Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ATHABASCA
The town began as Athabasca Landing, a Hudson's Bay Company
trading post, and a point along one of the river trails that led north.
Traders and explorers headed west on the North Saskatchewan River
to present-day Edmonton, then overland on a hazardous 130km por-
tage, cut in 1823, to the Athabasca River at Fort Assiniboine, south-
west of the present-day town of Athabasca. It was this pitiful trail that
spelt disaster for Klondikers in 1897-98 on the “All-Canadian Route”
from Edmonton.
A new trail, the Athabasca Landing Trail, was created in 1877. It soon
became the major highway to the north and a transshipment point for
northern posts and the Peace River. Hudson's Bay Company scows
built in Athabasca were manned by a group known as the Athabasca
Brigade, composed mainly of Cree and Metis. This brigade hand-
ily guided the scows down the Athabasca River through rapids and
shallow waters to points north. Most scows were disassembled on
arrival and used as building materials, but those that returned had to
be pulled again by the brigades. Paddlewheelers eventually replaced
these scows.
actually bitumen, a heavy oil whose ex-
traction requires an expensive, lengthy
process; the deposits consist of com-
pacted sand mixed with the bitumen.
The sand is brought to the surface,
where the bitumen is separated and
treated to produce a lighter, more use-
ful oil. The one trillion barrels of bitu-
men in the sands promise a vital supply
for future energy needs.
The Fort McMurray Oil Sands Discovery
Centre
explains the extraction pro-
cess, and much more, through colour-
ful hands-on exhibits.
PEACE RIVER
VALLEY
McLennan
This small town located on the edge of
Lake Kimiwan proudly claims the title of
“Bird Capital of Canada,” and it's easy to
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