Former Paddlewheel captain pens book commemorating 44 years on the Red River
From Pierre Elliott Trudeau to Colonel Sanders to thousands of Manitoba grads, Captain Steve Hawchuk welcomed people from all walks of life aboard during his 44-year career at the helm of the M.S. Paddlewheel Queen and other vessels.
It’s a career at sea that Hawchuk has turned into a new book, recounting the romance and glamour of the riverboats that once sailed the Red River.
“It was a Winnipeg tradition,” Hawchuk recalled. “People enjoyed it because it was something different in Winnipeg. You can go on the boat, sit beside the window, have a beautiful dinner, and watch the picturesque shoreline go by, and you always see something different.”
Hawchuk came to his career at the wheel after working as a bookkeeper.
When a number of boats came up for sale in 1969, his half-brother Joe thought they should get into the boat business together.
“I said, ‘well, I'm really tired of being a bookkeeper.’ So we bought the boats, and I dove in cold feet. July 26 1969, that's when we started to operate,” he recalled.
For 44 years, Captain Steve Hawchuk sailed the Red River at the helm of the M.S. Paddlewheel Queen and other ships. (Image Source: Steve Hawchuk)
From there, Hawchuk set sail into a decades-long career on the Red that included hosting royalty, Jets and Bombers, rock and roll cruises, fisticuffs and couples making lasting memories.
The highlights and memories have been turned into a new book, recounting plenty of tales from Hawchuk’s career on the river alongside a series of glossy photos taken aboard the Paddlewheel.
Hawchuk hopes the new book will bring back fond memories for the many passengers who had the pleasure of taking a ride on his riverboat.
“We've had close to three-million passengers over those years, and thousands and thousands of school kids, graduations, weddings, anniversaries, you name it, we've had it on the boat,” he said.
- With files from CTV's Rachel Lagacé
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 employees across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.