Mooney's Bay Park, Public park with beach on Rideau River in Ottawa, Canada
Mooney's Bay Park is a park on the eastern shore of the Rideau River in southern Ottawa, with a supervised beach, volleyball courts, a children's play area, and Terry Fox Stadium on its grounds. Picnic tables, barbecue stations, and tennis courts are spread across the site as well.
The bay took its current shape during the construction of the Rideau Canal, when a dam created Hog's Back Falls and a set of locks for boat passage. The Mooney family, who managed those locks for generations, eventually gave this place its name.
On summer weekends, the beach fills with families, and volleyball games run nearly all day along the shore. In winter, the riverside paths attract skaters and walkers who come out even in cold weather.
The park is open throughout the day and has washrooms and change facilities near the beach. On warm weekends, parking fills up quickly, so arriving early in the morning makes the visit easier.
Three generations of the Mooney family served as lockmasters at the nearby Hog's Back Locks, overseeing boat traffic for decades in a row. That kind of unbroken family tie to a single post is rare and is what turned their name into a permanent part of the local map.
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