Road Trip Winnipeg to West Hawk – Meteor Crater & Whiteshell

Winnipeg Lac West Hawk
150
km
1h48
drive
Summer
season

The Itinerary

East of Winnipeg, on the TransCanada (Highway 1) leading to the Ontario border, two twin lakes in Whiteshell Provincial Park offer a fascinating contrast: Falcon Lake, the family resort, and West Hawk Lake, Manitoba's deepest (115 m) — a 150-million-year-old meteor impact crater.

Falcon Lake Resort, the quintessential Highway 1 station, offers 18-hole golf (Falcon Beach Ranch), resort, marina, beach, bike trails and Aspen Day Spa. The Mantario Trail (8 km of the park's mainline) summit offers the best Whiteshell view.

West Hawk Lake, 10 minutes further north, is a perfectly circular 3.5 km diameter crater — one of very few drive-in meteor craters in Canada. Popular scuba diving (15-20 m visibility), sunken plane wreck and intentionally placed equipment for divers. The West Hawk Museum explains the impact geology. 20 minutes away, the Bannock Point petroforms (Anishinaabe stone circle, sacred site).

Points of Interest

  • ✦
    West Hawk Crater
    3.5 km meteor crater, 115 m deep.
  • ✦
    Falcon Lake Resort
    Golf, marina, beach, Highway 1 resort.
  • ✦
    West Hawk Scuba
    15-20 m visibility, plane wreck dive.
  • ✦
    Bannock Point Petroforms
    Sacred Anishinaabe stone circle.

Fishing Spots Along the Route

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Alberts Lake
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Alice Lake
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Andrew Lake
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Argue Lake
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Assiniboine River
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Astbury Lake
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Baldry Creek
Stream
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Barbour Lake
Lake

Protected areas along the route

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Upper Fort Garry Heritage Provincial Park
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Memorial Provincial Park
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Hyland Provincial Park
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Trappist Monastery Provincial Park
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St. Norbert Provincial Park
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Duff Roblin Provincial Park
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Whiteshell
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Birds Hill
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River Road Provincial Park
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Birds Hill Provincial Park
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Beaudry Provincial Park
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St. Andrews Lock and Dam Special Conservation Area
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Take this route offline

Cell coverage thins out fast once you leave Winnipeg. Export the map as a geo-referenced PDF before you go and open it in BorealMaps — your GPS position shows on the map with no signal at all.

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Practical info
  • Departure Winnipeg
  • Destination Lac West Hawk
  • Distance 150 km
  • Duration 1h48
  • Category Medium (100–250 km)
  • Best season Summer
Themes
lake crater scuba geology sacred whiteshell Family photo

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