Bridge Series: Courchaine Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

Stonagal: In the case of this one, "archived today" applies. And a good candidate for that, as it was in pretty rough shape. Thank you to everyone who found this one.

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Hidden : 3/26/2013
Difficulty:
1 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

This cache is unaffected by the closure of Courchaine Road.  Be aware of how busy this area can be during flood season and be sure not to interfere with such traffic. For the first finder, there is a PATHTAGS trackable.

Winnipeg has many important bridges.  The Louise Bridge brought the Canadian Pacific Railway to this city, rather than Selkirk, which made it a regional transportation hub.  The Main Street and Norwood Bridges connected Winnipeg with St. Boniface, and to this day connect Downtown Winnipeg with the southern parts of the city.  The Arlington and Slaw Rebchuk Bridges connect the North End with the rest of the city.  But the bridge that is arguably the most important for Winnipeg isn’t within the city limits.  The Courchaine Bridge, connecting Turnbull Drive on the west with St. Mary’s Road on the east, is the site of the inlet control structure for the Red River Floodway, which has repeatedly saved Winnipeg from serious or even catastrophic damage.

Constructed between 1962-1968, “Duff’s Ditch” protects Winnipeg from devastating floods by diverting a portion of the Red River’s flow east and north around the city during years with high water levels.  The floodway channel is 26 miles long.  It rejoins the Red River at Lockport, Manitoba, just downstream of the St. Andrews Lock and Dam.  The floodway was built partially in response to the devastating flood of 1950, which demonstrated Winnipeg’s vulnerability to extraordinary floods.  Following expansions in the 21st century, the floodway protects Winnipeg from serious damage in the event of a 1-in-700 year flood.

At the inlet control structure, a submerged dam can be raised or lowered to alter the water level.  When the dam is raised, the river’s flow backs up, causing some of it to spill into the floodway channel and forge a new course around the city.



Despite being built at considerable financial and political cost, the Red River Floodway has demonstrated its importance to the City of Winnipeg’s survival and prosperity, saving greater than an estimated $10 billion dollars in cumulative damages.

On June 16, 2000, the Floodway was recognized as a National Historic Site of Canada.  In 2009, 130 acres around the Courchaine Bridge was designated as the Duff Roblin Provincial Heritage Park, named for the Manitoba Premier who endorsed and spearheaded construction of the channel.

Congratulations to pugbaby for the FTF, just 11 minutes after the cache was published!

Congratulations also to Squid Force on your 100th find!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Zntargvp.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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