A short distance away we happened onto "The Forks National Historic Site", which included a repurposed Canadian Northern Railway terminal, "Union Station". This building, where once railway passenger cars were run into long platforms and horses were stabled, has been converted into shops and restaurants.
As you can see, when we arrived at the park, the sun was shining, and the weather was warm.
Somewhere along the line, while we were enjoying fish and chips at Fergie's, the sky clouded up, and a full-blown thunder and lightning storm appeared. About an hour of heavy rain kept us indoors, but we managed to find a place to have a cup of coffee and wait it out.
By the time we had returned to the motorhome (a 45 minute trip), the sun was back out so that Sasha and I could go on a nice walk about the rv park, which is along the Assiniboine River. We stopped to get a pic of these lovely, fluffy, plants.
Today, Saturday the 5 th, we returned to The Forks to see what we had missed yesterday due to the rain. So named because of the confluence of the Red and the Assiniboine Rivers. The city is named for the nearby Lake Winnipeg, whose name comes from the Western Cree words for muddy water. And it is. These two rivers, the Assiniboine flowing west, and the Red flowing north, provided easy access to traders from the entire area. For thousands of years, the First Nations used this area as a trading spot, and, of course, later Europeans found the area to be very hospitable as well.
The first trade posts west of Lake Superior were built between 1731 and 1743 to secure the trade of the resident Cree, Ojibwa and Assiniboine peoples. The privately financed enterprise eventually failed, but effectively cut off the inland fur trade of the Hudson's Bay Company.
The old fort site is now a nice park, with the centerpiece at the actual fort site and a surrounding sculpture symbolizing the contributions of the various groups that have passed through this gathering place.
This park and the adjacent Forks Market is the number one visitor attraction in the Winnipeg area.
The Canada Games are being held now in Winnipeg. These athletic events for young people showcase talents in baseball, track and field, and pretty much any sport one can imagine. Rugby and soccer, football and cricket all have a part. The games go on for about 11 days, where each day is devoted to honoring a province. Today was British Columbia day. Each day, after the days sporting events, a great free concert is held, with live music from groups from the days honored province. We dropped by and chatted with a security person early in the evening before all the fun starts. This evening the place will be packed!
Near the east end of the park is the Esplanade Riel Bridge. This a pedestrian bridge over the Assiniboine River and has a full service restaurant in the center so that every table has a great view of the river!
The cables form an ever-changing geometrical landscape as the walk across the bridge is completed.
Tomorrow marks our last day in Winnipeg, so, as usual, it will be somewhat of a clean-house day. Donna tells me that we need to visit a grocery store sometime tomorrow, and she has several loads of laundry to do. Our next trip leg will take us back into the US, and will be a long, full day of driving. I probably won't post tomorrow or the next day, but will get back asap.
The KOA that we've been enduring has steadily deteriorated over the last 3 days, and we will be soooo happy to leave!
Back soon!
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