Winterlude is an annual festival in Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec that celebrates winter.
Winterlude is run by Canada's National Capital Commission and was started in 1979. The event is one of Ottawa's most important tourist draws, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
Winterlude is a very large festival of outdoor activities including public skating and skating displays, snow and ice sculpture competitions, musical concerts at the Winterlude Snowbowl, children play areas, an 'ice lounge', bed and waiter races and numerous off-site events.
The traditional food for Winterlude is called the "Beaver Tail", a fried dough type pastry. It is sold from several stands at Winterlude event sites and along the Canal. Other food-related activities include a Chili Cook-Off held at the Byward Market and several restaurants act as 'official restaurants,' usually serving special Winterlude foods and drinks.
The event lasts for three weekends, usually the first three weekends in February. The skate changing shacks and food catering kiosks scattered along the length of the skate way, at the same level as the ice, are open day long during the week.
The weather in Ottawa is notoriously unpredictable, and Winterlude often is hampered by mild weather. Mild weather is the bane of the Canal, as proper ice conditions require -10 degrees Celsius for proper freezing.
