Happy Easter

Just a short and warm welcome for anyone reading this around Easter time. The RIver Gate Inn would like to wish everyone a happy and enjoyable Easter.

Spring is here - or is it?

This year has been a topsy-turvey spring as far as weather goes. We had a fantastic week of temperatures 6 or 7 degrees above normal with all the snow melting, the river breaking up and everything proceeding nicely. Then we dropped 7 or 8 degrees BELOW the normal temperatures and back into freezing - even a little snow. That was a few days ago and it seems like we are back on track to welcome in Spring. Now, I know that the spring river levels are a yearly topic but honestly, it has to be around here. There is a yearly concern for flooding and the ice dams around Selkirk this year show how quickly and easily the Red or Assiniboine rivers can flood. The weird temperatures may have provided a saving grace - not including those in Selkirk - as the river seems to be going down now. The odd combination of an early thaw and then back into freezing has given the river time to start flowing but now be overwhelmed with ALL the melting snow as there is still some left. There is an interesting sight though if you go down to the river you will see a full tree long since dead though, floating and wedged up against the ice that has built up as the river turns. It just seems oddly appropriate for this spring.

Garden Path Bed and Breakfast

On our way home from our weekend escape we managed to pop in and see a fantastic B & B in Neepawa, Manitoba. Garden Path Bed & Breakfast is owned and operated by George and Susan Phillips. This is a great Bed & Breakfast with lots of antiques and we were lucky enough to have been surprised with a lunch. Unexpected and fantastic! Quiche, avacodo and pecan salad and fresh baked biscuits! What a treat and a perfect way to set us off to Winnipeg - after a tour of the house of course. The feeling in the whole house is one of warmth and welcome so we can only imagine what it's like staying as guests. At this time of the year you can only imagine the garden in full bloom. Privately covered with trellises, a pond, flowers and an incredible variety of Lillies can only be fantastic in the summer! If you are ever in Neepawa and need a place to stay - consider giving them a call.

Law's Way and the Castle

While staying at Fairmount B & B, our host Susan suggested we ask to see the other B & B's in Minnedosa - Law's Way and The Castle. The Castle is a Queen Ann castle that has been converted into a Bed and Breakfast. Make sure to ask about the tunnel if you are going to view it! Our visit was brief as we caught Darryl and Pat just before dinner and didn't want to impose too much. They graciously showed us around and explained some of the renovation work they had undertaken.
Law's way was quite a treat as we managed to spend some time talking with Maxine and Doug Law, the owners and hosts. The house - which many of the locals know as Doctor Stevenson's (sp?) home, is filled with fantastic woodwork throughout and Doug has spent lots of time making improvements and restoring the Arts and Crafts style home. The finished plans sound spectacular and will only add to the grandeur of the home. There are a number of unique and special features of the home and Doug and Maxine have a great sense of style. Doug is a retired RCMP officer and is an extremely knowledgeable person about restoration and home construction.
Thanks for the time and the great tours.

Weekend Escape - Fairmount B & B!

Well, just to show that we are not hypocrites - Michelle and I had a fantastic weekend getaway staying at the Fairmount Bed and Breakfast in Minnedosa with our houst Susan Proven. We had a fantastic time in Susan's 1914 farm house located just north of Minnedosa. The atmosphere was relaxed and quiet, we had fantastic food prepared by Susan (she even treated us to some of her farm raised lamb for dinner one evening - excellent by the way!). We hope to make it back during the summer for an evening when Susan told us she would prepare some lake trout - raised and caught in her wetland area. We had fresh baked sun dried tomatoe bread along with fresh hot pumpkin muffins, grapefruit, frittata, locally grown rose hip tea and locally grown peppermint tea, fantastic red raspberry jam and gooseberry jam, a wonderful breakfast imported from Newfoundland among other things - all grown and prepared by Susan on her farm. IT WAS EXCELLENT! Michelle and I can imagine the atmosphere during the summer time when the lake has geese and birds in abundance, the sheep are grazing, and the sun is shining. We might head off to Riding Mountain National park after an incredible breakfast, play a round of golf, grab some lunch and head back to relax around the bonfire at night.
The rooms are cozy and Susan has incredible stories about the history of the area, the farm (four generations of Provens have owned the home), and local knowledge. Susan also recommended we check out some of the other B & B's in the area - which we did and that's another story. On our way out we decided we couldn't live without some of the homemade preserves Susan has for sale. Saskatoon berry jam and syrup, both of the jams we had for breakfast, pickles, Green Tomatoe Chow Chow (you need to try it to find out - awesome), and other jams, jellies and surprises. One thing you might want to ask about if you decide to stay there are the wool duvets handcrafted by Susan with the wool from her sheep! What a treat!

Updated Website

Our website has been something of an ongoing project since we took over the River Gate Inn. We are happy to say that there have been some great additions that people are finding helpful. The facts link adds information about Winnipeg, Manitoba and a bit about Canada as well. It was educational for me putting it together and its nice to hear that other people have been enjoying it as well. The latest addition to our website is the link to the story about Winnie-the-Pooh. Many people are aware that Winnie was named after Winnipeg and no one tells the story better than Peter Dennis' version on Pooh-Corner.com! They have graciously allowed us to use a copy of the story to help further preserve the story of Winnie-the-Pooh!

Cheers,
Keith Sanheim

Great day for a skate...

Finally, the cold weather seems to have passed - at least for now - and today is a great day to be in Winnipeg. The temperature is low (-7 I think), the sky is overcast but that helps keep the temperature warmer so it's ok, there is a light snow falling and the river is cleared of snow on the skating path and a new cover of water has just frozen...it's skating time! Some people jog and that's fine for the summer, but the winter is for skating and since the longest skating path in Canada is just behind the River Gate Inn it just seems like the right thing to do.

Das Femme

Here's a further update to the 9 ladies who stayed with us this past weekend for a girlfriends getaway. They are the singing group Das Femme from Brandon, Manitoba and they are excellent. I had the pleasure of hearing them warm up for their event today at one of the local Winnipeg churches. I first thought it was the radio and then once I realized it was our guests I was blown away! It was simply fantastic and I highly recommend that if the opportunity should present itself to hear them sing live, take advantage of it and go! A special treat and one of the reasons we find owning and operating a Bed and Breakfast to be so rewarding. We can't wait for them to come back!

Das Femme

Here's a further update to the 9 ladies who stayed with us this past weekend for a girlfriends getaway. They are the singing group Das Femme from Brandon, Manitoba and they are excellent. I had the pleasure of hearing them warm up for their event today at one of the local Winnipeg churches. I first thought it was the radio and then once I realized it was our guests I was blown away! It was simply fantastic and I highly recommend that if the opportunity should present itself to hear them sing live, take advantage of it and go! A special treat and one of the reasons we find owning and operating a Bed and Breakfast to be so rewarding. We can't wait for them to come back!

Girlfriends Weekend?

This weekend the RGI B and B welcomed a group of nine ladies from Brandon who needed a welcomed getaway. From what I saw, they certainly enjoyed themselves spending time in the games room - a little celebrating went on I think! Since they are all involved with singing, music was part of the evening events. We were happy to have them choose our Inn and hope they come back.

Great Grey Owl

Recently, this past week we saw a Great Grey Owl sitting on one of the trees. This is the provincial bird of Manitoba and apparently quite rare. This is not the first sighting of the Great Grey Owl on our property and we really didn't know how lucky we were until it was pointed out that they are not normally seen in this area by friends of ours. I asked if the beavers, racoons, squirrels, rabbits, piliated woodpeckers and such were also out of place. Apparently, not as rare as the owl. Slowly our guests are educating us on some of the fantatstic things about our home and our location. It never fails to amaze us how much we learn from our guests' knowledge and how willing they are to share it with us.

Skating on the Assiniboine River

The Assiniboine River now is the home to the longest stretch of skating in Canada and we are excited. It extends from the historic Forks all the way to just before the Maryland bridge - around 4.5 kms long! It is well maintained, cleared and flooded with a skate changing station just behind the River Gate Inn at the Hugo Street Docks. In addition to the skating path, there is a walking path that is frequented by joggers, bikers and people walking their dogs! It is a fantastic use of the river during the winter and has been a real hit with some of our guests.

Festival Du Voyageur

The largest winter carnival in western Canada is well underway. Despite colder than normal temperatures, the Festival Du Voyageur is still as popular as ever. Ice sculptures, traditional French Canadian foods, music and culture as well as nightly festivities are in full swing. Various activities at Fort Gibraltar and the Forks provide plenty for visitors to do. My personal favorites are the ice sculptures. Every year they are different and there is no end to the creativity these artists have.

Festival is on the way

Well, January is almost finished and we are having great weather! Snow is melting, the temperatures are mild and we have mostly avoided any terrible snowstorms or harsh weather. Now, the big hope is that it will stay that way for the Festival Du Voyageur! The ice sculptures are starting to be created, the signs are up and there is a buzz that is starting to float around. The mild weather should get people out but lets hope the atmosphere doesn't suffer too much.

Skating on the river has suffered. The path from the River Gate Inn to the Forks has just now been cleared and iced but the fresh snow is melting. Is the ice safe to skate on? I guess time will tell...

DOORS OPEN - Wide Open!!

The River Gate Inn was a test site this year for Doors Open as it was the only site included outside of the downtown Winnipeg. Everyone was unsure of what the response would be but it was a resounding confirmation of Winnipegger's hunger to view the history and heritage of their own city. Over 1300 people viewed the Inn on May 15th - the most of any building in the city! It was met with fantastic reviews and excitement by everyone...What a great success story for Doors Open - a free event put on to showcase the history and heritage of Winnipeg's architecture. Congratulations to all involved and especially those who put on the event!

Provincial Champions

Friday April 15th and Saturday April 16th were momentous in the senior men's volleyball world as Nemesis captured it's second straight Senior Men's Provincial Volleyball Championship. Team members included Phil Hudson, Peter Sdrolias, John Blacher, Ken Vince, James Toews, Brian Enns, Jules Martens and Keith Sanheim. Congratulations to all the teams and to the Krauts for winning the league this year. Til next year...cheers!

Manitoba Volleyball Provincials

hey - yesterday was the start of the Senior Men's volleyball provincial playoffs. We had two matches - won both although I had to miss the first match...(issues with a lady about our phones not functioning properly. Our phones are constantly ringing at River Gate Inn and all of our business is reserved on the phone so it was pretty hairy for a while.)
The nice thing about our second match is we beat the previously unbeaten Krauts team - I work with Mike who is on the team. They were a skeleton team and we had a couple of close matches with them during the season so things were in our favour this time. Today the adventure continues and since we are averaging close to 40 it may be an endurance test as much as anything. Time to go get serious...

River Gate Inn avoids flooding

after some fast rising spring runoff the rivers here in Winnipeg rose 1-2 meters in a matter of hours. The water was at the edge of the river bank and all the ice chunks had me thinking it wasn't going to be stopping any time soon. After the ice blocking the river was cleared away the river slowly started receding and so far...everything is good.