Spy Rock is famous for its fall views, but it's also famous for crowds - especially during the fall colour frenzy. This year, break away from the pack and get your fall fix from these lesser-known hikes inside the park:

Pumpkin spice is back on the menu, which means you're probably planning your annual fall colours roadtrip to Spy Rock! Foley Mountain Conservation Area is a popular spot this time of year, and crowds are a given. Consider these tips to make sure your visit is a hit:

If you've ever been to Voyageur Provincial Park near Hawkesbury, you've seen European Water Chestnut in action. The ornamental pond plant likely hopped a fence nearby, establishing itself in dense mats in the Ottawa River and nearby tributaries around the park more than a decade ago.

Robust removal programs are in place, but getting ahead of it is as hard as the thorny seeds it throws into the riverbed to reproduce. 

Is your personal paradise protecting the lake you love? Or are you accidentally disrupting the natural systems nearby? If you're unsure, don't despair: we've got a quiz to help you find out. 

We get it: summer is brief, and aquatic plants can be annoying when you're trying to make the most of dock life. It can be tempting to rip them out, install an expensive water circulator or even use an herbicide to get rid of them.

But there are better ways to keep aquatic plants from getting out of hand while supporting both a thriving ecosystem and your perfect getaway.

A 15-acre swath of Hydro Ottawa land will soon be a buzzing metropolis of bees, birds and butterflies as the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority (RVCA) helps plant one of the largest pollinator meadows in Eastern Ontario.

We get by with a little help from our friends, and Foley Mountain Conservation Area is no exception.

Friends of Foley Mountain, a charitable group that has aided the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority's Westport site since 1996, has continued its support despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The RVCA's tree planting program has many branches of support, but it's the sturdy trunk of Forests Ontario that holds it all together. 

The provincial not-for-profit manages the 50 Million Tree Program, which provides two-thirds of RVCA's tree planting funding each year to help private landowners undertake largescale afforestation (the creation of new forests) for just pennies per tree.

Water quality in our local lakes and rivers start right at home, where you wash your car, walk your dog and plant your gardens. The more you can reduce the amount of rain, meltwater and chemicals like fertilizers and detergents that drain into the storm sewer, the better our water quality will be. 

Check out our interactive graphic to see which side of the street you're on. 

Ian Cochrane has a family history of forestry and conservation. As the RVCA's new forestry manager, he has fully embraced his calling – bugs and all – to plant more than 200,000 trees a year for a more resilient community, planet and future.

Compared to the thrum of a thriving summer wetland, winter wetlands may seem as silent as outer space.

But they're not empty, nor are they vacant – life's just a little slower, a little less showy, in an ice-covered marsh or swamp.

So, you're buying in the country for the first time: congratulations! Moving out of the city can be one of the most rewarding decisions you'll ever make – especially now that many of us can work from home.

But rural and waterfront properties come with unique challenges, and without the right help you could end up with a lemon. 

Here are our top five tips to consider before you sign on the dotted line.

If your kids start complaining the moment you say "walk," the snowsuit struggle might not seem worth it. But inside every kid is an outdoorsperson waiting to blossom – and these tricks might just help! Try these activities at one of our 11 conservation areas and let us know what got them moving.

'Twas the week before Christmas

Quarantined in your house

When you finished your shopping

With the click of a mouse! 

Fresh air. Open space. A mental balm. Or perhaps just somewhere – anywhere – to take the kids. Yes, outdoor spaces have been the saviours of the pandemic.

It was a cold, crisp day in December 2019 when Rosemary (Rose) Fleguel, RVCA's resident butternut expert, pulled up in her truck to meet North Grenville woodlot owner Warren Dool at his 47-acre property. Her mission? To find any and all living and healthy butternut trees - a cause to which she has dedicated the bulk of her long career.  

Folks, we all know that this is a really hard time. It is full of stress, anxiety, and uncertainty. It is a time where we are all having to take things on that fall way outside our comfort zones. As a parent of three, an educator, and wife of a teacher who works in a more traditional setting, I'm seeing, hearing and feeling some of the challenges around children being home from school.

Looking to escape the house? Searching for some safe fun and learning for your little ones (or big ones) while physical distancing? 

 There's fun, discovery and learning available in your backyard or during a walk around the block.

We spoke to RVCA's Outdoor Educators Andrea Wood (Baxter Conservation Area) and Rebecca Whitman (Foley Mountain Conservation Area) and asked for some tips on how to maximize your child's outdoor experience.

We all know it: the holidays can be stressful, expensive and wasteful. All that running around buying things people don't need, trying to read everyone's minds, bracing for Boxing Day returns once everything's been unwrapped.

STOP!

Why not skip the hassle and give the gift of conservation instead?

There's a misconception out there that your local conservation authority is out to stop all development. But in reality the RVCA approves more than 90% of the applications it receives; our regulations inspectors and planners work with applicants to come up with plans that can suit the property owner, the provincial regulations and the watershed all at once. 

Not convinced? Meet Hal Stimson, long-time inspector with the RVCA: