Question Regarding Locations In Ottawa, Ontario

[Crazee_Canuck_252]

Greetings, all.
First off, love the board.
I have a question and figured someone out there may be able to answer:
I live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. I'm about 10 minutes from downtown, actually.
My lady-friend and I would love to have some secluded mud-fun, but have no idea where to go about finding any deep mud or quicksand in the city.
We don't own a car, so that severely limits where we can go.
Is there anywhere in this nation's capital that would have some deep mud or quicksand?
I realize that I may be out of luck, but figured I'd ask... just in case.
Any input or assistance would be greatly appreciated.
(I even thought about construction sites or perhaps where ever a new highway is being built.)

Thanks in advance.

[stevensenechal]

As a general rule, deep mud and/or quicksand are not found within the boarders of capitals of first world countries. Civic authorities and engineers make a point of dispensing with hazards felt to not be in the public interest with regards to health and/or safety. You are not left without options however. A solution would be to purchase and import your own pit of quicksand and either install it yourself or, better yet, have it installed by a professional. Many competent landscape architects and groundskeepers can be found in the yellow pages. The process of application for the necessary permits to install your pit of quicksand should be processed immediately as it is considerably more expensive to have such work done in the winter, particularly in Canada. If such an undertaking is beyond your current budget, other more cost effective means of getting into the good stuff may entertained. Stay tuned for my next do-it-yourself handy tip in future editions of Stuck in the City!

[KavenBach]

Try the Parliament. Lots of slime and ooze around there.

More seriously, though, I really doubt you could find anything at all in the city, particularly anything deep enough and secluded enough for your needs. Hell, I fully expect anyone finding you, even if you're going in clothed, would report you to the police just out of sheer confusion.

Your lack of a car also severely (as you said) limits your possibilities. Realistically I don't know Ontario well enough to point you to anything anyway, though I seem to recall there being quite a few marshlands and lakes in that province that could all theoretically have good ainking grounds.

Only place I know of at all in that area would be the Upper Canada Bird Sanctuary (Ingleside... near Cornwall). There is quite a bit of marshland around there, and last time I went to the place (I was counselor/director at Camp Kagama in the Sanctuary for many years) I recall there being quite a wide expanse of marshy forest around, as well as several once-used public campgrounds now left untended. You might be able to find something in there, with a little searching, and as long as you aren't on the shore of the St Laurence I doubt you'd be at much risk of being found out. Heck, if you want to I suppose you could even boat/canoe down the river and find the Sanctuary.

All I can think of, sorry.

[PM2K]

Maybe I can help...

The Ottawa Citizen ran a story a year or so ago of a guy getting stuck in deep mud along the river/creek which runs near Scotiabank Place and crosses the 417. He apparently was crossing the field behind the parking lot at the nearby Home Depot and that's when he ran into trouble.

I understand buses run to both places, so maybe that's worth a look...

[Crazee_Canuck_252]

Maybe I can help...

The Ottawa Citizen ran a story a year or so ago of a guy getting stuck in deep mud along the river/creek which runs near Scotiabank Place and crosses the 417. He apparently was crossing the field behind the parking lot at the nearby Home Depot and that's when he ran into trouble.

I understand buses run to both places, so maybe that's worth a look...

That's right. I heard something about that, too.
Excellent idea. That's a great place to start, methinks.

Thanks for all the replies, folks.

[poolshark]

I know you said that you don't have a car. But if you were somehow able to rent a car for a weekend or any couple of days, there is an amazing spot about 200k west of Ottawa towards the Mattawa/North Bay area. I have a special someone that is going to school in Ottawa and on my trips I always keep an eye open on the side of the roads for any signs of "potential". On one drive in September a year or so ago, I noticed a spot on the side of the road that looked to be a semi-dried up edge of a large creek. Not being able to stop on the way down was driving me nuts all weekend. So on my way back I kept my eyes open for the spot and after seeing it again and casually parking my car on the side of the highway, I made my way back into the bush out to the area. After making my way through the trees, waiting in front of me was bacically a gold mine as far as sinkers are concerned....tonnes and tonnes of bottomless mud...i was like a fat kid in a candy store with a thousand dollars in my pocket..
After making my way through much of the area and submerging multiple times, I've yet to make a return visit. But I fully intend to stop by there again on a couple trips this fall.

This spot is between 20-25km before Mattawa, in a little township called Head, Clair, Marie or something along those lines lol. Dont blink cause you may pass right on by.
If you want more info just ask

[PM2K]

This spot is between 20-25km before Mattawa, in a little township called Head, Clair, Marie or something along those lines lol. Dont blink cause you may pass right on by.
If you want more info just ask

That's Head, Clair and Maria to be specific. I know where that is. Can you be a bit more specific as to its location? I drive that highway on occasion myself and there's a whole lot of roadway there...

[poolshark]

That's Head, Clair and Maria to be specific. I know where that is. Can you be a bit more specific as to its location? I drive that highway on occasion myself and there's a whole lot of roadway there... [/quote]

Well I can't provide an exact location. But thinking back I think i kept an eye on the distance, and driving from the turnoff in Mattawa, heading towards Ottawa. I think the distance was about 25km. Driving in that direction, keep an eye open on the left hand side of the road and it is visible from an overhead bridge. It would look like a dried up rivers edge that disappears behind the trees. And if comming from Ottawa it isn't far past the Head Clair and Maria sign so just keep and eye open to the right side of the road, if you're comming from Ottawa..
Good luck!
p.s Im not sure what the weather has been like out that way so far this year. But with the wet summer we had last year I remember the spot being a little flooded so it may be harder to spot. But if it has been relatively dry then it shouldn't be a problem.

[PM2K]

Cool! Thanks for the heads up!

[stevensenechal]

Now where did we leave off? Oh yes. If you're thinking of installing that new quicksand pit in your front yard, think again. Eventually you stop getting mail, the newspaper boy disappears and even friends mysteriously stop showing up. Hmmmmm....Better to fence off and use the back yard for your new installation (any neighborhood kids curious enough to jump the fence deserve their fate). If money continues to thwart your plans then find a creative way to generate some dough ( invent something useful or sell your girlfriend to an Arab shiek ). If all else fails you may have to do the unthinkable and buy a car. This has the beneficial side effect of not frightening the shit out of your fellow transit riders because you didn't bring a change of clothes from your last sink. Anyways, others (like someone we know who lives in North Hollywood) share your plight so cheer up. That's all for now but stay tuned for another edition of Stuck in the City!