Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/368665
divine arcHitecture After a 1968 fire gutted the St. Boniface Cathedral (www.cathedralestboniface.mb.ca), architect Étienne Gaboury incorporated the ruins and the cathedral's majestic limestone facade into the new structure. Overlooking the Red River near the Esplanade Riel pedestrian walkway to The Forks, the cathedral contains tombs of Roman Catholic bishops, and Métis leader Louis Riel is among the notable Manitobans interred in its cemetery. The oldest stone church in Western Canada, St. Andrews on the Red (www.standrewsonthered.ca) cemetery is a lovely spot for a stroll during a scenic drive on River Road. Inside, the 1831 church ceiling is built in the shape of an inverted york boat. Missionary Rev. William Cockran took charge of construction here and at Portage la Prairie's St. Mary's La Prairie Anglican Church, built in 1853. Both churches still hold regular services today. 35 lower ForT garry naTional hisToriC siTe bonjour voyageurs Hudson's Bay Company arch-rival The North West Company built a trading fort right under its competitor's nose on the banks of the Red River in St. Boniface in 1809 — and rebuilt it in 1817 after it was destroyed by Hudson's Bay sympathizers. These days, the recreated fort Gibraltar (www.fortgibraltar.com) is brimming with bonhomie as party central during Festival du Voyageur each february. Across Main Street from The Forks, the Upper Fort Garry Heritage Park (www.upperfortgarry.com) contains a stone gate and a portion of a wall built by the Hudson's Bay Company in the 1830s, following its merger with the North West Company. And just north of Winnipeg, the restored Lower Fort Garry (www.pc.gc.ca) preserves the historic flavour of an 1830s commercial hub for settlers, trappers and first Nations traders. The fort has served as a penitentiary, a Northwest Mounted Police training centre and an asylum. explore the buildings in summer and stroll the grounds year-round sT. boniFaCe CaThedral tracks oF time All aboard for a vintage travel experience on Canada's oldest regularly operating steam train. Prairie Dog Central (www.pdcrailway.com) departs from Inkster Junction in northwest Winnipeg for points north on weekends until late October. face down villains during interactive Great Train Robbery runs, take in fall suppers in Grosse Isle in September and pop into Igor's Haunted Workshop when you catch the Howlin' Halloween Express in October.