For the first time in five decades, the renowned Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa, Canada, which is also the world’s largest outdoor rink, will not open due to a lack of ice. A UNESCO World Heritage site, the skateway stretches as far as 7.8km long, and is immensely popular among both locals and tourists. However, in recent years, Ottawa has been experiencing warmer winters. This year, it faced the third-warmest winter in history, the reason why there is not enough stable, solid ice to support ice skating.
As per the records, the temperatures must stay between -10 to -20 degree Celsius, for the canal to stay frozen.
Since it’s famed for being the world’s largest outdoor rink, it usually opens in January, and is one of the primary highlights of Ottawa. However, the skateway will remain closed this year due to lack of ice, in a huge blow for all the visitors who were excited and planning to enjoy ice skating this year.
While a direct connect between global warming and this occurence is yet to be made, experts suggest the same. A safety advisory has also been issued to the public by The National Capital Commission (NCC)recently stating that the ice was ‘dangerously thin’. In response to the present situation, if reports are to go by, the NCC has called for a series of climate adaptation studies, and is making all efforts to try to keep the skateway open earlier and for longer.
The NCC thinks there is still hope. They added that they will reassess conditions at the end of the week. Hopefully, the situation improves, but till then, fingers are crossed. Meanwhile, experts are of the opinion that eventually we’ll get to a stage where it might not be possible to open the skateway.
