Up the Rideau

November, when it's sunny and reasonably above freezing (10C?), can be the best time of the year. With the leaves long gone, and the sun at a low angle, the quality of the light is quite special. I took pleasure in this yesterday as I drove up the Rideau lakes/canal system to Merrickville. This waterway, with one end in Ottawa and the other in Kingston, comprises, together with the Kingston fortifications, a Unesco World Heritage site. My goal was Unraveled, currently my favourite yarn shop in eastern Ontario. Merrickville has transformed itself from a sleepy hamlet on the Rideau to a boutique shopping/dining destination. The streets were lined with cars and the sidewalks full of shoppers laden with bags.
After I was done at the shop, I wandered (ice cream in hand) across the street to get a view of the water. Here, the canal (in the foreground) flows next to the river (behind).

I looked down into a dry lock, and realized that I rather liked the quietness of the season compared to the bustle of boaters in the summer.

The blockhouse basked in the early winter sunshine. I love the bare bark on this tree.

I dropped into the bank for some extra cash, and enjoyed the view across the street of this classic nineteenth century eastern Ontario house, complete with pale brick cornerstones and white gingerbread trim.

Today is drizzly and grey, but I worked anyway on getting some decorative winter greens into the pots at the front of the house. If I wait another few days, it's likely that the soil will be too frozen.

 

Nothing left of the Boston Ivy except bare vines until next spring. The dark days are here.

Time for some colourful knitting!