No BeaverTails, hot chocolate on Rideau Canal Skateway
NCC says food and drink vendors will remain closed this season to reduce risk of crowding
It's time to kiss your dreams of hot chocolate and BeaverTails goodbye this skating season.
The National Capital Commission (NCC) says food and drink vendors won't be allowed to open on the Rideau Canal Skateway this winter. The announcement comes as bars and restaurants gradually reopen for in-person dining after the latest shutdown.
The same goes for skate rentals and change rooms, the NCC said in an email to CBC Tuesday.
The move is to prevent people from crowding together on the skateway, which opened fully in early February.
"Bogeyman-COVID is the one that got us this year," said BeaverTails co-owner Grant Hooker, after finding out Tuesday morning he won't be able to open up his "beavermobiles" this winter. Hooker told CBC earlier this month that he's on standby to start serving his legendary flat pastries to hungry skaters as soon as the province and the NCC eased COVID-19 restrictions.
"The NCC has been our partner and our boss for 40 years and we are the tail on the elephant. We can't wag the elephant," said Hooker.
Hooker says though his company had a plan for the lineups, he agrees it would have been difficult to maintain physical distancing.
"BeaverTails would not want to be a superspreader this year, that's for sure," he said.
Though it'll be a financial hit for his company's 40th anniversary serving on the canal, Hooker says he's already planning to bring a 48-year-old FMC motorcoach turned food truck to small towns in the Ottawa area like Embrun and Carp to make up for that — with Rockland being the first stop in March. He calls it Village Tails.
"If you weren't able to have a BeaverTail on the canal, you'll be able to have [it] right in the heart of your village," he said. "We're excited. It's like starting a new business."
The NCC is asking people to avoid outdoor winter activities on their trails and the Rideau Canal during times that may attract large numbers of people.
"Dispersing use throughout the NCC's vast winter activity network is the best way to ensure that these properties can be used safely and remain open," NCC said in an email.
