Swim and splash: The scorching summertime heat is here, Hamilton. Here’s a guide for keeping cool.
Summer is here and so is the heat, but with City of Hamilton facilities still in the process of opening, is getting wet and wild even possible?
With a two-day heat event Tuesday and Wednesday, here's an update on all the local swimming and splashing places.
Wild Waterworks
The city's wet and wild amusement park is not yet open.
Historically, the water park run by the Hamilton Conservation Authority (HCA) opens in late June as kids finish school for the year.
HCA director Gord Costie told The Spec Tuesday that Wild Waterworks staff is working on final preparations and waiting for inspection results before its still-to-be determined opening day.
Costie said after waiting two years, we are eager to reopen and feel confident it will occur next week in time for Canada Day."
This season will be a little bit different at the Van Wagners Beach Road attraction, as a provincewide lifeguard shortage is forcing the park to adjust plans.
A recent media release says due to staff shortages" the facility will operate five days per week this year - Wednesdays to Sundays, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The park will also open for the Civic Holiday and Labour Day.
Ticket sales, including season tickets to the park, are forthcoming.
For more information check out wild-waterworks.com/2022-online-sales.
Outdoor pools
If you're hoping to jump into an outdoor municipal swimming pool during this week's hot streak, you're out of luck.
The city's 10 outdoor pools are all scheduled to open June 30.
Indoor pools
All but three of the city's 23 community indoor pools are open. All open swims are free for the duration of heat events. Residents can find pool schedules and registration information on hamilton.ca/swimming.
Spray pads
Most of the city's spray pads are now open.
Hamilton has 69 of the splishy splashy spray areas in city parks. Of those, 63 are open.
The spray pads at Andrew Warburton Memorial Park, Beasley Park, Broughton Park East, Central Park, Pier 4 Park and Victoria Park are currently closed.
Find a full list and map of the open spray pads at hamilton.ca/recreation/spray-pads.
Wading pools
Hamilton's six wading pools - shallow water areas for kids in city parks - are not yet open.
Five of them, Andrew Warburton Memorial Park, Gage Park, J.C. Beemer Park, Huntington Park Recreation Centre and Powell Park are scheduled to open July 4. The wading pool at Dundas Driving park is opening July 27.
Beaches
Seven of the eight beaches run by HCA are open for swimming. The only one that is closed is Bayfront Park beach, which does not open due to historically bad water quality.
The city's most popular beaches tend to fill up quickly and - especially due to previous summer's COVID-related capacity issues - the conservation authority regularly updates beach capacity issues on its Twitter feed: twitter.com/Hamilton_CA
The seven open beaches - Binbrook Conservation Area Beach, Christie Conservation Area Beach, Confederation Beach Park, Pier 4 Park Beach, Valens Conservation Area Beach and Van Wagner's Beach - are tested regularly from late May to late August.
Find the most up to date test results on hamilton.ca/beaches.
Jeremy Kemeny is a Hamilton-based web editor at The Spectator. Reach him via email: jkemeny@thespec.com