Edmonton sparkles like a bottle of well-shook lemonade. A green metropole, where you are surrounded by nature in the middle of the city, with the largest city park in North America and a culinary scene to die for. Edmonton is a feast of outdoor urban life. Time for a visit.

The trees in thousand shades of green on the bank of the North Saskatchewan River give the illusion of stretched out woods and uninhabited areas. Their branches and leaves reach towards the sky, waving a warm welcome to the passengers of the High Level Bridge Streetcar at a fifty-meter altitude. The orange-golden light of the setting sun happily gives everything a more intense colour. Singer-songwriter Travis Matthews sweetly sings about love while accompanying himself on the acoustic guitar. Below us, between the wilderness on the sloping waterside, a city rises. Edmonton’s skyscrapers form a concrete valley between the green sea of trees. Outdoor urban life. Opposites melt into one in the natural city of Edmonton.

The W6 Class tram from 1947 may have started its career in the Australian Melbourne; it has been riding around Edmonton for thirteen years already. Lovingly restored and shined to perfection by the Edmonton Radial Railway Society, it serves as one of the showpieces of the High Level Bridge Streetcar. “This historical and scenic tram route runs from Strathcona on the southern banks of the North Saskatchewan River to Edmonton on the Northern banks,” explains Jeremy Derksen, our local guide who is showing us the most beautiful places around the city.

The river with a very strong current, which is what the original Cree name for the river literally means, was filled to the rim with beavers. Animals with a beautiful pelt which the Europeans loved to have. So they removed the animal who was wearing the skin. Different times.

Beavers
But for that, you have to catch them first. Because of the beaver hunt, tradespeople from the North West Company built Fort August in 1975, a little north of the current site of Edmonton. A year later, Hudson’s Bay Company (which still exists) followed with Fort Edmonton. “The presence of the river, named Beaver River by the pelt hunters, made trade flourish. Not much later, small settlements appeared on both sides of the Northern Saskatchewan river,” Jeremy explains. “The city didn’t grow fast, though. In 1904, when Edmonton was named the capital of the province of Alberta, the town only had 5000 inhabitants. The arrival of a railway connection made the number grow to 72.500 in ten years. The number went up and down throughout the years until 1947, when oil was discovered close to the city. That is why Edmonton’s nickname is Oil Capital of Canada.

Oil and Tech
The oil capital created a pull factor, and the city keeps on growing. But other sectors are thriving in Edmonton as well. “This year, Edmonton was named best Canadian city for young people to work in,” says Jeremy. “Yet another achievement of Don Iveson, who was named mayor in 2013, at the age of 34. He has been working hard to increase the quality of life in his city. He created cheaper housing, stimulated the Tech sector, invested in the arts and constructed cycle paths. We are delighted to have him.” His approach is a success. The city keeps drawing talent, and the town offers space to no less than five universities, with a total of 90.000 students. No surprise Google’s artificial intelligence department settled in Edmonton in 2017.

Bison
Two mighty bison graze peacefully between the trees of Elk Island National Park, about 35 kilometres east of Edmonton. Their muscular bodies and wide bowed and horned heads in the wind. Their wet nostrils sniff around while their ears move around, looking for danger. Once, the prairie trembled when the gigantic herds moved around. Once, the earth rumbled below the massive number of hooves. Once, there were more than thirty million bison on the grasslands of North America. The animals defined the culture of the prairie Indians. The invasion of leather-hungry Europeans combined with a cruel attempt to break the lifestyle of the original inhabitants made the number of bison go down to a few hundred at the end of the 19th century. The end was near.

“In 1907, the last herd of 700 was bought with the help of the Canadian government,” explains park ranger Samantha Beaulieu-Labelle. “And this area along with it, which quickly became a national park. That herd has been used since then to breed new herds, to accommodate those all over the world. From Scotland to Russia, Canadian bison graze peacefully. Now, more than 100 years later, the number of bison in North America is back to half a million animals.” An incredible success story.

But the observant visitor won’t just spot bison in the 194 square kilometres natural reserve. “Beavers, lynx, moose, the black bear, deer, and coyotes are just a few of the mammal species around here,” Samantha says. Not to mention the bird species, of which you will find around 250 around here.

Culinary hotspot
Because winters are long and summers relatively short, the city becomes extra vibrant when the sun comes out to kiss the city and her inhabitants. The terraces of the many excellent restaurants in Old Strathcona are packed. At any rate, you can indulge in the culinary scene of Edmonton.

Edmonton has a lot of culinary treats to offer. “There are three culinary hotspots,” says Jeremy. “You do have to know where to go to begin with, but Downton, on 124th Street and in Old Strathcona, you will find the finest restaurants.” Near 124th, you find Partake, the small and cosy bistro ran by Cyrilles Koppert who greets us in Dutch. In his twenties, he moved to Canada. His beef tartare and devilled eggs are so delicious; you have to watch out not to eat your fingers with them.

It is happening in Edmonton, or so it feels. A significant achievement, especially when your city had the nickname Deadmonton up to a few years ago. How did that happen? Jeremy knows the answer. “Because we are so isolated, we are self-reliant. And we have to organise our own entertainment. We became rather good at that; we perfected it.”