Walking tours featuring local art and history are back
Red River North Tourism (RRNT) is once again hosting tours of downtown Selkirk. Whether you love local art, history or both, you’ll want to check out these walking tours which take place during the Selkirk Port Market and on the weekends this summer.
“We’re calling it the Selkirk Walking Mural and History Tours,” said Belle Lourenco, tourism coordinator for Red River North Tourism.
The tours will take place on the hour during the Selkirk Port Market. There will be a chalk sign at the market that lets residents know what tours will be coming next and it will switch between the mural tour and the history tour so that residents will be able to plan to see either tour or both.
The Selkirk Port Market runs every Wednesday from now until the end of August from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Selkirk Waterfront.
“[For the mural tour] we’re going down Manitoba Avenue, and we’re just hitting the main murals that you see just walking down onto the avenue and explaining the artists, the creative side, and the inspiration behind the mural,” said Lourenco.
Stops include: Candace Memories Show And Shine, Community Round Dance, The Healing Path, Gypsy Trader, The Prairie Crocuses Mural, Showcasing A Colourful Past, the Endangered Species mural, and Don’t Judge Me Until You’ve Walked A Mile In My Shoes.
The short walking tours, depending on how quickly attendees move through the circuit, should take around 15 minutes or so.
“For the history tour we have two versions,” said Lourenco.
The tour guide in collaboration with attendees will be able to pick which version of the tour those guests would like to take part in. One tour will be about the history of Manitoba Ave. and Eveline St. with an emphasis on architecture and the other tour will still involve the local area but will focus more on the history of the people who have lived here.
Stops may include: The Merchant Hotel, Trader’s/Dominion Bank, The New MMF Building, Knox Church, Queens Park/Ferries, The Selkirk Bridge, and the Ticket Office.
There will also be longer history tours that RRNT will allow visitors to sign up for in advance. These will take place on Saturday mornings. These longer tours will take about 45 minutes. Tours that take place on Selkirk Port Market Days do not require sign-up.
All tours are free to attend.
It’s good for our community to have tours like this for many reasons including – having people come to our area for the attraction which means that they are likely to support our local businesses. Additionally, it’s a good way of passing along history and information about our arts and culture for residents and newcomers alike in a fun, interactive, and active way.
“It’s just connecting with our roots because there’s a lot of people who’ve lived here their whole life and they don’t know about the murals or the history,” said Lourenco.
