'A tradition that's kind of been lost': Winnipeggers look to bring back Red River ice harvesting
A group of Winnipeggers has been spending time harvesting ice on the Red River – a tradition that has largely been lost with time, but one this group is trying to bring back.
Peter Hargraves, an architect with Sputnik Architecture, is among the team harvesting ice, which will be used in a new art exhibit coming to Downtown Winnipeg.
Hargraves says the harvesting process begins with the harvester cutting a long trough in the ice using a chain saw. The ice is then unloaded from the water using a skid steer, and cut into large blocks.
A group with Sputnik Architecture in Winnipeg harvests ice from the Red River on January 20,2022. (Source: Zachary Kitchen/ CTV News Winnipeg)
"It's harder on very cold days," Hargraves told CTV News while harvesting the ice on Jan. 20.
"When it's cold like this all the equipment freezes up – the chainsaws freeze, we freeze. But we don't have the wind chill today, so it's actually quite nice. (It's) quite a nice day to be out here."
A group with Sputnik Architecture in Winnipeg harvests ice from the Red River on January 20,2022. (Source: Zachary Kitchen/ CTV News Winnipeg)
Hargraves said the team has been harvesting ice blocks from the river for the past few years. His first big harvest was back in 2017 when the team built a five-metre cube of ice for London-based artist Anish Kapoor
"We do it one time a year, and it's a lot of fun when we're doing it," Hargraves said. "It's a good adventure."
A group with Sputnik Architecture in Winnipeg harvests ice from the Red River on January 20,2022. (Source: Zachary Kitchen/ CTV News Winnipeg)
While Hargraves and his team have only been harvesting ice from the river for the past few years, ice harvesting has a long history in Winnipeg – one that Hargraves said has largely been forgotten over the decades.
"There are probably lots of old-timers that know how to do it, but it's a tradition that's kind of been lost," he said. "And we're trying to bring it back."
Ice harvesters stand near a track carrying ice blocks on the Red River in the early 1900s in Winnipeg. (Source: Martin Berman Postcard Collection/ Winnipeg Past Forward)
Photographs from the early 1900s in Winnipeg give a glimpse at what the ice harvesting industry entailed.
Instead of chain saws, ice-cutting blades or a cutting sledge pulled by horses were used to cut troughs in the ice. The ice blocks were then loaded on a sleigh to be delivered to homes and storage facilities in the area.
Horses pull ice cutting blades used for ice harvesting on the Red River in the early 1900s in Winnipeg. (Source: The Rob McInnes Postcard Collection/ Winnipeg Past Forward)
"It sounds ridiculous, you'll never be old enough to understand this, but we didn't always have refrigerators," 71-year-old Norm Norris told a CTV News reporter. "We used to have an iceman who came to various houses."
He said the block of ice harvested from the river would be stacked in an icebox.
"That would be your refrigerator for the week until he came with another block of ice, and that's how we used to do it back in the day."
Norris has first-hand experience – he started as a labourer at the Point DuBois Power Plant with the City of Winnipeg Hydro in the 1970s. Part of his job was to cut the ice away from the plant's gates on the river.
"To do that you would work with big ice saws," he said. "Then you cut out your pattern, and you started removing it with big ice tongs and stacking, and usually stack it on a sleigh and haul it away."
A man stands on a sleigh loaded with blocks of ice harvested on the Red River in the early 1900s in Winnipeg. (Source: The Rob McInnes Postcard Collection/ Winnipeg Past Forward)
The ice Hargraves and his team is harvesting won't be destined for an icebox; instead, the blocks are in the process of being turned into art.
Hargraves said the blocks are being used in the creation of 11 ice sculptures on display throughout Downtown Winnipeg.
Ice harvested from the Red River in January is brought to Downtown Winnipeg on January 28, 2022, for an ice sculpture exhibit. (Source: Ken Gabel/ CTV News Winnipeg)
"You know, it might be a little bit sad to think that the sculptures are gone when the sun comes out in summer. But at the same time, you can have an experience with it and a memory and that's kind of how art works," Hargraves said.
"You don't get to take home Picasso's paintings and have them at your side all the time. You go and see them enjoy them. And then once you're home, you enjoy the memory of it."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW Inside Canada's chaotic response to avian flu
A CFIA official is calling it the 'largest animal health emergency that this country has ever had to face.' A joint IJF/CTV News investigation looks into Canada's response to the bird flu pandemic, and how it's ravaged the country's farms.
What Donald Trump's election victory could mean for Canada
Following president-elect Donald Trump's decisive election victory, there are sure to be significant knock-on effects for Canada. Here's a look at the different areas in which a second Trump presidency may affect Canadians.
Cuba left reeling after Category 3 hurricane ravages island and knocks out power grid
Cuba was left reeling Thursday after a fierce Category 3 hurricane ripped across the island and knocked out the country's power grid.
Influencer is banned from future NYC marathons for bringing a camera crew to last weekend's race
A social media influencer from Texas was disqualified from last weekend's New York City Marathon and banned from future competitions after he ran the race with a camera crew on e-bikes in tow.
Sleepy during the day? You may be at higher risk for a pre-dementia syndrome, study finds
If you find yourself sleepy during your daily activities in your older age, you may need to consider it more than an inconvenience — since the fatigue may indicate you’re at higher risk for developing a condition that can lead to dementia, a new study has found.
Kamala Harris concedes: Here's what she said in her speech
Democratic Vice-President Kamala Harris conceded the U.S. election to Republican Donald Trump Wednesday afternoon, telling her supporters that her 'heart is full.'
Canada's health-care spending expected to outpace economy in 2024: CIHI
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
Newfoundland hockey player suspended, banned from local arena after off-ice fight with fan
A combination of a thrown stick and thrown punches have given a senior hockey player in Newfoundland a three-game suspension and an indefinite ban from one of his league's six arenas.
The world's 10 richest people got a record US$64 billion richer from Trump's re-election
Wednesday wasn't just a good day for Donald Trump. The wealth of the world’s 10 richest people also soared by a record amount, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index.