I’m fortunate to live a few minutes walk from the Ottawa River just west of Westboro Beach. I often head there with my camera when light or weather conditions present an interesting opportunity. I went to the river on New Year’s Eve, prompted by huge globs of snowflakes falling from the sky in the hope of capturing some action blurring of falling snow. By the time I got out there the conditions had changed so that plan was off, but I was thankful to have been prompted to get outside because the conditions were still quite nice in other ways.
This first image was taken on the way to the river. The trail to the right is a bike path in the summer. The trail to the left is a short cut taken primarily by dog walkers and people heading to and from the Dominion Transitway station.
Split in the trail near the Ottawa River Parkway in the Westboro area of Ottawa, Ontario
The river is frozen over now as we enter the coldest time of the winter season here in Ottawa. Snow levels are still lower than one would expect but there is still lots of time for more. The tree in this image and several others has been photographed many times by me. It is the point of the shoreline that is more or less closest to my home.
Ottawa River shoreline in winter.
Here’s another shot including the same tree but a bit further away and including a nice clump of freeze-dried cattails.
Cattails along the Ottawa River shoreline in winter. This location is just 10 minutes by foot from my house.
Freeze-dried cattails and a view across the Ottawa River. Québec is on the far side.
Cattails along the Ottawa River shoreline in winter.
Desolation. A lonely shoreline weed on the Ontario side of the Ottawa River and a view across the barren, frozen emptiness looking towards the Québec side of the river.
Dried plant poking though the snow along the Ottawa River shoreline in winter.
Run off from city of Ottawa streets makes it into the Ottawa River through a number of storm sewer outlets. In the winter, road salt may be included in the flow. In summer, soap from car washing, pesticide runoff from lawn treatments, … In the distance is the same tree shown above.
Storm sewers along the Ottawa River.
Not far from Westboro beach, this tree stands just far enough from its neighbours to give a sense of isolation in a tightly framed photograph.
A tree along the Ottawa River shoreline in winter.
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