Parks 50th Celebration

2010 is the 50th anniversary of The Provincial Parks Act. The Act was first passed in 1960 and continues to preserve and protect our natural areas today.

The origins of Manitoba parks go back to the early 1900s when a number of forest reserves were established in Manitoba by the federal government. These were: Duck Mountain, Porcupine Mountain, Riding Mountain, Turtle Mountain and Spruce Woods. These protected areas would eventually form the core of today’s parks system.

 

In the very early days, outdoor recreational use was basically non-existent except for a few campground and cottage developments. In the 1930s, the Whiteshell forest reserve was recognized as having great potential for outdoor recreation and was established as a forest reserve. The province began construction of a highway to access the area and worked to identify the possibilities. This was the province’s first efforts in park development.
After World War II, park demand and development increased. The province opened more roads to the scenic forests providing access to the Winnipeg River and Seven Sisters Falls. Roads through Duck Mountain gave access to Wellman, Glad, Childs and Laurie Lakes. In Porcupine Mountain, road access was provided to Bell and Steep Rock Lakes.

The mid 1950s brought the Trans Canada Highway and a major park development at Falcon Lake. This included sewer and water installation, hydro, phone service, a shopping centre, service building and a golf course. 

  The province established a parks division in 1959. The division was responsible for all parks development, planning, maintenance and operations on provincial Crown lands. In 1960, The Provincial Parks Act was passed. The act provided for the formal establishment of a provincial parks system with regulations and restrictions on land use in these areas. At the time, this legislation covered Whiteshell, Grand Beach, Turtle Mountain, Duck Mountain, Clearwater and Grass River. Forty protected recreational areas were also declared under the act.

In 1964, the province established three new parks: Birds Hill, Spruce Woods and Asessippi. There were also substantial improvements and expansions of existing parks and recreation areas. The mid 1960s saw a growing public interest in winter activities. The province responded by enhancing the downhill ski area at Falcon Lake and later, establishing cross-country trail systems in all major provincial parks.

In 1972, a new Provincial Parks Lands Act updated the parks system with the following new park designations: provincial natural parks, provincial recreational parks, provincial wilderness parks, provincial recreation travelways, provincial heritage parks and special use parks.

With the 1976 addition of Beaudry and Hecla Natural Parks and Camp Morton Provincial Recreational Park, the province had 11 major provincial parks, 22 recreational parks and 91 wayside parks with a total land area of over 800,000 hectares (more than two million acres). 1979 saw the development and publication of a system plan covering all of Manitoba’s provincial parks and the designation of Manitoba’s first wilderness park, Atikaki in 1983.

In 1997, The Parks Act was replaced by the current Provincial Parks Act. This new act led to the establishment of protected areas. As part of changes in designation, Hecla and Grindstone parks were combined as the new Hecla/Grindstone Provincial Park.

Today there are 81 provincial parks and 13 park reserves in Manitoba totalling over 4.6 million hectares (81% of which is protected lands). Provincial parks offer tremendous recreational opportunities for Manitobans and visitors alike, with over 2000 km of hiking trails, 55 campgrounds, interpretive programs, swimming, fishing, boating, and wildlife viewing  opportunities just to name a few.