Prairie Mountain

Prairie Mountain is the western part of southern Manitoba. It includes the largely agricultural regions of Parkland and Western Manitoba.

Cities

Brandon — the region's largest city
Dauphin — it's named after the heir to the French throne, but a quarter of the population speaks Ukrainian
Boissevain — home to "Tommy the Turtle", a statue
Carberry — main gateway to Spruce Woods Provincial Park
Glenboro — home of "Sara the camel", a statue created in October 1978
Killarney — located on Killarney Lake
Minnedosa — Minnedosa Lake is a great spot for boating and swimming
Neepawa — the self-proclaimed lily capital of the world
Roblin — on Goose and Krosney Lakes, and between Duck Mountain Provincial Park and Riding Mountain National Park
Russell — jumping off point to Asessippi Provincial Park and Asessippi Ski Area & Resort
Ste. Rose du Lac — home of the authentic replica of the Notre Dame de Lourdes grotto
Souris — home of the Swinging Bridge, Canada's longest historic cable-stayed footbridge at
Swan River — known for its outdoor recreational opportunities such as camping, fishing, hunting, and snowmobiling
Virden — the oil capital of Manitoba

Other destinations

Riding Mountain National Park — three different ecosystems converge in the area: grasslands, upland boreal and eastern deciduous forests. The park is part of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
Duck Mountain Provincial Park — several lakes have boat launches, campgrounds, and rental cottages
Spruce Woods Provincial Park — The Carberry Sandhills is one of a few sand dunes in Canada. There are several hiking and biking trails in the park, including the Trans Canada Trail. The park is also Manitoba's first dark-sky preserve, a designation which encourages efforts to reduce light pollution and facilitate astronomy.
Turtle Mountain Provincial Park — known for its bike trails, fishing, back country cabins and canoe routes

Understand

Climate

Southwestern Manitoba is drier and more prone to droughts than other parts of southern Manitoba. This area is cold and windy in the winter and has frequent blizzards due to the openness of the Canadian Prairie landscape. Summers are generally warm to hot, with low to moderate humidity.

Southern parts of the province just north of Tornado Alley, experience tornadoes, with 16 confirmed touchdowns in 2016.

Get in

By plane

Brandon's municipal airport has limited commercial passenger service. WestJet Encore provides once daily service from Calgary.

Winnipeg International Airport is approximately 200 km to the east of Brandon and is well connected with flights across Canada. The Brandon Air Shuttle provides daily transportation to any location in Brandon.

By bus

Maple Bus Lines runs three times a week from Winnipeg through Dauphin to Swan River (as of Apr 2020).

By car

The Trans Canada Highway runs through the region westbound from Winnipeg and eastbound from Saskatchewan. It is a four-lane highway.

Highway 10 travels north from the North Dakota (USA) border through Brandon, Minnesota, and Dauphin to Swan River.

By train

Via Rail stops in Rivers, 30 km north of Brandon on Highway 10. The Via Station in Rivers is a limited stop service for trains on the Toronto-Vancouver line. There are two trains per week in each direction.

Get around

There's little in the way of public transportation inmthe region beyond what is listed in "Get in" above, so your best bet is to bring or rent a car.

See

See the plains bison at Minnedosa Bison Park.

Enjoy contemporary art by local and national artists at the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba in Brandon.

The Royal Manitoba Winter Fair is one of Western Canada’s largest agricultural events and the largest annual event. Held in Brandon annually at the end of March.

Do

Dauphin hosts Canada's National Ukrainian Festival every August: dancing, music, and endless perogies and cabbage rolls.

The Oak Island Golf Resort, near Virden, is an 18-hole course that is completely surrounded by beautiful prairie wetlands and one of the province's oldest stands of oak trees.

There are lots of outdoor activities available throughout the region — Swan River and Minnedosa are good places to start.