Photo Friday: Fire and Ice

It's been a while since I stopped on Bate Island.

It's not usually along my route, anymore. My crossing to and from work, across the Ottawa River, tends to be the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge, the most easterly bridge in Ottawa. The Champlain Bridge, which is the city's most westerly bridge, isn't one I choose to cross.

But with DW's foot still mending from a bad break, following a fall last December, I am her chauffeur, must drive her to work and pick her up. And so, the Champlain Bridge is where I cross, once again.

I'm pretty good at predicting my ETA, as I leave my Gatineau office and head to DW's place of work. My last text to her, before I left work for the day, was that I should be in front of her building by 5:20 at the latest.

As I crossed the Champlain Bridge, the sun was just setting, was just falling beneath the treeline that hides the town of Aylmer, on the Quebec side of the Ottawa River. There is a mix of clear sky and cloud, and the colours are glowing a myriad of yellows, oranges, reds, and blues. Looking to the east, the downtown skyline is aglow in orange, with some office windows reflecting the suns rays.

I had to make a stop, so on to Bate Island, I went.

A couple of cars were parked in the small lot on the west end. I could see a woman, small camera in hand, standing at the fence that protected spectators from the icy water. I pulled in next to the vehicles, and pulled my camera out of the bag that was in the back seat.

I was going to be late, picking up DW, but it was worth it. For there was fire in the sky and ice in the water.

Happy Friday!