Our Travels

Since 1980 my family has done a lot of traveling. We have seen most of British Columbia except Vancouver and the Island, most of Alberta as far north as Manning, a great amount of Saskatchewan, Southern Manitoba and up to Whitehorse in the Yukon. The western half of Canada is a campers paradise with many Federal, Provincial and local parks and campgrounds. You can go from the Badlands in Southern Alberta to the Rocky Mountains, from the flat prairies of Southern Saskatchewan to the multitude of lakes in Northern Saskatchewan. The variety of scenery will astonish you if you have never been in this area. Not many years ago you could cross from Canada into Alaska at the Stewart, BC/Hyder, Alaska crossing without even a customs shack. That has changed now but it is still the custom to drop into Hyder and get Hyderized.

I will try to give you a brief tour of Western Canada starting with Manitoba. Winnipeg has a marvelous zoo and its very convenient ring road. South of Brandon is the International Peace Gardens. There are many parks and campgrounds throughout the province.

Saskatchewan gives you many beautiful parks ranging from Prince Albert National Park in the north to the Grasslands National Park in the south. Two very different types of landscape. There are many historical sites in Saskatchewan such as the Motherwell Homestead between Regina and Yorkton and Fort Walsh National Historic Site in the Cypress Hills in the far south-west corner of the province. In Regina you will find the RCMP Training Academy and Museum. There are Western Development Museums in North Battleford, Saskatoon, Yorkton, and Moose Jaw each on a different theme.

Alberta too has many areas of interest. Cypress Hills extends into Alberta's far south-east corner. The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology (Dinosaur Museum) and the Dinosaur Provincial Park will fascinate your children. Fort MacLeod is a spot worth visiting with its fort/museum. In Cardston you will find the Remington-Alberta Carriage Museum in a magnificent setting with a campground within walking distance. Wetaskiwin has the Reynolds-Alberta Museum with its collection of vehicles. Calgary has an excellent zoo where the animals are kept in habitats not cages. The zoo also has a dinosaur park and horticultural park. Calgary also has a heritage village and a provincial park right in the city limits. Edmonton is famous for its West Edmonton Mall. Not far east of Edmonton on highway 16 is the Ukrainian Village, a living museum. Located between the towns of Beaverlodge and Hythe is the South Peace Museum. Every year tourists come from around the world to visit it. It has a very large collection of working steam engines of varying types. Once a year they hold museum days where they run them all up and put them to work. Visit their website . Of course we can't forget Jasper, Banff, Yoho, Kootenay, and Waterton National Parks. In Jasper, Banff and Kootenay Parks you will find hotsprings for your enjoyment. The Banff Cave and Basin Hot Springs are no longer open for bathing but are now a historical site. While you are visiting Waterton National Park, drop across the border to the adjoining Glacier Park in Montana and the famous garden wall.

British Columbia is home of the Bennett Dam north of Chetwyn. Near Quesnel is Barkerville historical village, Wells, and Cottonwood historical site. Barkerville is a living museum. You can shop in the stores and eat in the restaurants. You won't want to miss the bakery. Close by is the Bowron Lake Provincial Park, a canoeists dream. The Okanagan is famous for Ogopogo who it is said lives in the lake. In the southeast area of the province is another living museum, Fort Steele. It is here that the Mounted Police built a fort in the days of the gold rush in this area. Not only do they have a selection of shops, restaurants, etc for you pleasure but also a steam train that you can ride on and view the scenery. You can pan for gold or take part in the many interpretive acts that go on each day. If you go west of Prince George you will travel to Prince Rupert, Kitimat, and Stewart. On the way to Stewart you will pass by the Bear Glacier. There are tours of the many villages where totem poles still abound. Many tourists use the Cassiar highway to reach the Yukon and Alaska. The highway is not completely paved (at last word) but it is well traveled with many rustic campgrounds along the way. I have even met people traveling this road on bicycles. Going east from Prince George is Mount Robson Provincial Park. British Columbia has many excellent provincial park campgrounds and an abundant number of rest areas such as Bijoux Falls on highway 97 where you can stretch your legs and answer the call of nature. There also many hotsprings throughout the province at Harrison Hot Springs, Nakusp, Ainsworth, Radium, Canyon Hot Springs and the famous hot springs at Liard River on the Alaska Highway.

Up in the Yukon, you can visit Watson Lake and the world famous sign collection. Don't forget to bring a sign to add to the collection. Please do not steal the highway signs though. In Whitehorse you will never be bored. Relive the gold rush days.

These are only a few of the many sites of interest in this part of Canada that we have visited. You will find something for everyone no matter what their tastes.

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This page by Pat
updated August 18, 2000


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