Canada Adventures
If there was ever a country made for experiencing the great outdoors, it’s Canada. Begin relatively gently on the Atlantic coast, proceed west to the Pacific and then head towards the Arctic for a complete spectrum of activities.
Canada’s eastern provinces show faces both sofly rural and properly rugged ideal to calibrate the level of adventure that suits you.
The granite shores of Atlantic Canada are the first sight of the americas for travellers arriving from europe. while the highest points of these four easternmost provinces don’t measure up to the summits of the Rockies, you’ll ?find some superlatives here too the tides in the Bay of Fundy show the largest range in the world, believed in Mi’kmaq legend to be caused by the thrashing of a giant whale. The next step west from here is Québec. Its vast forests threaded with rivers and lakes were once the starting point for fur traders fanning out across the interior of the North American continent, canoe paddle in hand.
Coastal walking trails trace as best they can the overwrought ocean countours of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Except in truly remote places, you can pick manageable sections for shorter hikes. Offshore attractions include whale-watching tours, with humpbacks one of the biggest possible sightings. Sea cruises can feel pretty active too, whether you’re helping to haul in lobster pots, or riding out the spray aboard a Zodiac. The shores of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick are less exposed to the ocean’s moods, but ideal for not-too-strenous cycling possibilities. Here too, and even more so in Québec, river trips by canoe or kayak don’t have to involve white water, or paddling furiously against a current.
For urban add-ons, spend time in Québec City (the only walled city in the Americas north of Mexico) and in cosmopolitan Montréal, which knows how to do joie de vivre even in deepest winter.
You can’t avoid craning your neck here: mountain heights bring new active possibilites in the Rockies and the lands beyond.
Between the last glimpses of the atlantic and the first stirrings of the Rocky Mountains, you must cross more than 2,000 miles of forest and horizon-spanning prairie lands..southeastern alberta is very much a region of ranches and rodeos,but drive an hour west from the hub city of calgary on the trans canada highway and fortress-like peaks start to rear up to either side at kicking horse pass, you'll not only cross the boundary between alberta and british columbia,but the continental divide of the americas.from here on west,rivers have a new outlet and the land a new outlook the pacific.
This is the part of canada where it's most acceptable sometimes,almost compulsory to wear a stetson.horse rides are not just a way to connect with the local ranching culture,but can be an excellent way to reach spots that are not just far from roads, but perhaps a challenge to reach on foot. if you'll have plenty of excuses to take them out.
National park trails open up freash prospects of the famous valleys and lakes of the Rockies, far from the tour bus frequented viewpoints.just remembre to take sensible precautions while you're in grizzly bear country.
Mountain biking is as good as it gets,with several ski resorts switching the focus to two wheeled adventurers once the snow has melted. winter in the rockies and in british columbia's coastal mountains heralds any number of variations on skiing,including cross country trails and helicopter accessed runs for serious powder seekers.the most intimate way to get to grips with the landscape is to try rock climbing when it's warm,or tackle frozen waterfalls in winter.
West coast vancouver is one of the world's most outdoorsy cities,and the indigenous culture of the pacific fringe is fascinating too totem poles are a local invention.
Canada's official motto is a mari usque ad mare (from sea to sea). for many canadians though, this is only a part truth. swathes of the country feel closer neither to the atlantic nor the pacific, but the sea worthy expanse of hudson bay, and further north and more remote still, the arctic ocean. the yukon is the most accessible of canada's three northern territories, but it's still a land of great distances between modest settlements. where it rubs up against alaska, icefields and mountains gather, including canada's highest peak, mount logan. the few visitors who explore the northwest territories and nunavut find an infinity of lakes set amid near treeless tundra, including the starky named barren grounds, trodden by caribou and muskox but few humans. and if it's possible to imagine a more remote world than this, canada's arctic islands are a largely ice bound wilderness that for centuried european explorers attempts to sail the norhwest passage towards asia.
One thing to know first about canada north of latitude 60 expect huge price tags if you want to get far from civilisation (with all those small plane fights to remote airstrips). the yukon,with its comparatively developed road network, has legendary long distance drives, including into alaska. even so, some of the standout scenery is only revealed on scenic aights. across the far north, the ratio of wildlife to humans tilts decisively in favour of the feathered and fur coated. you'll have few more impressive natural encounters than on a polar bear watching tour. the far north is the home of the kayak, though for many months of the year you'll be as likely to go snowmobiling or dog sledding.