Geography and climate of Winnipeg
Winnipeg lies at the bottom of the Red River Valley, a low-lying flood plain with an extremely flat topography. This valley was formed by the ancient glacial Lake Agassiz which has rich deposits of black soil. Winnipeg is on the eastern edge of the Canadian Prairies in Western Canada; it is known as the 'Gateway to the West'. It is relatively close to many large Canadian Shield lakes and parks, as well as Lake Winnipeg (the Earth's 11th largest freshwater lake). Winnipeg is bordered by tallgrass prairie to the west and south and the aspen parkland to the northeast.
Winnipeg is fairly isolated in that the closest city with equal or greater population is Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Minnesota (metro population of 3,317,308), which is 735 km (457 miles) southeast from the city. According to the Census geographic units of Canada, the city has a total area of 464.01 km2 (179.16 sq mi) and an elevation of 240 m (786 ft).
The city has a humid continental climate with wide temperature contrasts between winter and summer, and greater precipitation in summer. Mean January temperature is −16.4 °C (2.5 °F), and mean July temperature is 19.7 °C (67.5 °F). Average annual precipitation is 521.1 mm (20.52 in); snow falls on 53 days and lies on 132 days in an average year.
Winnipeg has three major rivers: the Red River, the Assiniboine River, and the Seine River. The Red River is a Canadian heritage river. Because of Winnipeg's extremely flat topography and substantial snowfall, Winnipeg is subject to severe flooding. The Red River reached its greatest flood height in 1826. The Red River Floodway protects the city from flooding.
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