Winterlude begins Jan. 30, 2026

Winterlude starts today in Ottawa–Gatineau, and the forecast is simple: dress warmly and stay outside longer than planned. The festival began in 1979, when the National Capital Commission set out to make winter feel inviting rather than isolating—and that thinking still holds.

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Today in History

Wind-powered ice racing
Jan. 30, 2024Aýna, Albacete, Spain
Jan. 30, 2025Vancouver International Boat Show

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A warm hug in the icy north
Oct. 29, 2024Great horned owl
Bryce Canyon hoodoos in winter
Feb. 28, 2025Bighorn sheep in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada, United States
Spirit of the Puffing Wind
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Sep. 3, 2023Skyscrapers in Manhattan
Aug. 20, 2024Sunrise at Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, USA
Feb. 12, 2026Darwin Day
Beauty by the bay
Southern tip of a northern isle
40 years of recovery
Aug. 24, 2024Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, Maine, USA
Mar. 3, 2024World Wildlife Day
Sep. 21, 2024Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany
Tomb of the Golden Pharaoh
Birthplace of the Renaissance
Aug. 27, 2024Young black caiman, Tambopata National Reserve, Peru
A blue-tiful island
Shell-ebrating sea turtles
‘A sustainable and peaceful common future’
Dec. 15, 2025Spiegelgracht canal in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Jun. 11, 2024A group of Southern gemsbok in the savannah, Botswana
Jul. 5, 2025Tour de France
Nature at its colourful best
Sep. 22, 2025Autumn equinox
Jul. 6, 2025Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in Death Valley National Park, United States
Feb. 25, 2025Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, United States
Feb. 5, 2024Monarch butterflies, Goleta, California