Welcome to Living Prairie Museum
Living Prairie Museum is a unique urban nature preserve that protects endangered tall grass prairie. The site has walking trails and an interpretive centre. Events and education programs are held year-round.
About Tall Grass Prairie
Prior to European settlement, tall grass prairie covered more than 1 million square kilometers in central North America, stretching from Texas to southern Manitoba. Today, this habitat is all but gone - only 1 percent of the original tall grass prairie remains. The Living Prairie Museum is one of the few remaining fragments of this once vast ecosystem.
The Living Prairie Museum has 13 hectares of tall-grass prairie. Set aside in 1968, the preserve is home to more than 150 different grass and wildflower species and an array of prairie wildlife.
Upcoming Events
Saturday Drop-in Activities at Living Prairie
Come visit the prairie and then warm up inside with some FREE drop-in activities. These are great for any age, all are welcome!
Winter schedule
Interpretive Centre OPEN Saturdays 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. starting January 10!
January 31 – Snowshoe Saturday – Free snowshoe rentals available between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Learn to snowshoe on the prairie and then warm up with hot chocolate!
February 7 – Animals in Winter – Explore tracks, hibernation, migration and how animals survive in the frozen months! Complete a scavenger hunt for winter signs of animals indoors or outdoors.
February 14 – Ski Saturday at Living Prairie Museum 10 a.m. -12 p.m. - WinterPeg Mobile Ski Library will be on site with free ski rentals and info. See details below.
February 21 - Snowshoe Saturday – Free snowshoe rentals available between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Learn to snowshoe on the prairie and then warm up with hot chocolate!
February 28 – Nature Journals – Customize your own mini nature journal, and use the prompts to draw, write, and observe the natural world!
March 7 – Animals in Winter – Explore tracks, hibernation, migration and how animals survive in the frozen months! Complete a scavenger hunt for winter signs of animals indoors or outdoors.
March 14 - Indigenous History Walk and Talk with Brian Rice - Join Brian Rice for a walk, a talk (or both!). Brian is an Indigenous land-based educator and professor at the University of Manitoba. He will share stories and information about the Indigenous heritage of the area while leading a walk to visit and experience the land.
10:30 a.m. Meet at Grant's Old Mill. Walk and learn with Brian up Sturgeon Creek to Indigenous history sites nearby, before ending at Living Prairie Museum around 12 p.m. (Please note that the walk will not happen if it is below -15°C. If that occurs, we will post on social media the morning of the talk).
12:00 p.m. Talk at Living Prairie Museum – learn more about what has been in the area around Living Prairie Museum and what has changed. We will also discuss how we can incorporate history, health, nature, and culture as we move around the city and interact with the land.
March 21 – Wild Dogs of Manitoba - Learn more about foxes, coyotes, and wolves by exploring artifacts and info. Understand how we can safely share our city with wild dogs and create a take-home button of your favourite canine.
March 28 – Nature Journals - Customize your own mini nature journal, and use the prompts to draw, write, and observe the natural world!
Ski Saturday at Living Prairie Museum – February 14
Saturday February 14, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
WinterPeg Mobile Ski Library will be bringing winter equipment to the trails at Living Prairie for Ski Clinics on February 14!
The Mobile Ski Library brings winter equipment and fun to unexpected places. There will be lots of cross-country skis, snowshoes and kicksleds to borrow. Wheelblades for wheelchairs and a couple of sit-skis are also available (for these accessible equipment, we recommend reaching out to Winnipeg Trails to ensure availability).
Fun for the whole family - all ages and abilities are welcome to attend! This event is free for all!
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to info@winnipegtrails.ca or call Living Prairie Museum at 204-832-0167.
Free Winter Workshops
Pre-registration for our winter workshops is REQUIRED.
Contact prairie@winnipeg.ca or 204-832-0167 to register.
*Please note that ASL interpretation will be available for workshops. If you require ASL interpretation, please let us know at least 5 days prior to the workshop.
February 7 – 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. - Introduction to Animal Tracking – Join Michael Manyeagles to learn about how to track our animal relatives in the wintertime. We will go for a walk and talk about the signs and stories that animals leave for us to discover. All ages welcome. Registration required.
February 28 – 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. with option to stay longer - Introduction to Nature Journaling – Join Jenny Kidder as she shares how she found nature journaling and how the practice has impacted her. Spend some time together practicing putting your nature observations on paper with prompts and ideas from Jenny. You are invited to bring a sketchbook and pencil/pencil crayons. Loose paper and pencils will be available as well. All ages welcome. Registration required.
Friends of the Living Prairie Museum Winter Speaker Series
We are excited to announce this year's Speaker Series, in partnership with the Friends of the Living Prairie Museum.
Registration will open to the public on January 29. Please visit the Friends of the Living Prairie Museum website to register for any of the talks. Tickets are pay-what-you-can.
*Please note that ASL interpretation will be available for talks. If you require ASL interpretation, please indicate this at least 5 days before a talk when you register.
Thursday February 19 – 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Wildflowers and Diversity - Prairie Restoration in the Manitoba Mixed Grass Prairie – John and Michael Skinner
Learn more about wildflower seed production and prairie restoration in the mixed grass prairies of western Manitoba. Skinner Native Seeds has been busy, both collecting and increasing wildflower seed for prairie restoration and restoring prairie, using a highly diverse blend of local wildflowers and native grasses. This talk will highlight several projects and methods used to restore prairies in our province.
Thursday February 26 – 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
The Unknown Interlake – Cary Hamel
Between Manitoba's inland oceans lies a landscape of hidden wonders - natural areas, rare species and diverse ecosystems. Join us as we explore the ecology and conservation of the Interlake's extraordinary alvars, prairies, forests and wetlands, and discover what makes these places so amazing and why they matter.
Thursday March 5 – 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Wolves of Manitoba – Daniel Dupont
Join Daniel Dupont for a talk all about wolves! This evening will explore wolf ecology in our province. Daniel will discuss how wolves interact and select prey, as well as results of some recent Manitoba-based research.
Thursday March 12 – 7:00 pm – 8:30pm
The Cosmos- A Complex and Orderly Universe – James Fast
Join members from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada Winnipeg Centre for a presentation about the amazing universe that we live in. Discover the moon and planets, star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies like never before. Learn about solar and lunar eclipses, lightyears and parsecs, constellations and occultations, and Manitoba's own Dark Sky Preserve. A showcase of different telescopes and binoculars that amateur astronomers use to observe and image the sky will be on display. If weather permits, we will host some outdoor observing.
Visiting Living Prairie Museum
Self-Guided Trails
Our self-guided trails are open everyday. The trail system is an opportunity to see and learn about some of the most endangered habitat in the world.
Trails are woodchipped and are of various widths.
Please stay on the designated paths during your visit. This is an on-leash park – please clean up after your pets.
The Self-guided Trail Booklet is also available at the Museum.
Interpretive Centre Hours
May and June – Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
July and August – Tuesday-Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
September – Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
October to April – Saturdays, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Access to the Interpretive Centre at other times can be arranged by Appointment. Contact us at 204-832-0167 or prairie@winnipeg.ca
Our Centre is small, so please contact us in advance for group visits during our open hours.
Prairie Bookstore and Seed Sales
Living Prairie Museum's Bookstore has many great books about nature and the prairies. We also sell seeds for many tall-grass prairie plants. Seeds are $3/package. Visit us during Interpretive Centre hours or make an appointment. View our current Book and Seed Inventory.
Living Prairie Museum Medicine Garden
As part of our commitment to reconciliation, a medicine garden has been planted in collaboration with the Living Prairie Museum, Indigenous Relations Division, and a local Indigenous Elder. The garden features sage and sweetgrass, two of the four Sacred Medicines which naturally occur in the tall grass prairie.
The medicine garden is located in the nature park west of the preserve at the north end of Prairie View Road at Ness Avenue. It can be harvested by the public during the summer, but care and attention are needed to maintain the garden. Only harvest what is needed, taking only the leaves and leaving roots and seeds to allow the plants to regenerate between harvests.
It is good practice to consult with an Elder to learn more on the harvest and use of sacred medicines.
More information on the Directional Teachings and the Four Sacred Medicines, as shared by Elder Carolyn Moar.
Environmental Education Programs and Group Bookings
Living Prairie Museum offers a variety of in-person environmental education programs. Programs are available for schools and groups ages 5 to adult. Each program includes an interactive presentation and an outdoor adventure. Curriculum links are available for most of our programs. We also offer snowshoeing and Nature Comes to You programming in winter.
2025-26 Environmental Education brochure
More information
- Activity Booklet for Kids - Learn about prairie wildlife and how you can become a citizen scientist
- For more information regarding history, videos, and herbarium visit: livingprairie.org
- To become a Friend of the Living Prairie Museum visit: Friends of the Living Prairie Museum
- For a walk through the prairie past, including historical photography visit virtualmuseum.ca
Location and contact information
The Interpretive Centre is located at:
2795 Ness Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3J 3S4
Phone: 204-832-0167
Email: prairie@winnipeg.ca
Fax: 311
Living Prairie Museum can be reached by car, by active transportation on the Yellow Ribbon Greenway, and on the #D15 and 220 bus routes.
Contact us for accessibility information for building, trails, and programs.