Gimme’ Gimli

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/07/2024 (464 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The beach! A mural-lined pier! Ice cream!

Ahh, the seaside. At least seaside vibes.

And sneaky elves.

Margie and I grew up among lakes with vistas of pine-packed islands and craggy rockface. We were slow to embrace Lake Winnipeg’s seemingly more vacant views until recognizing Gimli’s stunning tangerine sunrises that morph into horizon-wide shifting skies. And whether it’s crashing emerald waves or glassy serenity, this destination exudes grandeur. With gulls. I counted 51 non-paying guests atop Lakeview Resort. Seagulls sat quietly, spaced perfectly. What a law-abiding town.

Gimli harbor — the biggest between Canada’s Great Lakes and Vancouver — moors boats with names like Nauti One, Hydro Therapy, Knot Here, and The Tragically Ship. But boaters mostly name vessels for women. How about other fitting names like Sandy, Wade, or Bob?

Fish from Gimli’s pier. Rent SUP’s, kayaks, or book a cruise. We rented a two-seater Sea-Doo. A sign warned, “Sucking up rock: $55 minimum.” I asked, “Why penalize my pending indigestion?” Staff explained, “Sea-Doos suck up rocks if you hit shore, but today: no waves.”

But yikes — waves! I Sea-Dooed carefully. Margie shouted, “If I drove, you’d have no hair!” For some reason, I suddenly blasted full-speed, pulled a tight 360 and figure-eight. My mouth ballooned open. Thankfully it wasn’t Gimli’s week of fishflies. I zoomed into open space — no helmet, windshield or, gosh, brakes. Those seagulls should have known better.

Or fly the Gimli Glider Museum’s flight simulator. Don’t confuse litres with gallons so, at the Manitoba-Ontario border, your Montreal to Edmonton airliner is on empty.

At Gimli’s airstrip, Skydive Manitoba outfitted daughter Cotelle with a parachute. She jumped from a plane above as we watched. Imagine the pounding heart, the shaking limbs — maybe for Cotelle too.

My preferred height is Interlake Brewing’s rooftop for wild rice ale. And because Gimli is home to world-renowned Crown Royal whiskey, Lakeview’s pub stocks most varieties. Plus, Lakeview’s Seagulls Restaurant is one of Manitoba’s few lakeside eateries. Hey — a Lakeview Hotel with lake views.

Gimli is Manitoba’s pickerel capital. Try Seagulls’ pickerel cheeks. Regrettably, I never fileted for cheeks, but I’m a fisher not a facial surgeon. Or savour pickerel tacos while hugged by dark wood in The Ship & Plough, what I call The Sip & Chow.

Discover the brews of Flatlander Coffee Roasters. And to acclimatize Winnipeggers, Gimli dishes out Fat Boys. A clerk confided: “Beach Boy has the best Fat Boy but, gee, my boyfriend prefers Country Boy.”

Among ever-present Iceland flags, Brennivins Pizza Hus serves Iceland’s anise-tasting drink called, yes, brennivin. Enjoy vinarterta from Sugar Me Cookie — on track to make 2,000 this year. Stroll First Street with ice cream from Buskers or Country Boy, or with Kris’ vinarterta-topped sundaes — formerly called Eyjafjallajokull Volcanos. Say that three times. Or once. So, this year they became simply Icelandic Volcanos.

We stay at the Autumnwood Motel, or at Lakeview where Margie asked, “Why are you drinking the shower gel?” I explained, “Because it was maybe mouthwash — in a bottle, green, at the sink.”

In addition to Gimli’s beach, Lakeview’s outdoor pool is one of my Happy Places. Expressing carefree happiness, behold joyful shrieks — and not just mine. Children exclaim, “I’m becoming a mermaid!” and “I’m drinking all the water!”

Thai Plaza steadfastly hauls 46 clothing displays onto First Street. The seaside theme lurks with Diamond Beach and The Hula Hut. A hair salon is named, get this: Beachcomber. H.P. Tergesen & Sons is Manitoba’s oldest store – still family-owned. It should be H.P. Tergesen & Sons & Grandson & Great Grandsons.

Gimli folks are undyingly proud they’re Viking descendants; correction: Viking warriors on standby. Deals for Dollars stocks fun Viking swords and shields, helmets for Viking children and Viking dogs, plus t-shirts proclaiming “Life’s tough. Wear a helmet.” Gimli’s Heritage Museum displays a handsome variety. The fun Aquatic Centre posts “Did you know that Vikings love to swim?” A resident added: “Don’t forget to wear your Viking helmet!”

Attend August’s Icelandic festival, Islendingadagurinn, to learn useful Viking warfare tactics, watch children march and yell in a shoulder-to-shoulder “shield wall” or, straddling a greased pole, whack opponents into Lake Winnipeg with a wet sack. The fun kicks off Friday, with this year’s event running Aug. 2 through to Aug. 5

Find elf houses. The Elf Garden sign promises, “Elves will sometimes show themselves.” Weekdays, seek elves, named Snorri and Snaebjorn, in the municipal building’s attic. Margie and I climbed the spiral staircase listening for giggling or footsteps. Because we disobeyed the sign “Adults allowed to visit only if accompanied by children,” they hid.

At two little beds, we saw big shoes. These “huldufolk” have seriously oversized feet – or they pilfer footwear. There’s a potty. Near small chairs around a tea set, a trunk contains children’s notes, like “Heyy, I wont to meat you guys!” Snorri and Snaebjorn hand-wrote a note too thanking a girl for leaving some pictures while they were out.

Find Gimli’s ginormous Viking, the library’s Viking bench, the fighter jet on a pole, the airport’s right-handed Smokey the Bear, and Gimli Park Road’s big metal fishfly. And find that “Gimli” in Icelandic rightfully means “heavenly abode.”

Gimme Gimli!

gordmackintosh9@gmail.com