DO NOT PARK ALONG THE BUSY THOROUGHFARES NEARBY! Best parking is available in the large lot across Henderson. Respect is paid to another geocacher, Mukmak, who formerly highlighted these bridges with two caches (GC1EM98 and GC1EMBN).
The Kildonan Settlers Bridge was constructed in 1990 as the northernmost bridge to span the Red River within the City of Winnipeg’s perimeter. It carries the Chief Peguis Trail between Main Street, on the west side, and Henderson Highway, to the east.
The Kildonan settlers were a group of Scottish immigrants who came to the Red River Colony between 1812-1813. Displaced from their homes in Kildonan, Sutherlandshire, they were promised land in the colony by Thomas Douglas, the 5th Earl of Selkirk, who facilitated their migration two centuries ago in order to establish a European presence in this part of what would become Canada. The Kildonan settlers settled along the banks of the Red River north of The Forks, lending the name of their homeland to communities in the area that continue to pay homage to their legacy. The bridge itself connects the neighbourhoods (and former cities) of West and North Kildonan. Along both sides of the length of the bridge are signs bearing the family names of the original Kildonan settlers.
The Chief Peguis Trail, which extends from Main Street (PTH 9) on the west to Lagimodiere Boulevard (PTH 59) on the east, is named for the Saulteaux chief of the same name. Peguis was the most powerful indigenous chief in the area when the Kildonan settlers arrived. He befriended the settlers, and in 1817 signed a treaty that transferred land in the area to the British colonial authorities. Peguis First Nation, the largest in the province, also bears his name.
To the south of the Kildonan Settlers Bridge is something of an odd sight. A defunct steel train bridge, known as the Bergen Cut-off Bridge, sits disjointed over the Red River. The sight is particularly eye-catching because the bridge, a swing bridge, is the only one of its kind in Manitoba. Swing bridges are able to rotate around their central support, allowing boat and vehicle traffic to travel alternately (think a drawbridge, but with rotation instead of lift).
The Bergen Cut-off Bridge was built in 1913 for the Canadian Pacific Railway, along a former rail line that extended west from the Transcona Yards parallel to Springfield Road and over the Red River. The earthen build-up used to support the line remains to this day west of Henderson Highway and, on the opposite side of the river, through Kildonan Park and beyond Main Street. The swing bridge was last used in 1928, decommissioned in 1946, and set in a permanently open position during the 1950s. Plans have been proposed to turn the site into a restaurant, but nothing has yet been done on this front.
FTF: okeeffek