Welcoming fall at the FortWhyte Alive Goose Flight Feast

The air is crisp, the flip-flops are tucked away, and the days are getting shorter. Summer in Canada is slipping behind the leafy groundcover and fall is getting underway. The change of seasons can be a wistful time, but one way to ease into autumn’s embrace is to immerse yourself in the splendor of nature during this time of year. If you live in Winnipeg or are visiting, partaking in a FortWhyte Alive Goose Flight Feast is one of the best ways to welcome fall with open arms.

Fabulous FortWhyte Alive

People visit FortWhyte Alive to connect with nature and community. How they choose to do that ranges from taking a hike through the forest, paddling a canoe or going on a bison safari to volunteering at the centre’s social enterprise farming operation or taking the kids dipnetting for critters in the lake. In any given month, there are dozens of unique programs, events, and workshops that introduce visitors to the natural environment and how to protect it. It’s a remarkably beautiful 640 acres of gorgeous green space. One of FortWhyte’s best features is that it is within city limits, making it easily accessible for a few hours of escape.

About Those Canada Geese

Even though their name suggests they hang out within Canadian borders, you can find Canada Geese throughout North America, and they have also been introduced to parts of Europe and Australia. Because they have adapted so well to urban life, Canada Geese have proliferated in cities to the point where some people regard them as pests.

But, come on, you’ve got to admire these honking endurance athletes, who have the capacity to fly with their flock more than 2,500 kilometres in a single day! That v-formation they fall into to avoid air drag and stay coordinated is also pretty cool.  And, they mate for life and have strong family bonds, returning to the same nesting spot year after year. See, they’re not so bad.

Goose Flight Feast at FortWhyte Alive

During fall migration south, Canada Geese numbering in the hundreds of thousands, make a pit stop in Manitoba to rest and refuel. One of the best spots to witness the dizzying mass staging of thousands of geese from the end of September to mid-October is at FortWhyte Alive.

Photo Credit: FortWhyte Alive

To make the spectacle even more enjoyable, FortWhyte Alive’s Buffalo Stone Café hosts a three-course prix fixe meal in its dining room, which overlooks Lake Devonian. Here, diners can see thousands of geese swirl in for a landing around sunset. You can slip out onto the deck between courses to get a closer look and to experience the sounds of flapping wings and that characteristic honking. It’s magical!

The feasts feature a rotating seasonal menu that highlights locally sourced ingredients including items from FortWhyte Farms, which is a social enterprise that provides training and employment to Winnipeg youth.  You can choose from three evening reservation times—5:30, 6:15, and 7:00.

The Goose Flight Feast menu offers several mains. My pick was the pork tenderloin with pancetta and herb marsala sauce.

I decided to book a weekend date with friends for a 7 p.m. sitting, figuring that would position us well to see the geese come in at sunset about an hour later.

Unfortunately, on the night of our feast, we had heavily overcast rainy skies. Despite my initial disappointment, we were still blown away upon stepping onto the restaurant’s deck to see what was happening on the lake.

This was the first time we had come to the Goose Flight Feast, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. I wasn’t sure what “thousands of geese” would look like. Wow!

The start of the mass landing on the lake as the sun began to set on a rainy evening.

No doubt, the experience would have been better and more visible under clear skies. Thanks to FortWhyte Alive’s photo archive, you can get a sense of the breathtaking phenomenon at sunset. Still, it’s hard to convey the exhilaration that comes from seeing and hearing the whole scene. We’ve got a return visit on our agenda.

Aside from the goose show, the meal was outstanding and the servers were attentive and engaging.

If You Go

If you’re planning to take part in a Goose Flight Feast, I’d recommend taking one of the earlier reservations. While it’s lovely to see the geese through the large windows as you’re dining, I think you’d still get some of the show at an earlier sitting. You would then have the opportunity to hang out on the deck after dinner to continue enjoying the experience through the sunset.

I also recommend arriving an hour or so before your reservation so that you can take time to explore the beautiful natural surroundings at FortWhyte Alive and to work up an appetite before tucking in.

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Disclosure: FortWhyte Alive has been a client of Message Communications, my public relations practice. This post is not related to that work. I chose to attend and paid in full for the Goose Flight Feast. Opinions are my own.

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