A town where they make beauty products out of seaweed and pies the size of a basketball. A prairie city with great Shakespeare and a nude beach. And not one but two towns with potato museums.
Americans know about Toronto. I think most of them know it’s in Canada. They’ve probably heard of Montreal and Vancouver. But there’s so much more to Canada, some of it wacky. Here’s a look at some of the lesser-known spots you should check out this summer.
With the U.S. dollar buying about $1.36 Canadian these days, Americans also will find their dollars go a long, long way in Canada right now.
SASKATOON
Try a ride on the Prairie Lily tour boat in Saskatoon for great views. JIM BYERS PHOTO
This is very much a city on the rise in Canada. The city rests on a lovely stretch of the South Saskatchewan River, allowing you to take a peaceful boat cruise on an old-style ship or see the city from a kayak or canoe. Ayden Kitchen and Bar is one of Canada’s best restaurants, with inventive cuisine served up in a quirky, stylish room that feels both manly and artsy at the same time. The city also is home to Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan, a lively troupe that does cool takes on some of The Bard’s best work. I saw a great, 1960’s-style adaptation of “Taming of the Shrew” a few years ago. Check out the trendy Riversdale district, or head to Wanuskewin Heritage Park to learn about local indigenous peoples and their rich culture and history. Need more? There’s also a nude beach outside of town on the river. This being Canada, it’s strictly seasonal. http://www.tourismsaskatoon.com/
ONTARIO SHORELINES
Sandbanks Provincial Park is a magical spot in Ontario, not far from Toronto. JIM BYERS PHOTO
The province of Ontario has some of the best beaches on the planet. Along Lake Huron (where Mitt Romney used to go as a kid, sometimes apparently with the family dog on the roof) you’ll find long, long, long beaches with glorious sunsets. It’s a wonderful spot for an evening bonfire or a morning walk. The town of Grand Bend is one of the best beach towns in North America, and this from a guy who grew up in California. Lake Erie is shallow and warm in summer, with fantastic beaches around Port Stanley that are great for volleyball or sunbathing. There’s very good wine grown along the shores of the lake, too. Try Burning Kiln for luscious reds and lovely whites. Further east on Lake Ontario is Prince Edward County, a hot bed for local cuisine and wines. Sandbanks Provincial Park features immense sand dunes that are as high as a four-story building; as if the Sahara had been transplanted onto the shores of one of the Great Lakes. https://www.ontariotravel.net/en/home
SOOKE, BRITISH COLUMBIA
They don’t have a sexy name, but the Sooke Potholes are a marvellous feature of Vancouver Island. – JIM BYERS PHOTO
This is a town that does both higher-end and super-casual travel with equal aplomb. On the deluxe side, Mom’s Café packs 50 apples or more into each pie. They look more like a basketball than a pastry, and they taste as good as they look. There’s also a great coffee house called Stick in the Mud, and there’s a local woman who gathers seaweed in the harbour and uses it to make a line of beauty products called Seaflora Skincare. Check out the wonderful Sooke Potholes Provincial Park as well. http://vancouverisland.travel/
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND
Point Prim serves up lovely chowder in a beautiful PEI setting. – JIM BYERS PHOTO
This island province is known to many folks as the land of Anne of Green Gables, that adorable Canadian school girl featured in the books of Lucy Maud Montgomery. It’s also known for its lobster and lighthouses. One of the best of the latter is at Point Prim, not far from the ferry boat dock for boats between Nova Scotia and PEI, as Canadians call the island. It’s the oldest lighthouse on the island and one of the few brick ones around. Better yet is the Point Prim Chowder House next door, with fresh, sensational chowder that bursts with seafood flavour. There’s an entertaining potato museum in the town of O’Leary, where you’ll learn that French royalty used to put potato blossoms in their hair and all sorts of other potato facts. There’s also a Potato World museum in Florenceville-Bristol, New Brunswick if you need extra starch in your life. Not far from Summerside are the famous Bottle Houses, a collection of small buildings fashioned almost entirely out of wine bottles. They’re really quite something to see. There’s another collection of them near Point Prim, as well. Not to suggest Islanders have a drinking problem. https://www.tourismpei.com/
MONTEBELLO, QUEBEC
A glorious sunrise on the Ottawa River, taken from the grounds of the Fairmont Chateau Montebello. – JIM BYERS PHOTO
This is one of the top playgrounds in Eastern Canada, a small village tucked onto the shore of the Ottawa River. It’s roughly equidistant between Montreal, which is celebrating its 375th birthday this year, and Ottawa, the capital of Canada, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2017. The Fairmont Chateau Montebello has hosted royalty and politicians galore, including former US President Ronald Reagan, who insisted on driving about the grounds in a golf cart, much to the chagrin of presidential bodyguards. The food is lovely and the lobby a wonderful, airy spot filled with dark wood and warming, wonderful fireplaces. In summer, take a boat out on the river or go for a morning walk and watch the fog swirl over the water as the sun sets the sky on fire in shades of orange and pink. http://www.fairmont.com/montebello/
NOVA SCOTIA
Kayaking on the Eastern Shore of Nova Scotia. Photo Courtesy Nova Scotia Tourism.
The south shore towns of Mahone Bay and Lunenburg, a UNESCO heritage site, are filled with folks from Boston and other American cities in summer. They’re both great, but I like the eastern shore of Nova Scotia a bit more as it’s quieter. There’s good surfing at Lawrencetown Beach, just outside Halifax. Check out fun galleries and pretty villages such as the quirkily named Ecum Secum along the road between Halifax and Sherbrooke.
ALBERTA
Alberta’s Waterton Lakes is probably my favourite national park in Canada. JIM BYERS PHOTO
Waterton Lakes National Park doesn’t get nearly the traffic of Banff or Jasper, but it’s a strikingly beautiful place tucked up against the U.S. border. The local golf course is a fun place and offers lovely mountain views, and restaurants in town tend to be quite reasonable. Take the Cowboy Trail south from Calgary to get here, and be sure to stop in Turner Valley for a burger at Chuckwagon Cafe.
YUKON
I spotted this beauty in Kluane National Park in the Yukon a few years back. JIM BYERS PHOTO
Kluane National Park is the home of Canada’s highest peak, Mt. Logan, as well as many other beautiful mountains. Scour the steep, stony cliffs for sheep that seem to teeter precariously on rock faces high above your head. Or stop to admire the dozens of empty lakes along the way. Tiny Haines Junction, a small dot on the Alaska Highway, is a cute “blink and you’ll miss it” place that makes a good home base.
