A 40 million dollar casino is to be built on First Nations land near the Spirit Sands by Carberry. The land is owned by Swan Lake First Nation.

Construction is set to begin in the Fall and expected to be completed within a year. Each of Manitoba’s bands will share 60 000$ annually from the casino.

It’s expected to create 200-300 jobs and will be the future location of a hotel, gas bar and gift shop. It’ll house 300 slot machines, 5 gaming tables and three restaurants initially.

Funding for the casino still has to be acquired but shouldn’t be a problem with most of the bands in the province in accord with the idea.

The casino will be located 16km South of Highway 1 on Highway 5, between Glenboro and Carberry.

The casino was originally proposed to be in Brandon but the citizens voted against it twice. It was then proposed to be slightly North of Brandon but that deal also fell through.

Thousands of years ago, most of Manitoba was covered by a great lake. Lake Agassiz was a glacial lake around 12000 years ago that formed by melting and retreating glaciers in Canada. The lake grew to be so huge that if it were to exist today, it’d be bigger then the Caspian Sea.

The lake flooded and retreated multiple times. So much so, that some scientists suspect that the drainage of the lake could account for early human flood stories as the amount of water that would have reached the sea would have actually increased the sea level.

The lake finally drained around 8000 years ago leaving some remnants such as Lake Winnipeg, Lake Manitoba and Lake of the Woods. It also left over is sandy shores, which became known as the Spirit Sands.

This Manitoba’s only “desert”. Not really a desert due to the amount of precipitation it receives. The provincial park that surrounds the area allows you to hike through the sands, in your barefeet if you want too, and observe this unique place. The trails will lead you to the Devil’s Punchbowl where underground running water have caused the surface to collapse and create this unique depression.

On the trail you can also expect to see Manitoba’s only cactus and our only lizard the blue tailed skink. There have also been some unconfirmed sightings of cougar in the area.

Total Time to Hike: 2-5 Hours