The Forks

The Red and Assiniboine rivers meet here, and archaeology shows people gathering at the junction for about six thousand years; it was a trading place long before the fur trade, then a Hudson's Bay post, then rail yards. Redevelopment from the 1980s turned the yards into a public site with a market in converted stables, riverside walks and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, opened in 2014 in an Antoine Predock building of stone, glass and a tower called the Israel Asper Tower of Hope. In winter the frozen rivers become a skating trail several kilometres long, with warming huts commissioned from architects each year.

History

Archaeological digs from 1989 to 1994 showed Indigenous groups gathering here for some 6,000 years, Nakoda, Cree, Anishinaabe and Dakota among them, at a rest stop on seasonal routes between the northern forests and the plains. Europeans arrived by canoe in 1738, when La Vérendrye built Fort Rouge, the Hudson's Bay and North West companies stored and shipped furs here until they merged in 1821, rail yards took over from 1886 and two of their stables became the Forks Market, and after the Forks Renewal Corporation was formed on 24 July 1987 the old CN East Yards were redeveloped as the site of today (Wikipedia, The Forks, Winnipeg).

What to look for

• The market - food and craft stalls in converted rail stables.
• The human rights museum - a Predock building with a glass tower and ramps.
• The river trail - a skating route on the frozen rivers in winter.
• The warming huts - architect-designed shelters commissioned annually.

When to go

Year-round: summer for the market and riverwalk, winter for the skating trail, which usually runs January to early March depending on ice. The museum is open all year.

Practical notes

The skating trail depends entirely on ice conditions and some winters it barely opens. Winnipeg winters are severe, with wind chill regularly below minus thirty. The museum needs three hours or more.

Nearby

The Exchange District lies north; Saint-Boniface is across the river.

Key facts