I became interested in Ottawa’s hidden lakes when I had an extra-long wait one rainy afternoon at a bus stop. The OC Transpo route map has bodies of water marked out in a weird shade of blue that makes all the little urban tributaries pop off the page. I couldn’t believe how many lakes and streams I’d been ignoring inside city limits.

My first intentional urban lake visit this weekend was to Bruce Pit which is a little-talked-about but beautiful dog park on the west end of town. It’s just a skip south of the Queensway Carleton hospital on Cedarview road. (Go to the end of Baseline and hang a left)

It’s one of Ottawa’s few open-leash dog parks, so you’ll see plenty of dog owners strolling around through the park with their four-legged friends. It’s a great place for an easy outdoor walk. The path is well groomed and pretty flat (although, being a dog park, you’ll have to keep your eyes peeled for messes). The path winds around through an open field and a forested area, and by a winter toboggan-run.

While we were walking around the lake, we caught a good look at an enormous blue heron who was skimming the pond. I’ll have to go back sometime with my long camera lens and some hip waders.

Natasha made an awesome spaz-out noise as we crested a hill – there was a big green garter snake crossing the path right in front of us. Brave snake to be hanging out on a dog path! He slithered away without gobbling up either of us.