Winnipeg, Manitoba

Winnipeg ({{coor dm |49|53|N|97|09|W|type:city(620000)_scale:300000_region:CA-MB}}, CST) is a Canadian city and the provincial capital of the province of Manitoba. Located in Western Canada, Winnipeg plays a prominent role in transportation, finance, manufacturing, agriculture and education. It is known as the Gateway to the West.

Geography and Climate

Winnipeg lies at the bottom of the valley of the Red River and has an extremely flat topography. There are no substantial hills in the city or in its vicinity. Downtown Winnipeg is centred at the intersection of Portage Avenue and Main Street about one kilometre (0.6 mile) from The Forks of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers. From this intersection, known as the windiest in Canada, all roads radiate outwards. The city uses the grid system for streets although there are several different grids in place which correspond to old Red River Lots and the meandering courses of the rivers. This creates some very irregular intersections. As a result many visitors find it difficult to get around in Winnipeg. There is no absolute numbering system in place but usually street addresses become higher the farther one moves away from either river. For example west of the Red River street addresses will increase as one heads west, but east of the river they will increase as one heads east. In general avenues run east and west and streets north and south. Unlike many cities in North America, all streets are named, not numbered. Of interest, many of the main thoroughfares in Winnipeg are extremely wide due to the spring soil conditions and the historical use of the Red River Cart which created wide ruts in the (then) muddy roads. Portage Avenue has four lanes of traffic in each direction plus a central boulevard for much of its run through Winnipeg.

Related Topics:
Red River - Topography - Red River Cart

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Downtown Winnipeg is the financial heart of the city, and covers an area of about one square mile (2.5 square km) which is quite large for a city this size. Although downtown Winnipeg once housed what was for a time one of the world's most successful department stores, the Eaton's store on Portage Avenue, it is no longer the retail or commercial centre of the city. Surrounding the downtown area are various residential neighbourhoods. Urban development spreads in all directions from downtown but is greatest to the south and west, and has tended to follow (and has been determined by) the course of the two major rivers. The urbanized area in Winnipeg is about 25km (15mi) from east to west and 20km (12mi) from north to south, although there is still much land available for development within the City Limits. Areas include Downtown/Exchange District, The Forks, Fort Rouge/Crescentwood, River Heights, Tuxedo, Charleswood, St. James/Assiniboia, The West End, Weston, Wolseley, The North End, Elmwood, East, West, and North Kildonan, St Boniface, St Vital, Fort Garry, St Norbert, and Transcona. Winnipeg is known for its urban forest particularly its beautiful Elm trees. The two major parks in the city, Assiniboine Park and Kildonan Park, are both located in the suburbs. The major commercial areas are Polo Park (West End and St.James) Kildonan Crossing (Transcona), South St.Vital, and Garden City (West Kildonan). The main cultural and nightlife areas are the Exchange District, The Forks, Osborne Village and Corydon Avenue (both in Fort Rouge), Sargent and Ellice Avenues (West End) and Old St.Boniface.

Related Topics:
Downtown Winnipeg - Eaton's - Elm

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Because of its extremely flat topography and substantial snowfall, Winnipeg is subject to severe flooding. The Red River reached its greatest flood height in 1826, and this event still remains the highest flood stage of the last two hundred years. Another large flood occurred in 1950, which caused millions of dollars in damages and thousands of evacuations. This flood prompted Duff Roblin's government to build the Red River Floodway, a 49 kilometre (30 mile) long diversion channel that protects the city of Winnipeg from flooding. Other related water diversion projects farther away from Winnipeg include the Portage Diversion (also known as the Assiniboine River Floodway) and the Shellmouth Dam. The flood-control system prevented flooding in 1974 and 1979 when water levels neared record levels. However, in 1997, flooding threatened the city's relatively unprotected southwest corner. Flood control dikes were reinforced and raised using sandbags and the threat was averted. Winnipeg suffered very limited damage compared to cities without flood control structures, such as Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Related Topics:
1826 - 1950 - Duff Roblin - Red River Floodway - Portage Diversion - Assiniboine River Floodway - Shellmouth Dam - 1974 - 1979 - 1997 - Dikes - Sandbag - Grand Forks, North Dakota

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The generally flat terrain and the poor drainage of the Red River Valley's clay-based soil result in generally poor drainage in the city, which leads in wet years to a seasonal explosion of insects, especially mosquitos. Winnipeg has gained a reputation as the mosquito capital of North America, resulting in the limitation of much outdoor activity during the hot and humid summer months. The fear of West Nile Virus has further exacerbated the problem. In the summer of 2005, mosquito trap counts in some parts of the city went into the thousands, causing immediate city-wide fogging with the chemical malathion. The use of chemicals to combat Winnipeg's insect problem is an extremely controversial issue in the city as many feel that the use of chemicals, and particularly malathion, is unnecessarily dangerous to human and animal health.

Related Topics:
Red River Valley - Mosquito - West Nile Virus - 2005 - Malathion

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Winnipeg lies in an unprotected arctic trough which channels cold arctic air south, directly across the Canadian Shield and Canadian Prairie. This results in bone-chilling temperatures as early as the end of October and bitter cold and winds during December, January and February, and cold weather and snow often extending into April. The extremity of its climate in the winter months has caused the (somewhat derisive) nickname of "Winterpeg". Summers are typically warm with average temperatures above 25°C (77°F) and much sunshine is received throughout the year. Spring and fall tend to be rather contracted seasons, each averaging little over six weeks. Average maximum temperatures for each month are as follows (source Environment Canada): January -13°C (9°F), February -9°C (16°F), March -1°C (30°F), April 10°C (50°F), May 19°C (67°F), June 23°C (74°F), July 26°C (79°F), August 25°C (77°F), September 19°C (67°F), October 11°C (52°F), November 0°C (32°F), December -10°C (14°F). The city receives an annual average of about 510mm (20 inches) of precipitation including 115cm (45 inches) of snow. There is generally snow cover from mid-November to the end of March, though this varies depending on the year - heavy snowfalls in October and late April or even May are not uncommon. Winnipeg is virtually assured of having a White Christmas as there is only one December 25th on record in the last century where there was no snow on the ground.

Related Topics:
Canadian Shield - Canadian Prairie - October - December - January - February - April - White Christmas - December 25

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