Hog's Back Park is a nice little park in the middle of the city. It's a great place for a picnic,…read moreor a bike ride or just to walk around. The falls are picturesque and since I am a romantic in my heart, I like looking at and reading all the love locks that are on the fence by the falls. I hope that all those people who placed the locks there are still happily together and still madly in love. Although I am ironically also simultaneously a cynic in my head, so I highly doubt that even half of those couples are still on speaking terms, lol. Cue music from Great Big Sea: "...how did we get from saying "I love you," to "I'll see you 'round someday?"..." Ok, ok, we can't end on that note...Cue music from Christopher Cross: "...I will take you forever, and there will never be anyone else in my heart but you..." Alright, talking about Love time is over, more about the park! There are lots of benches around and some picnic tables too. It's within walking distance to Mooney's Bay Park, which I don't like as much because it is much busier (likely because it also has a beach, which Hog's Back does not). There is free parking on-site but it can be hard to find a spot sometimes.

Lovely waterfalls, available parking, not too crowded, it's a beautiful place to visit! Give it a goread more

So a lot of people like this park because it is always really busy. There's a beach, a big hill, a…read morefairly large children's playground with fancy stuff beyond the regular swings and slides, a snack bar and lots of open grass for picnics, frisbee games, etc. You can rent paddleboards too. It's walking distance from Hog's Back Park (which I personally like better because it's less crowded, even though there's less to do there). I have always hated crowds, even long before the Covid-19 Pandemic, so Mooney's Bay Park is not my jam, but I can see how people love it. If you like a park with lots of people and lots of things to do, Mooney's Bay Park might be right up your alley. There is some free parking on site.

Ottawa does not have a lot of beaches. Money's Bay is certainly no Caribbean white sand heaven, but…read moreit's a pretty great escape just outside the downtown core. There is a roped off swimming area in the water and plenty of trees if you need some shade. It has lots of great events every year including the Hope beach volleyball tournament (rain or shine) and sits just down the road from one of Ottawa's rowing clubs so it makes a great place to watch some of the races from a distance such as the dragon boat festival. There is also a large green space between the beach and the road that is perfect for frisbee games. With a lifeguard on duty and a beach hut food shack, Mooney's bay park and beach make for a nice day out in the sun.

So this Covid-19 Pandemic that we are currently in has made me even more introspective than usual…read more I have been contemplating a lot about how precarious life is and admittedly this has caused me a great deal of anxiety. Coincidentally, around this time, I discovered a poem, thanks to my sister-in-law, by Wendell Berry called "The Peace of Wild Things." There's a line in the poem that talks about how wild things "do not tax their lives with forethought of grief." This line really resonated with me because it made me realize that I do spend a large portion of my life worrying about and anticipating loss. So I thought that maybe if I spent some time closer to wild things they would impart some of their peacefulness onto me. I discovered the existence of the Fletcher Wildlife Garden online, and decided to pay it a visit. I can't say that I had any epiphanies there, but the Garden is beautiful and perhaps for some fleeting moments, I was able capture a sense of tranquility. There is 90 minutes free parking in their private parking lot. The parking lot separates 2 sides of the Garden. On one side the paths are wider and the area is better groomed and landscaped. This side looks more like a park you would expect to find in a metropolitan city. You can have picnics on this side. On the other side the area is more feral and treed. That side looks more like a wooded hiking trail. I was hoping to see some frogs, butterflies and unusual birds, but I only saw squirrels, chipmunks, ducks and Canada geese. Apparently, there are coyotes in there. Thankfully, I did not encounter any. If you looking to be closer to nature without living the city, I would recommend checking out Fletcher Wildlife Garden. It wasn't too busy and the space is vast, so it's easy to physically distance from other people. No guarantees that you will find serenity or clarity in these trying times, but you will see nature in its beauty and maybe capture some pretty photos for your screensaver or background ;)

I love the Ornamental Gardens. You can visit this place throughout the year (I never tried during…read morewinter) and see different plants and vegetation. This is a small collection of British gardens that are a perfect escape from the city inside the city.accsisable by car, foot or bike..and FREE.

Vincent Massey Park is a great place for a picnic or outdoor party. This park has the most picnic…read moretables I've ever seen in a park. While my husband and I were there we saw numerous parties going on (Happy 40th Shelly! I don't know who you are, but saw your balloons and sign. It seems like your friends and family really care about you, so you must be a nice person, lol). It was a Sunday, so there was a church sermon going on as well. Since we are in the midst of the Covid-19 Pandemic, I think it's good that celebrations and gatherings are taking place outside, as this decreases the risk of spread, compared to indoor gatherings. However, we recently had a park BBQ in Ottawa that lead to a big outbreak of cases, so please still try to physically distance (even when outside) and not share food with people outside of your exclusive bubble of 10, as per Public Health recommendations ;) In addition to picnic tables, they have open green space as well as a path for walking, biking, rollerblading, etc. It's by the Rideau River, so you get a nice view of the water. I saw some people fishing in the river too. The only thing I'm not crazy about is that parking at this park is not free. You have to pay. There is the Vincent Massey Park Lot attached to the park. It's $1 per 30 minutes to a maximum of $8 (7am-10pm everyday). There is an adjacent Impark Lot, where you have to walk a bit further, and it's $1.50 per 30 minutes to a maximum of $10. However, on weekdays after 5pm and all day on weekends the flat rate is $3. So this is a better deal if you plan to stay more than 90 minutes during the evening or on a weekend. Needless to say, we parked in the Impark Lot ;) Vincent Massey Park is a great park right in the city.

Park was nice but what was terrible was leaving the parking lot! Firstly you have to pay to park…read moreand second if you are leaving in the evening when everyone decides to leave you are going to take about an hour just to leave. I would not come to this park again!

At the end April 2022, my husband and I went to Black Rapids Park in hopes of having a picnic…read morethere. Unfortunately, they still had the picnic tables all in a pile and chained up, so we couldn't use them. The park was covered in goose poop, so we didn't want to eat on the grass and ended up eating in the car, lol. Parking is not free at this park, you have to pay. The parking lot is owned by Indigo Parking and it's $1.25 an hour with a 4 hour maximum. The parking lot is also fairly small, so it fills up quickly. If the parking lot is full, there really isn't anywhere else you can park so you'd be out of luck. The turn to get into the parking lot and thus the park is marked, but the road is small, not even 2 full car widths, so it's easy to miss. I missed it first time around and had to double back. Also since the road in is narrow, if someone is coming in and someone else is coming out, the person coming out has to back up. I don't know who designed this place, but I'm not all that impressed with the entrance/exit layout. So as you can see, this park and I did not start off on the right foot, lol. It is pretty, if you disregard all the goose poop and the loud geese walking around. The rapids are cool and there are sections of the park that are picturesque. I personally would be reluctant to bring small kids here because I feel that it's pretty dangerous there if you are not careful. You can fall in the water. Not all sections are adequately fenced off for my comfort level. However, I am a stickler for safety. But I realize that nature is inherently dangerous, so I guess there is some risk to experience its beauty. Glad I got to see the park and the rapids, but I likely won't be back.

I had no idea this place existed until our photographer, Jamie from Hello Lovely Ottawa, suggested…read moreit for our maternity shoot! We were there last summer in June. We weren't the only ones there for a photoshoot either, as we saw a pregnant woman and her partner with a photographer, as well as another couple who seemed to be taking engagement photos. Great location for them! We met Jamie in the parking lot and had no idea what the park would be like, but when we walked down into the park area, it opened up to this huge green space that we didn't expect. There's lots of open green space and small hills, some picnic tables, a few paths in between the trees, and locks where a few people were fishing. It was so beautiful and peaceful at during the "golden hour" at sunset on a weekday, and no mosquitos or any other bugs really, maybe because it was a little windy. I'm not sure what it would be like on weekends during the day, when I could see a lot of families playing and picnics happening. I completely forgot about this park until now, so I can't wait to go back with our babe when the whether is nice! In the meantime, enjoy a few photos of my husband and I screwing around during our photoshoot lol (Just two weeks before our little guy decided to introduce himself to the world!)

What a picturesque little park in the middle of the city!…read more Brown's Inlet Park is in The Glebe, at Holmwood Ave and Craig St. It's a beautiful park surrounded by expensive houses, lol. There are ducks and other wildlife in the water. There's lots of open green space for picnics, but you'll have to picnic on the grass because there are no picnic tables. There are a few benches though. The park is relatively small, but it's never all that crowded, and it's super pretty. Street parking available nearby but spots are hard to find when the weather is nice. Also keep an eye on the signage, some streets have 1 hour limits, while others are 2-3 hours. There are several paid parking lots in the area as well.

My parents came to visit me for the weekend for the Tulip festival. We had a picnic at this park…read moreand it was fantastic! Great sunny weather and lots of people. The trees were green and the tulips were out. It's a large area where you have enough space to have privacy. There is lots of shade as well. This was not my first time and won't be my last.

The park is very peaceful and quiet. It is beautiful and has many different flowers. It also has a…read morewonderful view of the Parliament Hill, Ottawa River and the Canal. It's nice to go for a walk/run along the river or go for a picnic and enjoy a laid back and relaxing time. It's a must-see in Ottawa.

So I lived in a townhouse near this park for a few months when I first moved to Ottawa over a…read moredecade ago, but didn't even know it existed until earlier this year. Centrepointe Park is a great park to walk through because it has a nicely paved path and the scenery is beautiful. There's a duck pond, lots of greenery, 2 baseball diamonds, 4 soccer fields and a play structure for kids (or kids at heart, lol). There are benches throughout as well. There's lots of free parking spots off of Centrepointe Drive. This park has a very special place in my heart because I learned of its existence during my Covid-19 Pandemic Emergency Response Deployment. It was such an intense, stressful and emotionally charged time. I met lots of new people during my deployment and became friends with some of them. One such friend, who I consider my best Covid friend (Covid friends are friends I met during my deployment), really looked out for me and although we weren't always able to take our breaks due to our workloads, by friend ensured that I took my break when I really need a break. My friend would take me on a walk through Centrepointe Park to clear our heads and get some fresh air. This is how I learned of this park's existence. So while this park will forever remind me of the dreadful Pandemic, it also reminds me of friendship and how terrible circumstances can bring people who may never have met otherwise together, and that positive things can in fact come out of negative situations.

Gorgeous views of Ottawa and Quebec (across the river). The walk to Nepean Point is an ideal stop…read moreon a walk through Parliament Hill, visit to the National Gallery of Canada, etc.). Bring your camera: it's one of the best spots in town to take pics (especially panoramic ones) and the statue of the point is kind of cool too. I probably should know "who" it is and his significance in Canadian history...

Cool park to sit and relax and get a great view of the Ottawa River and Gatineau. Nice views of…read moreParliament, too. It's just next to the National Gallery, and a few blocks from ByWard Market. No playground, just a big, grass-covered hill. It's a great spot to watch fireworks from!! Also, you'll spot lots of wedding parties taking photos here on the weekends.

The Ottawa River Pathway is a pedestrian and bicycle path along the Ottawa River. The scenery is…read morevery beautiful year-round, but especially in the autumn. The pathway is about 30km, but you can get on and off at certain points, so you definitely don't have to do the entire length. It's fully paved and not particularly hilly. Just watch out for goose poop along certain parts of the path during certain times of the year, lol. Goose poop aside, the Ottawa River Pathway is beautiful. It's great for getting some exercise, be it cycling, rollerblading, jogging, Nordic walking, power walking, or even taking a leisurely stroll, while admiring nature. Sunsets along certain parts of the Pathway are especially breathtaking.

This is a great little escape for the government workers in Tunney's pasture, to break away from…read moretheir computers for a few minutes of fresh air and R&R while they come outside for lunch or a walk or bike ride along the river. Be careful of the goose droppings on the grass, though. The cyclists using this path would rather the pedestrians walked on the grass, and the walkers would prefer if the cyclists used the grass! All of us are avoiding the droppings left by the Canada Geese that frequent this area. Also, look for the man who builds Inukshuk (if I've spelled that right?) For many years now, a man has been building amazing statues out of the rocks at the shoreline - they rocks balance on each other at seemingly impossible angles, threatening to drop at any moment, but seem to keep their balance! There was an article about him several years ago in the Canadian Geographic. It's been a pleasure to watch him work, and he's become something of a tourist attraction. It's May now, and I haven't seen him there yet this year, but maybe the water's too cold yet. Maybe he begins this work after the Victoria Day weekend.