After almost two years and a few more hours of waiting, Ottawa’s iconic Rideau Canal officially reopened to skaters on Sunday.
The rink’s return comes after last year’s unusual heat kept it closed throughout the winter for the first time in its history.
Shortly before reopening, the National Capital Commission (NCC) delayed the official start of the 54e rink season from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., as the organization said the ice needed more time to completely freeze after an overnight flood.
The section open to skaters is also about half as long as the NCC announced Saturday when it shared the long-awaited reopening message.
The NCC says the skating rink is open on a stretch of approximately one kilometer between Bank Street and 5e avenue.
The NCC says that as ice conditions become safer, it will open more sections of the rink, which winds through 7.8 kilometers of the capital when completely frozen.
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