Recently, I have been working on a project that has taken me to areas of Manitoba I have never visited before. It is so easy for people with busy schedules and long “to do” lists to stop exploring the wonders that are nearby, but not on our usual travel routes. I am thinking about the beauties of our province and close neighbouring provinces and states, but this can also happen right in our city and neighborhood. We find our most efficient routes and get to know certain stores and restaurants, and then we build our daily and weekly routines around those same stops. This is not an entirely bad thing, and certainly having a routine can make for a more efficient life. It can also be therapeutic to build some change into our routines. Sometimes we can be amazed at the adventures that lie very close to home if we take the time to experience them.
My recent trips have inspired me to challenge myself to find ways to explore and enjoy more of this wonderful area we call our home province and areas within our region. So far I have been amazed by the variety in the geography and the natural beauty of a place that is often assumed to be one huge endless grassy prairie. There is a shocking variety of distinct experiences to build into a summer of exploration: lakes, forests, farmland, hillsides, parklands, and rural communities. These locations are sprinkled throughout Manitoba and beyond just waiting to become our personal discoveries this summer.
For the glorious month of August, I want to challenge myself to build exploration of the city, region, and the province of Manitoba into my life. There are a number of approaches that seem to work well for people who have tried this kind of thing before. I have friends who make a family challenge each summer in the “Best of Manitoba” categories. They have broadened their family summer experience by making a summer exploration based on the desire to find the best location for different activities. They have told me that they have found the following categories of exploration helpful:
- Best Summer Festival
- Most Beautiful Beach
- Best Pizza
- Best Hot Dog
- Best Hiking Trail
- Best Biking Trail
- Best Bird Watching Location
- Best Cinnamon Roll
- Best Pie
- Best Perogi
- Best Farmer’s Market
- Best High Tea
- Best Regional Museum
- Best Campground
- Best Summer Agricultural Fair
- Best Park for a Perfect Picnic
- Best Craft or Art Boutique
I am not in a position to make judgement on any of these categories yet, but I expect that I will be considerably more educated on at least two or three of these categories by Thanksgiving. I plan to start my research by visiting the Travel Manitoba web-site at https://www.travelmanitoba.com/ and if your explorations take you into western Ontario try https://www.visitkenora.ca/ .These sites have much inspiration and many great ideas for regional exploration in every category you can imagine.
I know that I usually need to make a very specific and strong start to these types of personal life improvement strategies, so my plan is to start with two exploratory ventures in the coming week. I will visit Portage la Prairie on Monday and Gimli on Friday, and I will get myself started on my summer of near home adventures.
Trudy Schroeder provides project planning and management services to the community through Arts and Heritage Solutions.
