle course — and much more at the Giant Tiger Interactive Hockey Zone.

This Saturday, the Canadian Paralympic Committee presents a Winter Parasport Festival. Visitors can try sledge hockey and wheelchair curling, and meet members of the National Sledge Hockey Team.

Also this weekend, teams from across Canada will compete in the 4th Annual Great Canadian Beaver Cup Pond Hockey Championship at Dows Lake.

Programming Partners

For the 34^th edition of Winterlude, more than 50 programming partners, from Ottawa and Gatineau’s private and public sectors, have come together to offer visitors a wide-range of indoor and outdoor activities aimed at animating the Capital like never before.

Here is just a sampling of what takes place on the second weekend of Winterlude:

Cool Science Saturday at the Canadian Museum of Nature;
free, all-night screenings at the National Gallery of Canada of Christian Marclay’s most ambitious video installation to date: The Clock;
Electrojazz Evening with Misteur Valaire presented by the Ville de Gatineau;
Shenkman Arts Centre Presents “New” Orleans Dinner and Show With Zydeco Loco;
Fête Frissons, a celebration of winter that includes an outdoor skating rink, crazy toque fashions, entertainment and ice/snow sculpting;
an afternoon of classical music with the award-winning Ottawa Junior Youth Orchestra;
winter-themed activities, secret snow codes, and winter scavenger hunt at the Diefenbunker Museum;
Downtown Rideau CHILL FACTOR.

For more information about Winterlude, please contact the NCC at 613-239-5000, 613-239-5090 (TTY), 1-800-465-1867 (toll-free) or 1-866-661-3530 (toll-free TTY), or visit the NCC’s website at Winterlude.gc.ca.