The statue of a giant Canada goose may attract more immediate attention of people driving through St Laurent to Lundar, but it is the plethora of 1940s and 1950s Bombardier snow machines that mark the community.
St Laurent, the village, is part of St. Laurent, the municipality of 1,600 people. Its storied history marks it as the Metis community that the Smithsonian Institute chose to feature in its museum for over a decade. The cottages at Laurentia Beach, on Lake Manitoba also are unique, with the shores along this stretch of the lake being so shallow that people can wade out almost 500 meters. There are few settlements in the municipality and only one store and a few restaurants in the village and area, but it still attracts crowds in the summer, with its natural beauty.
In the fall, tens of thousands of Canada geese travel through the central flyway of the Interlake, with almost as many geese and ducks residing throughout the summer in the local marshes.
While the ethnic makeup has changed in the past five decades from First Nations, Metis and French to a more eclectic mix, Michif still is spoken in many homes, along with French (Manitoba style) and English.
To celebrate Manitoba’s version of the Loch Ness monster, supposedly living in Lake Manitoba, St. Laurent features the Manipogo Golf Course near the lake.