D ELI GHT S| DESTINATIONS
Autumn travel: Don’t let COVID keep you confined By Patrick Langston
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ew of us are about to hop on a plane for a far-off vacation, but that doesn’t mean we need to put travel on permanent lockdown. There are plenty of places to visit and things to see within easy driving distance of home, and autumn, when the weather is cooler and crowds smaller, is a great time to do it. We’ve come up with nine suggestions to keep you busy this fall. Make sure you check before heading out, in case a COVID flare-up has forced the closing of an event or location. And remember to bring your mask and hand sanitizer.
Above and below: Arbraska Laflèche (The Arrow) Park in Val-des-Monts, Que., about 40 minutes north of Ottawa, has ziplines high in the air and caves deep underground. The ziptour is 67 metres high and runs across a lake, while the cave involves an expert-led trek through caverns in the Canadian Shield where the temperature averages 4 C. The park also offers aerial games and hiking trails. Children as young as five can participate, making it a good family outing. arbraska.com 80
The Kingston Penitentiary, a former maximum security prison, is a place you can visit, though it's doubtful you’ll want to move in.
The big house: It’s a place you visit, but would never want to live in. Kingston Penitentiary — generally known as the Kingston Pen — is a former maximumsecurity prison built in 1835 and closed in 2013. Forbidding on the exterior, grimly utilitarian on the interior, it once housed prisoners as young as eight years old, but received praise when Charles Dickens visited it in 1842, which may tell you something about how bad things were in his own country. You can tour Kingston Pen, which has been declared a National Historic Site, until the end of October, visiting a cell range, a metal shop, the recreational yard and other spots within the grim walls. The pen is wheelchair accessible, although some areas will be difficult
to reach. Visitors must remain masked and respect social distancing regulations, which is still better than being an inmate in the penitentiary’s early days when prisoners could get the lash if they winked, laughed or even nodded at one another. kingstonpentour.com More than one way to travel: Just because we’re keeping close to home these days doesn’t mean we can’t venture into new territory via books and authors. The Ottawa International Writers Festival is the ticket, thanks to its Virtual Season running until the end of November. The festival has a mix of podcasts, live online events and other treats. They include an interview with esteemed historian Margaret FALL 2020 | OCT-NOV-DEC
KINGSTON PENITENTIARY
Wine country: Thanks to the introduction of cold-climate hybrid grapes, which survive our brutal winters, Eastern Ontario has become a wine-producing area with its own unique vineyards and tastes. A day visiting some of these wineries means you not only get to load up on products not usually available in provincial liquor stores and restaurants (blame bureaucracy), but you can also drink in the region’s gorgeous fall countryside. What’s available? Everything from Merlots and Rieslings to rosés and Viogniers, some of them Canadian and international award winners. Some vineyards also offer ciders and other specialty items, tastings, tours and even areas where, in more clement weather, you can picnic. These are familyowned vineyards and sometimes part of larger farm operations, so you also get a highly personal touch and a good sense of Ontario agriculture when you visit. Check easternontariowines.com for a list of local vineyards.
