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Gibbons, St Paul, Andrew Loop
Take Highway 28A out of north east Edmonton and follow it to Gibbons. On the
corner of 28A and 50th Avenue in the town is the Emmanuel Anglican Church. The
interior, with its U-joint style and large beams, is modelled after the inside
of a ship and is unique in Alberta. It was constructed in 1902 and is still in
use today.
The Sturgeon River Historical Museum is in Oliver Park on 48th Avenue. McLeans
Store has a counter with an antique cash register, shelving full of boxes and
cans, books, photographs, desks and an old sewing machine sitting on a hardwood
floor. A log building with artifacts from the area and a small home with 1920s
furnishings are two of the other buildings on the grounds.
At the opposite end of town is Echo Glen Park. The park is beside the Sturgeon
River and there is a hiking/biking trail that will take you along the high
banks of the river.
Continue past the park to reach a stop sign on Highway 28. Turn right and head
to Redwater.
One of Alberta's major oilfields was discovered near Redwater in 1948. To
commemorate the oil industry the town has preserved the Discovery Derrick which
was used to drill the first well. The derrick, which at 51.2 metres high is
said to be the tallest oil derrick in North America, is in a park on 53rd
Street.
Follow 48th Avenue out of town to the junction with Highway 38 where you go
right. Turn left at the Victoria Trail sign to head towards Fort Victoria
itself. The road is fifty-eight kilometres long and mainly gravel, and although
is doesn’t exactly follow the route since some of it has been plowed under, it
uses as much of the original trail as possible. The Victoria Trail was part of
an overland route from Fort Garry (Winnipeg) to Edmonton dating from the 1820s
and called various names such as the Carlton trail, Winnipeg Trail, Fort Pitt
and Saskatchewan Trail depending on the section referred to. Victoria Trail is
that part between Edmonton and Fort Victoria.
There are signs along the road so don't let the number of twists and turns stop
you from taking this enjoyable drive along a trail that natives once walked
and, beginning in the 1820s, early settlers travelled in Red River carts. They
would probably be surprised at the changes along it: the large, modern homes,
the big barns, the rows of metal granaries, the machine sheds with their full
line of farming machinery, the open fields of grain, and the animals. The
biting smell from the barn yards would certainly be unlike the sweet smell of
flowers, trees, and open air to which they were accustomed.
The road winds through farmland and beside farm houses and old buildings. You
will come to the original site of the Jack Pine Grove School PSD No. 2051,
which operated from 1910 to 1951. Just past that is a cairn for Jack Pine Grove
School District No 2051, Eldorena, founded in 1909. The church behind the cairn
is the Eldorena Ukrainian Catholic Church built in 1912.
As you continue driving watch for the valley to your right and the banks of the
North Saskatchewan River. At one point the road is like a country lane with
trees lining it. But it is also narrow and winding with blind corners so keep
to your side of the road. At about the half way point you reach Highway 31. It
goes to Waskatenau if you wish to get off the gravel road. Proceeding ahead
watch for the road to the left that goes to the church and cemetery of the
former Lobstick Settlement.
Return to the Victoria Trail and soon you will come to the RCMP Memorial
Sculpture. The thick, plate steel statue of an RCMP officer astride a horse
sits on a base made of rock. Names like S.B. (Sam) Steele #1, P. Coutts #95,
Sub-Inspector S. Gagnon, R.E. Steele #7 are painted on some of the rocks. These
are the names and rank or regimental number of the twenty members of the newly
founded NWMP who left the main group on July 29, 1874 and headed to Fort
Edmonton, passing along this trail in October of that year. The cairn was
erected on August 4, 1998.
There are two sharp curves after cairn and then a dangerous curve, with an old
house to the left, so proceed with caution. When you reach SH 855, the road to
Smoky Lake, continue across and you will be on pavement heading to the Victoria
Settlement. Here there are two cemeteries, the Pakan Church constructed in
1906, and the clerk’s quarters built by the Hudson Bay Company in 1864. The
quarters is said to be Alberta's oldest structure still on its original
foundation. It has been restored and on the inside walls you can see where the
Hudson Bay employees carved their initials.
Stroll along the asphalt paths under the spreading branches of the tall maples
planted during the early years of the post. If you brought a lunch have a
picnic at a table on the large lawn. Or grab your fishing gear and hike down
the wide path to the North Saskatchewan River. You can fish from the banks
where the fur traders landed their canoes over one hundred years ago.
In Smoky Lake the old CN station, on West Railway Drive, is now a museum.
Inside are photographs and posters on the wall, an old telephone and telegraph,
the original desk, and the old wood stove.
The town of Smoky Lake was named for the nearby lake which was initially called
Smoking Lake by the Cree. In one version of how the lake received it name, the
aboriginal people, who stopped by its shores to smoked their pipes during their
hunts, called it Smoking Place. In the other story, it was selected because the
mist lifting off the lake resembled rising smoke.
Smoky Lake bills itself as the Pumpkin Capital of Alberta. This is because the
town holds the Great Pumpkin Fair and Weigh Off on the first Saturday in
October. Prizes are given for the largest, the ugliest, and the best looking
pumpkin.
Drive into Vilna to see what are claimed to be the world's largest mushrooms in
a little park. They are six metres high and are from the Tricholoma family.
They are called uspale mushroom which is a traditional mushroom used in
Ukrainian cooking in the area. The mushrooms were erected in August, 1993.
Glendon bills itself as the Pyrogy Capital of Alberta. You drive into town on
Perogy Drive and in Perogy Park is a giant perogy, said to be the largest in
the world. The pyrogy, which is held up by a fork, is over seven metres in
height.
The pyrogy was unveiled on August 31, 1991 to coincide with the beginning of
the 1992 nation-wide celebrations commemorating the 100th anniversary of
Ukrainian settlement in Canada. If you want a sample of the Ukrainian fare,
visit the Perogy House across from the park.
As you drive into St. Paul watch for unidentified flying objects hovering
overhead, waiting for an opportunity to land on the world's first man-made UFO
landing pad. The circular platform, with provincial and territorial flags
flying overhead, waits patiently for its first UFO landing on the corner of
Galaxy Way. It was erected as a centennial project in 1967 and a time capsule
inside the pad is to be opened in 2067.
The land beneath the landing pad has been designated international by the town
of St. Paul. Climb the steps onto the UFO pad and walk across the pedway to the
visitor information building which has been designed to resemble a UFO. Inside
you will see an interpretive display complete with photographs of UFOs and crop
circles, and write-ups on the different hoaxes that have been pulled. The town
operates a UFO hotline with the number to call being 1-888-SEE-UFOS.
As you enter Elk Point, on your right is a statue of Peter Fidler in the Peter
Fidler Peace Park. This park was officially dedicated in 1992, Canada's 125th
anniversary of confederation, as part of the Peace Parks Across Canada project.
Fidler joined the Hudson Bay Company when he was nineteen and studied
surveying. In 1792, he helped build Buckingham House and became its Factor five
years later. He then travelled throughout the west constructing other fur trading
posts.
As you leave Elk Point follow the signs to Fort George and Buckingham House. At
the parking lot you will find an interpretive centre with replicas of
voyageurs, buffalo, teepees, and a gift shop. There is also a map showing the
layout of the forts. A short interpretive trail takes you to the sites of Fort
George, constructed by the North West Company in 1792 and Buckingham House,
built later that same year. Both were fur trading and provision posts providing
pemmican for the canoe and York boat brigades.
They were situated on a plateau overlooking the North Saskatchewan River and
the fur traders had the difficult task of hauling their supplies up the hill
from their canoes. The posts did, however, have a beautiful view of the river
valley.
Follow the scenic highway to Two Hills and check out their museum on the corner
of 51st Street and 52nd Avenue. In Willingdon is the Willingdon Tourist Park
with a campground, picnic tables, and a mural on a huge rock. At the end of
town is SH 857 which will take you north to the Historical Village and Pioneer
Museum at Shandro. A few of the more than twenty buildings to tour are a
blacksmith shop, a post office, a funeral home, and a reproduction of a sod
house, all of which are furnished appropriately. You will also see the ferry
used on the North Saskatchewan River north of the museum before the Shandro
Bridge was constructed.
In Andrew is a small park. Besides a caboose, a playground, mini golf, and
tennis courts there is a statue of a giant duck. The colourful Mallard duck was
chosen as a symbol for the village of Andrew and this replica was erected on
April 29, 1992. It is said to be the largest Mallard in the world.
On the corner of Highway 45 and SH831 is the Skaro Shrine. The shrine was
designed as a replica of the Grotto of Lourdes in France and constructed in
1919 by local residents. The first pilgrimage was held on August 14, 1919.
And this ends your journey for today.
