Road Trip Alberta: Edmonton & the North-Eastern Lakes

After visiting as many giant roadside attractions of Alberta as possible, we arrived at another kind of unique Canadian nature. Starting with Cold Lake at the border to the Saskatchewan province, we tried to hike, swim, and see as much of this natural paradise as possible. The next stop on our road trip was Lac La Biche, where we learned a lot about Canada’s First Nations while staying overnight in a tipi tent. Finally, we arrived at Lesser Slave Lake, Alberta’s biggest lake reachable by car. Join us on our summer road trip to Edmonton in Northern Alberta and see gay-friendly Edmonton and the northeastern lakes of Alberta through a couple of men‘s eyes!

Edmonton: Gateway to Northern Alberta

Edmonton… where exactly is Edmonton again? We have heard this question quite a few times when discussing our trip to Canada this June. Yet, Alberta’s capital city, with almost 1 million inhabitants, is the sixth-biggest city in Canada. Just an 8-hour flight away with a direct flight from Amsterdam with KLM Airlines, this city is the perfect destination and base to explore the Rocky Mountains and the rest of Alberta. Our summer trip was all about Edmonton, the Edmonton Pride Festival, and the three lakes in the North-Eastern part of this Canadian province. We collected all the information for a great city trip to Edmonton, like visiting the Art Gallery of Alberta, the West Edmonton Mall, the Gay Edmonton Pride Festival, and taking a canoe tour on the North Saskatchewan River. On our road trip going east of Edmonton, we visited the Elk Island National Park, took spectacular photos of the gigantic roadside attractions, and explored Alberta’s North-Eastern lakes: Cold Lake, Lac La Biche, and Slave Lake.

Two Great Gay-friendly Accommodations in Edmonton:

Our favorite Edmonton activities

The weather during our stay had something of everything. The first days in Edmonton have been sunny, and the summers warm. Perfect conditions for a hiking tour through the River Valley or a canoeing adventure with Haskin Canoe on the North Saskatchewan River and, of course, for the annual Edmonton Pride Festival. Unfortunately for us, the weather switched from rain to wind after the festival. But Edmonton offers plenty of opportunities to use the gray and wet days at their best. For example, by spending an afternoon at the Muttart Observatory, a slightly older but innovative botanical garden with buildings that look like glass pyramids rising from the River Valley, or at the newest art exhibitions at the Art Gallery of Alberta, including gorgeous and intense native Canadian artworks. Dark weather is, of course, also the best time to go shopping. We had a hilarious but fantastic time at the West Edmonton Mall, which was, for over 23 years, the biggest mall in the world. Additional to over 800 shops, the mall offers a water park, hotels, a cinema, an aquarium, an ice hockey field, and, of course, an amusement park with indoor rollercoasters called Galaxyland. Guess what we did next to shopping…

Our 5 Best Restaurants in Edmonton

The food scene in Edmonton is fantastic. We had the chance to try international, local, and fusion cuisine all over the city and collected our favorite 5 restaurants for your gay travels to Alberta’s capital city. Let us begin with the restaurants that are the closest to our first accommodation, the Metterra Hotel in Old Strathcona. The cute, hip, and stylish little food place called “Restaurant & Bar Pip” is located just around the Calgary Trail corner 82 Ave NW offering International Fusion and a variety of (even German) beers. Our tip: order the chips and Gnocchi (Check reviews here >). Just a few blocks further away, you will find the Restaurant and Bar “El Cortez” with a delicious Mexican Kitchen and Tequila Bar on the first floor. Additional to yummy vegetarian dishes after the pride parade, we enjoyed the hilarious Drag Show “Hail Mary and Have Mercy”. Our tip: the vegetarian spicy cucumber sticks and tequila (Check reviews here >).

On the other side of the North Saskatchewan River in Downtown Edmonton, we have three places we can especially recommend for your travels. The Restaurant Rostizado located right opposite the Neon Museum is a stylish place with an outdoor terrace and the best Margaritas you can imagine. The menu offers excellent Mexican Fusion with a Canadian touch and various vegetarian options (Check reviews here >). The next restaurant on our list is the Restaurant Uccellino on Jasper Avenue. The ambiance of the Italian restaurant is chic and modern while offering a diverse Italian Cuisine with huge portions (Check our review here >). Finally, is the District Cafe just around the corner from the Matrix Hotel. Their sandwiches are everything, but make sure to come early as it is a busy place during lunch rush hours (Check reviews here >)!

Going East of Edmonton by Car

The time had come to pack our bags, rainbow flags, and groceries and to start our road trip to the lakes of Alberta under the motto of “Go East of Edmonton”. Before we show you the highlights of our 12-day trip, we would like to give you some tips and info about renting and driving a car in Canada. First, make sure to bring your driver’s license. An international license is not obligatory for German and Dutch drivers, but please do not forget to double-check with your national automobile association. At the car rental in Canada, you will need a credit card and your passport. Ask which fuel your car needs (regular or diesel). Canadian roads are wide and generally in good shape. As they say, Canadian drivers only know two seasons: winter and construction work. 😉 Canada has strict speed limits signalized in kph (kilometers per hour) with substantial fines, especially in the construction work zones. And be constantly aware of the wildlife! We regularly faced dangerous situations with deer, beaver, and bison crossing our way. But this circumstance made driving in Canada an even more exciting adventure! Oh, and do not miss switching on the local radio stations with non-stop country music.

Wildlife Watching at Elk Island National Park

Bears, Beavers, Bison, Moose & Elks – these North American species are considered the most typical animals of Canada. Although, Beavers and Bison nearly got extinct from hunting and slaughter in the 19th century. Thanks to various national parks and protected areas in the USA and Canada, the North American Bison population is growing slowly but steadily. One of the cornerstones of Canada’s bison conservation story is Elk Island National Park, located approximately 35 kilometers east of Edmonton and definitely worth a trip. The national park is home to 450 plains bison. Lucky us, we could see a huge herd of bison, including young little calves, during our short stop on our way east. What an experience getting so close to these beautiful and powerful animals. Do not miss checking out Astotin Lake in the north of the park and taking a walk over the boardwalk. We spotted various birds and seriously enjoyed the view of the islands. Click here for reviews of Elk Island National Park >

“Giants of the Prairies” – 8 Gigantic Roadside Attractions of Alberta

Driving through flat land and the prairies of northern Alberta does not seem to be fun at first sight. But thanks to the tip from our beloved friend Kris, we planned an exciting route to Cold Lake by visiting six of the funniest sights and roadside attractions you can imagine (and definitely would not have expected to find in Canada!).

Our starting point was Vegreville, home of a giant Ukrainian-styled Easter egg called Pysanka, the second biggest in the world. After a short drive back to Mundare, where we came from, we found the world’s largest Kubasa, an originally Polish garlic sausage. The following small town on our list was Andrew featuring the World’s Largest Mallard Duck. Next stop: the town of Saint Paul (or St. Paul), where the world’s first UFO landing pad was built in 1967 as part of the Canadian centennial celebration. Now the UFO center connected to the pad is the local tourist information point. But there was more to see! It was getting later and later during our tour to Cold Lake, but we were still awake enough when we reached Glendon to see the Giant Perogy, a filled dumpling originally from Eastern Europe.

After finally arriving in Cold Lake, the next day, we went to see the Military Jets Memorial in front of CFB Cold Lake Military Base. If you can’t get enough of these huge objects, you should know that there are even more massive sculptures across Alberta, like the World’s largest dinosaur in Drumheller or the replica of the starship Enterprise in the town of Vulcan. Make sure to put them all on your list!

Alberta’s North-Eastern Lakes: 

#1 Exploring Cold Lake, Alberta

The Waterfront Harbour Bed&Breakfast possibly has a gorgeous view over Cold Lake and its Provincial Park. After enjoying a great homemade breakfast on the patio, the lake is just a few steps away for paddleboarding or any other water sports activities. The Cold Lake Provincial Park has great hikes with fantastic views of the surrounding nature. Just be aware of possible bear encounters (not only the cute ones who give great hugs). We definitely would suggest taking a stroll down the Iron Horse Trail with its huge wooden bridge over Beaver Creek or taking in some sun on the sandy Kinosoo Beach. The city of Cold Lake is mostly known for its annual Maple Flag Airshow, organized by the CFB Cold Lake Military Base, which means you might have to cover your ears for a jet fighter or two while they are practicing their loop-the-loops.

#2 First Nations at Lac La Biche

We spent two exciting nights on Long Island near the Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park, sleeping in a tipi while we learned a lot about Canada’s history at the Canadian Native Friendship Center Lac La Biche. Both two tipi’s at the Lac La Biche Comfort Camping have their private full-service cook-house and bathrooms, which makes the experience feel pretty luxurious (when you have good weather). An extra plus is that with your tipi stay-over, you are contributing to the Canadian Native Friendship Center, which is a good thing! The highlight of our stay was our afternoon with Elder Walter Quinn, who taught us about the native Canadians, herbs, tea, and a bear he was chasing the last couple of days. And don’t forget to hike up to the Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park for a beautiful sunset over the lake and its islands.

#3 Slave Lake, Alberta’s 3rd Biggest

Lesser Slave Lake is Alberta’s biggest lake that is reachable by car. It is famous for water sports, nearby hiking trails, and the hundreds of bird species that live in the dense forest surrounding it. The highlights of our three-nights stay were our hike up to Martin Mountain, the visit to the Boreal Center For Bird Conservation, and our boat tour over Slave Lake around Dog Island. Slave Lake is a very popular camping destination but relatively unknown to international tourists. We do need to point out that the city itself doesn’t have access nor boardwalk to the lake and that most of the lake houses are privately owned so when you don’t know anyone with a lake house or boat or when you didn’t drive up yourself with an RV, your changes to enjoy the lake get pretty limited. Still the beaches nearby are a great place to enjoy the view, stroll along, or even take a swim.

Our Road Trip Edmonton Northern Alberta, Canada

Edmonton was an unexpected and wonderful city trip. And so was the experience of the three big lakes northeast of Edmonton. The Rocky Mountains between Calgary and Jasper are beautiful, with stunning views and unique opportunities to make once-in-a-lifetime memories. But Alberta has so much more to offer, and we are happy that we could see the lakes, meet great people, and learn more about First Nations and the struggles of the people living isolated in Canada‘s nature. We hope we could inspire you to visit Edmonton and take, instead of a left turn towards the Rockies, a right turn into Northern Alberta. #exploreedmonton

Do you want to know more? Stay tuned… on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. See you in Edmonton, Alberta, and Canada!

Karl & Daan

Please note: This trip was made possible in partnership with Tourism Edmonton. Anyhow, our opinions are 100% authentic and our own, as usual.