I went to Grand Beach, Manitoba yesterday for the first time in six years... I had forgotten how lovely it was, the sand is as nice and soft as any I've been on. And with the dry conditions, the lake water levels are lower than usual which means a huge beach to spread out on. Strangely though, the extra space wasn't even necessary... considering the perfect weather and the general lack of entertainment options, I was a little surprised at how un-crowded the beach was. I found the water on the cold side as it typically is in June... not unbearable, but definitely on the chilly side.
Grand Beach is a great place, although it is really underdeveloped. The selection of restaurants is basically limited to a few hotdog and ice cream stands, and there are no decent places to stay unless you're cottaging or camping. Not even a basic Super 8 Motel type joint. I guess the seasons are just a bit too short to support that kind of tourist infrastructure. The other side of the lake at Gimli and Winnipeg Beach has such things, but the beach is not as good as Grand's... Gimli is very pebbly/rocky by comparison.
Twitter