Pandemic Walks In Ottawa

Mid-April rolled around indicating five weeks of isolation. How’s everyone doing? Week five has been better than four, and four better than three. The occasional sunshine manages to peak through the rolling snow squalls. The wind has howled as of late. Lyn and Ren thankfully find the same reprieve being outside.

It’s been a surreal experience watching individuals and couples meditating on the setting sun as we all get through this pandemic as best we can.

The Weather Network shared added this photo of the Pink Super Moon to their moments on Twitter and it blew the fuck up. Over 230,000 people saw it.

When you are limited in the distance you can go each day, we keep looking up at the sky and down at the water. Every time is different.

This chain has mesmerized me every day that we walk done to the Ottawa River. Each photo is different with the oscillating water flows.

We have navigated the shut down of our city, Ottawa, as best we can. Staying #physicallydistant is stressful. Over the past five weeks, we have explored every street, sidewalk and path along the Ottawa River. Everyday is an exercise in staving off boredom from seeing the same places as we spend time outside.

The moments you have an empty pathway feel exhilarating. We are getting better at picking where and when we go so as to return home less stressful then when we left.

Westboro Beach is just down the road from us, connecting to the SJAM (Sir John A MacDonald) multi-use pathway. We meander along the side of the roadway. Every path is a “why not” moment. There is every reason to walk slowly and watch shit, just because we have time. And all the time outside is saving us.

I have seen a few other photographers in the last month and a half. It was a deliberate choice to stay close to home and not document the city over the course of this state of emergency.

We started out the pandemic with solid ice on the Ottawa River. Then it broke up. And shattered into a thousand tiny, shiny islands.

It’s warmed up and cooled down multiple times. This was the result at the end of one bitterly cold April day along the Ottawa River.

The tangents I could off on are myriad. I never expected having outdoor space attached to your home as something I took for granted. We live in a small 600 sq. ft. apartment with windows that do not open. We have no balcony or outdoor space that is open to residents in our building. It’s hard. And that’s okay. We have adapted slowly and our mental health has improved along with that adaptation. There have been tears, anxiety and fucking rage rants on Twitter that got us through one day at a time.

Active transportation is a fight in this city. As the messaging around staying home and getting exercise close to home has become clearer, everywhere is getting crowded.

Traffic in Ottawa has decreased by 75% in the metro-Ottawa area since late-March. And yet space allocation for people has not changed. It’s fucking enraging dancing all over the place to keep #physicaldistancing while the SJAM sits essentially empty.

Seeing every person walking, biking or running makes me happy. We are getting a glimpse of what could be after this pandemic if there is will to see cities and urban communities differently.

Just Lyn and Ren standing in the sunshine. Ren is either sleeping or chatting outside. Not much in between!

Just people riding bikes and enjoying a chilly April spring sunset on the SJAM multi-use pathway, east of Westboro beach.