One of the things I wanted to do while in Manitoba was to take a drive up to Lake Winnipeg and see the sights. I rented a car for the day and set off on my journey to the lake and to the town of Gimli.
It was about an hour and fifteen-minute drive from downtown Winnipeg to Gimli, and the drive there was straight, flat, and hardly anything to see. On top of that, the roads themselves were in questionable condition. This was probably one of most boring drives I had to do in my Canada travels so far, and it made me wish I was back to the coastal drives in Nova Scotia.
I park my car right next to the CFB Gimli Memorial, which is a plane monument that the officers of the Gimli Air Force base gifted to the town.
I walk over to the Gimli seawall to check out Lake Winnipeg. It was a cold and windy day to be on the shore, and I was feeling the chill from the lake. Gimli looked like a small British seaside town with some attractions, restaurants, and shops. People were walking further along the seawall to get to the end of the pier, but I was not doing that and turned back to see what else was in the town.
There was a small welcome centre with a little gift shop and museum about Lake Winnipeg, which was worth checking out.
Icelandic settlers founded the community of Gimli, and the town maintains a strong connection to its Icelandic roots. There is a heritage museum about the Icelandic settlers that I wanted to see, so off I went to check out the museum.
I paid my admission fee, and the attendant takes me to a room to watch a short film about how the Icelandic settlers came to live off the land through agriculture and fishing in the late 19th century.
The museum itself detailed many aspects of the lives of the Icelandic settlers, including how they dressed themselves, their shelters, and the tools they used to farm and fish.
There was also a little dress-up area where you could try on some Viking helmets and hold some Viking shields and look at yourself in the mirror where you can look like a true Viking.
Outside of the museum, there is a 15-foot statue of a Viking to check out. I think this is one of the major attractions of the town, and I am sure there will be many people here to take pictures in the summer months.
After visiting Gimli, I drove down the local road to Winnipeg Beach to see what was going on over there. Winnipeg Beach was a tiny town with a few shops and restaurants, but there was a boardwalk stretching the length of the beach. I snapped some pictures and stuck around a little bit to grab some grub at Midnight Annie’s.
All in all, I was glad to check out some of the seaside towns on Lake Winnipeg just so I could say I have been there. I wish the weather could have been a bit better on a mid-May afternoon, but what can you do?
More pictures below:
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