Summer in Southern Manitoba

July 24, 2013

Images of summer

It’s been said there are two seasons in southern Manitoba – winter and road construction. It’s true that weather extremes are hard on our roads. Spring brings potholes. The summer season brings repairs and resurfacing. And yes, the winters are long. But, oh, the summers! The reward for making it through another bitter winter.

Summer brings sunshine, hot weather, and long hours of daylight, extending to almost 10 o’clock on the longest day of the year, slowly shortening for the rest of the summer. People head outdoors.

Outdoors to baseball diamonds, golf courses, and horseshoe tournaments. To barbecues (aka cookouts for those in the Southern U.S.) and to restaurant patios. Drive through any neighbourhood on a summer evening and you’ll see people walking, running, and cycling.

Outdoor parties abound in a Manitoba summer: wedding, anniversaries, reunions, and more

And they head out to the lake. The many lakes and parks make camping and days, weeks, or entire summers at the cottage a tradition.

West Hawk Lake in Manitoba’s Whiteshell Provincial Park

Fishing on Bird River

Summer brings colour: green grass and trees, blue flax blooms, yellow canola, and rainbows in flower gardens.

Field of canola in southern Manitoba

Assiniboine Park Gardens in Winnipeg, Manitoba

Field of sunflowers in southwestern Manitoba

Beer can chicken on the grill, a popular summer meal

You can taste summer in the freshness of the produce: vegetables from your own garden or one of the ever-popular farmers’ markets, strawberries from a u-pick farm, wild blueberries from the bush.

One of the many summer festivals in southern Manitoba

Festivals abound within the city of Winnipeg and towns across the province, often several occurring at the same time. And there are outdoor music and theatre events.

Soca Reggae Festival in Old Market Square, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Storm clouds roll in over Falcon Lake in Manitoba’s Whiteshell Provincial Park
Days of hot weather can lead to spectacular thunderstorms

Summer in southern Manitoba isn’t perfect. Mosquitoes sometime put a damper on outdoor activities. The debate over whether cities and municipalities should or shouldn’t fog with insecticides continues. Other pests, such as ticks, horseflies, and fish flies, have their seasons within the summer season. Manitobans have learned to cope with the small nuisances. The summers are still pretty wonderful.