Hut one, hut two, hut three...

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Under the Covers

The warming huts for the river trail have been selected, but for now their locations will remain in the cooler.

Officials with The Forks on Wednesday unveiled the five new warming huts, after considering more than 130 local and international entries, that will sit alongside the popular outdoor walking and skating trail.

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Cocoon

Three of the winning designs -- the aptly named WOODPILE, the towering Ha(y)ven, and the sleek Under the Covers -- were selected from the international competition, and represent Tel Aviv, New York and Philadelphia, respectively.

Another hut, entitled Jellyfish, comes from the minds of John and Patricia Patkau. The former Winnipeggers (now based out of Vancouver) were the only architects invited to participate in the venture.

The final hut, the tent-inspired Cocoon, comes from a group of students from the University of Manitoba architecture program.

The structure hopes to serve a programming venue, as well, with plans to show films and feature storytellers inside.

"That's the beauty of this project -- you get a number of strange and beautiful designs from all over the world, all with a different story to tell," offered Peter Hargraves, who oversaw the selection process. "Just adding to the experience is that the trail might take a different form, as well."

The five new huts will be joined by the five huts from last winter, but high water levels and a high current in the Red and Assiniboine rivers have increased the probability of frazil ice forming on the waterways, injecting some uncertainty into their locations along the river trail. The possibility of frazil ice -- which is formed by turbulent water resisting the freezing process -- is forcing officials to look at alternate routes.

The Forks COO Paul Jordan said four different path options are being considered, adding there is a real possibility skaters will find themselves gliding on both the frozen water and on ice-covered land come the New Year.

"Generally, we make the decision in about a month, anyway, so it's not that unusual to not know exactly what we're going to do with the trail," Jordan said, throwing cold water on any suggestion an outdoor trail is in peril this winter.

"This isn't particularly stressful for us. We know it will be different."

Jordan is quick to point out the benefits of trying something new with the path every year, believing skaters and walkers embraced the trail when it first extended from downtown to Assiniboine Park two years ago and then from The Forks out to Churchill High School last winter.

"We like the fact that we can use a new route to reach out to places we haven't been before and see how it gets used," he said.

The Forks has a $200,000 operating budget for the river trail and Jordan said no final decision on the alternative route has been made. He said he hopes things will freeze considerably before the snow flies and is looking at the middle of next month to drill into the ice and see what direction they can take the trail.

Construction of the new warming huts is scheduled to begin in January.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca

Hot, hot huts

The river-trail route may be up in the air but officials at The Forks have landed on the five new warming huts they'll go with once the snow flies and the water freezes. A glimpse of the winning entries:

Name: WOODPILE

Architects: Noa Biran, Roy Talmon

Origin: Tel Aviv

A standard box design that features a metal outside frame and a firepit in the middle of the structure. The walls consist of stacked logs that can be used for the fire. As the weather warms, the walls disappear, signalling the end of winter.

Name: Ha(y)ven

Architects: Tri Nguyen, Jayne Chu, Ben Olschner, Jakob Seyboth

Origin: New York

Constructed with hay bales, the cylinder is designed to reach up 18 metres in the air and should provide a noticeable landmark for river-trail enthusiasts.

Name: Under the Covers

Architects: Robert B. Trempe Jr.

Origin: Philadelphia

Built with wood and lined with Astroturf, this hut is designed to look like a pinch of fabric on the flat snowy surface alongside the trail.

Name: Jellyfish

Architects: John and Patricia Patkau

Origin: Vancouver

The best way to detail this design: Wait and see.

Name: Cocoon

Architects: University of Manitoba architecture students

Origin: Winnipeg

A simple, lightweight frame covered by a flexible membrane. Once completed, river water will be sprayed onto the structure, creating a hard coating of ice that will illuminate the shell.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 18, 2010 A7