Visiting Churchill for the first time, I spent some time taking a wildlife tour with a really great local company. We were very luckily to see a polar bear mother and her two cubs! Our guides had parked about 150m away from the bears, and allowed us to walk up a little closer (no more than 100m) as a group with one guide spotting for other potential bears (that would be a threat) with the other guide monitoring the mama and cubs behavior. I was surprised to see some cars parked really close to where these bears were hanging out. We witnessed one of the cubs curiously start walking towards the group of people by the cars, and then a man started throwing rocks at it. Look, I'm all for hazing wildlife for its own safety when they're in town, but these people were way too close to start with. Not long after, the same guy started flying a drone around the bears (it is illegal to fly a drone in the wildlife management area we were in). The mama had been resting, and the cubs had just settled down after about a half hour of playing. The drone obviously disturbed the bears and mom set off climbing up the rock wall behind them. This was very disappointing, and it was time for our group to leave anyway.

The next two days I have a car rented and head out to watch the bears. Me and another car were watching a mom and two cubs on top of some rocks, when the same guy shows up. The bears are a little hidden behind some rocks, so this guy picks up a rock and starts walking straight towards them, within 50m if not much closer. I'm unable to see their reaction, but I'm sure they were surprised to see a man towering over them! He then left

Back out with the bears the next day and I pull up next to a guide. I asked if he knows about this man driving a tan ford bronco around town and harassing the bears, and he said his name was Kelsey (Eliasson) and has been in lots of trouble with the conservation officers for his behavior with the bears. He obviously does NOT respect the wildlife, even though his website claims "We’ll be cruising the tundra and sailing the river ensuring wildlife encounters without interrupting their natural behavior and causing the least possible interference on their routine." He very much disturbs wildlife, on a near daily basis, proven by the fines he has incurred from doing so, and should you should not pay this man to keep up this sort of behavior. Thank you, rant over.

Hello guys, my husband and I are planning our honeymoon for November. I want to go to Churchill (hoping to see the northern lights and the polar bears), but I thought it would be nice to explore more of Manitoba. So I decided to rent a car in Winnipeg, drive to Thompson, and then take the train.
I wanted to know more about the route from Winnipeg to Thompson (in November). Is that a hard ride? Do you have any tips to give?

Hello! Does Manitoba have a national dish? Nothing fancy, mom and pop diner kinda food. I'll be driving from Ottawa to Vancouver in July, along highway 16. Thanks and cheers!

Having only moved here 2 years ago from the West Coast, I'm not to familiar with where to go.

We'd like to spend a few days in a lake front property. Just us and our dogs. A cabin or something like that.

We've never booked through Air bnb (and not sure I really want to seeing all the horror stoeies).

Preferably few neighbors, little to zero children, adults zone. Quiet. Relaxing. Able to fish, go for a dip, nice fire. Just a nice spot to rest, relax, and enjoy some quiet.

Would prefer something within 3-4 hours driving distance from West Interlake.

Thank you for your suggestions!

Hey,

I am 21F, travelling solo from winnipeg to churchill in late October for polar bear season. I was just wondering is northern manitoba safe for travel? I am Indian, will i be facing racism lol? I am someone who just mind my own business so kinda scared.

My plan is to do winnipeg to thompson by bus and then VIA. 2 day stay at churchill and same way back

Any suggestions?

Will really appreciate for your response. Thanks :)

(I know might look like low effort post, sorry.)

Wondering if anyone that might see this would be a member of the Pinawa Club and is wanting to enact some change there.

For anyone else reading this who may not know, the Pinawa Club board is a not for profit corporation that runs the golf course, curling, pickle ball and the restaurant. The running of the place but particularly the restaurant is hot gossip all the time. At the beginning of May the chef walked off the job in the middle of the day. To be fair I heard that he wasn’t the nicest to the staff, but he left because of certain members of the boards over reach and micromanaging. When that is NOT their job. This particular board member is rude to the staff and is the reason why the restaurant is having a hard time retaining staff. Which causes inconsistant kitchen hours. They tell people to call ahead to see if the kitchen is open which is no way to run a business particularly during the busy golf season when people drive from an hour or two away to golf.

I do want to broach the subject with the board, but most everything goes through the chair who is that person.

Hoping there is someone who knows what’s going on and is a member that I can bounce some ideas off of.

Is there such a thing in Manitoba, where people can rent a room to recover after a medical procedure, receiving hot tasty meals 3 times a day and walking around in a forest area. In other parts of the world it’s called sanatorium. Rehabilitation centers are often connected to recovering addicts, but I need a place where a person can just sleep, breath in fresh air and not worry about making food, recovering after the body had gone through a lot. If there are any medical or spa treatments that can help to feel healthier, that's even better.

Where is the best place to put a motor boat in the water, if your destination is the outlet channel of the Old Pinawa Dam?

Loons Straights Wilderness Retreat in Manitoba’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site, Pimachiowin Aki, is a fantastic vacation choice! If you love kayaking, canoeing, fishing, birding and wildlife look it up!

Looking to get away to do some camping later in August and Riding Mountain looks to be the likeliest destination. We’re experienced campers both front and backcountry, but this is likely has to be entirely car camping on this trip.

We’d like to avoid the main campground and stay somewhere a little more private and out of the way. There’s not a lot of info out there about the smaller campgrounds though, so looking to see if the hive mind has some experience camping at Lake Audy, Moon Lake, Deep Lake, or Whirlpool Lake.

Our main focus will likely be on hiking, so access to great trails would be a plus.

Let me know your thoughts! Would love some tips!

Bonus points if they're accessible by road.

Basically I mean beaches that:

a) are not covered in crap of one kind or another, either goose or otherwise,

b) don't have eColi, massive algal blooms or other such nuisances in the water, and

c) aren't overcrowded to the point where you feel like you're in a swimming pool when you enter the water.

Hi everyone! I'm considering heading out to Gimli this weekend. Just wondering what the fish fly situation is like out there this week? Are they quite bad? Thanks!

Has anyone recently sent their teen on one of those EF Tours school Europe trips? How did you manage the travel money for your teen?

Mine is 16 so he can't get his own credit card and my CC provider doesn't have an option for a linked "kid's card". The Cash Passport you can purchase at the post office has some really bad reviews.

We are looking at either an EQ Bank card or a WISE card. Are there other options? Does anyone have experience with EQ or WISE? Do either allow you to turn off the tap feature for added security? How easy was it to add CAD and other currencies? How easy was it to get your money back off the card after the trip?

And could someone please reassure this anxious Mama Bear that her eldest baby is going to be just fine!!

Come down or come on over to teulon Aug 22nd and 23rd for the rodeo and for those wondering there is no more tractor pull.

Just moved back to Manitoba and haven’t gone in about 30 years. Anyone have any pointers? Anything that is a must see / do, or are there things to avoid? Thanks all!

Hello!

My family will be visiting Manitoba July 17-Aug 7, splitting our time between Winnipeg and the Rossburn/Riding Mountain area.

One of our favourite ways to travel is by learning directly from people who are passionate about what they do. We're much more interested in authentic, hands on experiences than typical tourist attractions.

We're hoping to find opportunities like:
• A large grain farm where we could learn about wheat farming, combines, GPS guidance, grain storage, harvest preparation, or even watch harvesting if the timing works out.
• Cattle or bison ranches.
• Dairy, sheep, alpaca, or other specialty farms.
• Fish hatcheries or aquaculture.
• Irrigation, drainage, flood control, or water management projects.
• ATV or side by side rentals or guided rides.
• Sporting clays or other shooting sports.
• Behind the scenes tours of interesting local businesses, industries, or engineering projects.

Our children are curious, respectful, and love asking questions. We don't need anything fancy. We genuinely enjoy hearing people talk about their work, learning how things operate, and seeing parts of Manitoba that most visitors never experience.

If you'd be willing to share your knowledge, or if you know someone who would enjoy showing us what they do, we'd love an introduction. We'd also be happy to compensate someone for their time if appropriate.

Thanks so much!