Ah, the outside world

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/05/2020 (1587 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s only mid-May, but on Sunday, it might as well have been the first day of summer in Winnipeg.

The temperature was 23 C, the sky was baby blue, the weekend was graciously long, and after weeks of mostly dreary weather, and months making the best of the indoors, Manitobans soaked up great outdoors — the joys of which felt greater than usual.

A grey-haired man wearing a green sunhat was sun-tanning shirtless in the middle of the field at Kildonan Park. At Shooters Family Golf Centre on north Main Street, the parking lot was full. At a 7-Eleven on Bannerman Avenue, an eight-year-old boy puckered his lips while experiencing brain freeze while sipping a Slurpee.

The May long weekend always comes with relief and relaxation — a chance to sit back and stow worries away. This year, it felt more essential than ever, even if it was cloaked with the unavoidable reality that life is not what it was a few months ago. Across the city, Winnipeggers were still trying to make the most of it.

At Birds Hill Provincial Park, dozens of cars lined up at the entrance were filled with families hoping to take advantage of the wide open space. “I’ve never camped before, never really been here before,” said Trevor King as he stood in line at the campground office. “If there was ever a time to change that, it was this weekend.”

A lot of people appeared to share King’s thinking. The province anticipated there would be huge turnouts when it announced earlier this month that provincial parks and campgrounds could open during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chief provincial health officer Dr. Brent Roussin repeatedly reminded Manitobans that public health orders apply in public parks. Park staff, normally on the lookout for rowdy campers or dangerous activity, were tasked with enforcing those orders, including that people stay two metres apart and groups be kept to fewer than 10 people.

The province couldn’t say Sunday whether any fines had been issued, but inside the park, families and friends were making their own fun while trying not to infringe on others.

I needed out of those four walls. Our house is nice, but I forgot for a minute that there’s a world outside of it.

At one campsite not far from the entrance, three couples played an intense game of spike ball, a game similar to volleyball only with a trampoline in the middle instead of a net. The guys — Zach Wood, Jonathan Bennett and Domenic Horvath — were beating the girls — Sara Scholefield, Jessica Popowich and Kelsey Wiebe — four points to two.

“Zach, you just choked!” Horvath shouted when Wood missed an easy spike.

The friends hadn’t seen each all together other for months. Wood and Bennett had gone for a bike ride, but this was the first extended get-together since March. “It was a spur-of-the-moment plan,” said Scholefield. But the fun needed to be organized: the group was taking extra precautions in terms of cleanliness and distance.

Across the way, Ginny and Madeline Knowles played catch with their parents. “It’s been really fun,” said Ginny, a nine-year-old with a shock of red hair. Since arriving Friday, the girls had gone mountain biking, played soccer and badminton, and did a lot of writing.

“You couldn’t ask for much better weather,” said Steve Pratte, their dad. Kaitlan Knowles, their mom, said people were keeping their distance. Ginny’s only complaint was that the couples across the road were up until the wee hours of the morning. “Our neighbours are a little noisy,” she giggled.

A few sites over, the only noise was ’90s hip-hop playing from a speaker owned by Melanie Crofford. She needed the weekend getaway with two of her children, she said.

“It’s very freeing,” she said.

Normally, Crofford would have been at her cabin near Kenora, Ont., but the mayor has told cottagers to stay away to reduce the potential strain on the local health-care system.

Over the last month, Crofford has spent the day at the park three times, and began her first camping excursion on Friday. It’s one of the cheapest vacations she’s ever had: for under $100, she said, she’s received much-needed relaxation and space.

At the next site, the engine of Jason Zarecki and Whitney Breault’s RV was purring, and their three dogs were panting in the cool shade of a picnic table.

Zarecki has been coming to Birds Hill for 20 years, usually around the May long weekend. He always looks forward to the first trip of the year, but this year, he and Breault desperately needed to get away.

“I needed out of those four walls,” said Breault, who’s been working from home. “Our house is nice, but I forgot for a minute that there’s a world outside of it.”

The couple is staying at the park until Friday, which still doesn’t feel like enough time away from the clamour of the city. “I think we’ll be coming back,” Zarecki said.

ben.waldman@freepress.mb.ca