Central Experimental Farm

Photo:  The Observatory

I love The Farm, Ottawa's glorious piece of "country in the city."  During this tour, we'll discover its picturesque yet functional landscape. I will reveal its history, design, and stories. I warmly invite you to share your tales of life here on the Farm.

Be sure to bring an umbrella in case of rain and wear comfy shoes for walking on grass. Because there is little or no shelter at The Farm, people are advised to wear wide-brimmed hats/sunglasses/sunscreen if it's a hot sunny day. Also, you may want to bring along some drinking water.

Location
Route

The walk will begin at 10:00 am sharp!  

Starting at the Dominion Observatory we'll walk south on Maple Drive, take a right onto Winding Lane, and then return to Maple Drive and continue south to the Agriculture Museum.   From there, we will go into the ornamental garden area to view the Macoun Sunken Gardens, then return to the heritage Observatory. 

See the second edition of Katharine's book, Capital Walks: Walking Tours of Ottawa, page 282, for a map that gives a clear indication of the route.  Katharine will have copies of her book available for sale at the walk. 

About the walk leader

Katharine Fletcher is a visual artist, freelance writer, and author of several guides to the National Capital Region ( Historical Walks: The Gatineau Park Story; Promenades historiques dans le parc de la Gatineau; Capital Walks: Walking Tours of Ottawa; Capital Rambles: Exploring the National Capital Region; and, with her husband Eric Fletcher, co-authored Quebec Off the Beaten Path ). She writes environment, nature, gardening, and eco-tourism columns and features for such markets as explore magazine, travel2next.com, Tourisme Outaouais (blog), Canadian Tourism Commission, Ottawa Outdoors Magazine, West Quebec Post, Pontiac Journal, Aylmer Bulletin, and youngatheartnewspaper.ca .  She teaches art with Get Art (facebook.com/contactgetart/), leads custom hiking/walking tours, and is a public speaker specializing in raising awareness about the human and natural history of Ottawa, Gatineau Park, and the National Capital Region; as well as writing and publishing. She and her husband Eric Fletcher also are on the Pontiac, Quebec-based Gardens and Gifts Tour, where they showcase gardens at Spiritwood, their hobby farm, and sell their and other artists' art (http://gardensandgifts.blogspot.ca/).

Web presence:
Discover my world at: www.katharinefletcher.com
FaceBook: facebook.com/katharine.fletcher 
Artist FaceBook page:  facebook.com/KatharineFletcherArtist/

Twitter: @Spiritwood
Instagram: @spiritwoodkf

Note that Katharine Fletcher will also be leading a walk at Meech Lake in Gatineau Park.  Details.  

Guide:

Katharine Fletcher

When:
Date:Sat May 5, 2018
Time:11:00 AM
Duration: 1 hour
Language: English
Where:
Start:The Dominion Observatory, <p> ........................near Carling Ave & Maple Dr
End:The Dominion Observatory
Area:Experimental Farm
Distance:1.0 km
Accessibility:

Parts of this tour may be challenging for wheelchairs and strollers: the lawns may be uneven, and the Macoun Sunken Garden has a few steps.

Gallery
The Dominion Observatory at the Experimental Farm
Volunteer to Marshal This Walk