Edmonton - 9-10 May, and 29-30 May 2011

Flight AC899 falls out of the sky and crashes into the Alberta countryside.  Or at least that's how it felt.  A beautiful flight has been had since take-off from Heathrow, and through clear skies we've seen the rugged coastline of northern Scotland; Iceland; Greenland; and Baffin Island.  The northern reaches of Canada are laid bare below us, a landscape of mountain peaks, lakes and frozen rivers stretching on forever.  I think, as we glide over it all, how I may still be glimpsing at small corners of the world where no man has ever trodden, such is the hostility of the wilderness.  No roads, no settlements, nothing man made - but how many wolves, bears and moose?  The ice slowly clears as we head south west, the odd field and road begins to appear, then the odd settlement.  We prepare for our descent to Edmonton, and like a scene from a horror film, our aeroplane begins to tip this way and that, rocks up, falls down.  The ground suddenly appears beneath us and we crunch into it at 200 miles an hour.  We come to a halt; out of the window I see fields and wilderness.  At this point I'm fairly certain we've crash-landed.  Then the announcement: "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Edmonton."

Eight miles above Baffin Island

Edmonton, population c.1,000,000, capital of Alberta Province, and a city built on oil.  I'm with my dad and his partner Sue, who are visiting their friends Ed and Debs, who live in one of the city's suburbs.  I'll stay with them for a few days before flying east alone, to explore the four great cities of eastern Canada - Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City and Toronto.  For now though, it's out the airport and into Ed's long old Buick, which I notice has racked up 325,180 miles on Canada's endless roads.  My first impression of Edmonton is that it's one big construction site, as we drive through miles of building and road works.  It's about 3pm here - 10pm back home - and once we've reached their home in the quiet and pleasant suburbs, there's only one thing to do: have a beer and sit in the glorious spring sunshine.

Jet-lagged and all-too-briefly rested, the following morning we are taken to Elk Island, a 75-square-mile wildlife reserve.  As far as I can fathom, Elk Island is neither an island nor full of elk, but there were some brilliant bison to be seen, an abundance of frogs to be heard, and plenty of ducks.  The reserve itself is suffering from a particularly long-lasting winter, and by now trees are usually in leaf and bud.  Nonetheless, there's a clearness in the air that makes this the perfect antidote to yesterday's transatlantic flight.

Bison at Elk Island

Our first afternoon in Edmonton, and it's off to "West Ed" to take a look at the biggest shopping mall in the world.  I'm surprised to hear Canada take this crown over their brash neighbours, but the statistics don't lie - more than 800 shops and eateries, an ice rink (of course), a multiplex cinema, a pitch-and-putt, a hotel, a swimming pool, and a rollercoaster and theme park complex.  Apparently, people come to stay here for a week and never leave the mall, spending their time using the countless facilities.  Truly there's something for everyone - for me, it's the sports memorabilia stores and the array of hockey jerseys - apparently I like them all.

I feel we've only scratched the surface of the mall, before we are taken for a tour of downtown Edmonton, passing the high-rise skyscrapers, the Rexall Centre (then home of the Edmonton Oilers hockey team, who have since moved to a new arena), and Chinatown, eventually arriving at the Alberta Legislature Building, seat of the Alberta Government.  It's got all the usual grand and impressive features, including the domed roof.  Within, we are told to stick to the ground floor, unless we wanted to sit in on proceedings, in which case passes would be arranged, but declining this opportunity to watch democracy in action, we settle for the flags and memorials of the round welcome hall.

Downtown Edmonton

The Alberta Legislature, Edmonton

On my final day in Edmonton (which occurred after my visit to Canada's eastern cities) we visit Fort Edmonton Park, the main draw of which is the reconstructed fort, a fur-trading post dating from 1795.  Here, the famous Hudson's Bay Company established an outpost for trading with the native population, swapping native-caught furs for a variety of goods, including guns and blankets.  Traders from here would make the four-month journey along the river system (the North Saskatchewan River flows close to the fort) and all the way to Hudson Bay, returning with skins, furs and beaver pelts, with which they could purchase their wares - everything here was traded, there was no physical currency.  Fort Edmonton seems to be faithfully reconstructed, and aside from the trade store, there is a meat store, ice house, boat shed, blacksmith, and living quarters, the most high-status being the Rowand House, once home to John Rowand, Hudson's Bay Company fur trader and Chief Factor (a type of trader) at the fort.  The house contains all manner of living luxuries.

The Rowand House in Fort Edmonton

Fort Edmonton trading post

Beyond the fort, three streets lead back to the entrance of the park, lined with a number of authentic buildings that have been relocated from their original positions in the Edmonton area.   The first street, 1885 Street, contains such establishments as a school house, Methodist church, and drug store. Establishments along 1905 Street include a Masonic Hall, a photography shop, fire station and some of the neighbourhood's finer houses.  On 1920 Street, there's the Capitol Theatre, a garage known as the Motordome, and a Ukrainian bookshop (not as surprising as it first appears to the outsider, for there were some big waves of Ukrainian immigration to Canada in the 19th and early 20th centuries).

1885 Street, Fort Edmonton

Ross Brothers Hardware Store on 1885 Street

I've always thought that you don't really get an understanding of a place until you delve into its history, and it's at Fort Edmonton that I feel I connected with the real Edmonton - the one that existed before oil, before hockey, before big malls and wide roads, when the whole of Canada was still on the fringes of the map, ripe for exploration and discovery.  

On the steps of the Rowand House, Fort Edmonton