Travelogue: Edmonton (Days 17-19)

After a huge two-day stretch of 1400km that started in Winnipeg, we arrived in Edmonton. But first, a quick note about Saskatchewan so you don't think we're disrespecting the heart of the prairies.

We have plans to visit some great Sask spots on our way back east, including some places in southern SK that might surprise people who think this province is nothing but wheat. On this westbound leg, we had to make our way across the great expanse of prairie from Winnipeg to Edmonton with some decent speed, so Saskatoon didn't get the highlight it probably deserved.

However! We did have the chance to spend a long weekend in Saskatoon last year, and we really loved it. Playground-wise, the jewel was the playground at Wanuskewin, a heritage centre that provides some top-notch exhibits related to indigenous buffalo hunt practices.

Okay, let's hold that Saskatchewan thought for now, and get back to today's journal entry: Edmonton.

Much more than Winnipeg, Edmonton felt like a big city. A proper skyline, many bridges crossing the impressive river valley that cuts through the city centre, an extensive public transit system, and even more extensive construction. This is a real northern metropolis.

But for a playground nerd like me, where Edmonton really shines is in its playgrounds. I'm not sure if it's oil money or what, but someone is funnelling some serious money into amazing places for lucky Edmonton kids to play.

With help from fellow playground enthusiast Jill over at Edmonton Playgrounds, we were able to take in a beautiful one on our first day in the city: Hawrelak Park.

The equipment is by Earthscape; if you've followed me for a while you probably know they're my absolute favourite manufacturer, based right near us in southern Ontario. They don't just make playground equipment. It's more like public art you can climb in. (They're also fabulous people, and gave us a tour of their facility a few years back.)

Hawrelak Park was a wonderful welcome to Edmonton, and the playground reflected the natural beauty of the wider park in which it's situated.

Our second day in Alberta's capital was not great from a weather perspective, but that was just fine with us, because we spent most of the day at the city's most famous indoor space: West Edmonton Mall.

I've never been a hang-out-at-the-mall type, but West Edmonton Mall contains within it many reasons to hang out. Most of all, the waterpark.

The World Waterpark at West Edmonton Mall was amazing. And given that we were there on a week day out of season, it was relatively empty, too. We pretty much walked on to any of the countless waterslides on offer (viewed from far away they are just a tangle of staircases and spaghetti-like tubes that your eye struggles to follow) and spent plenty of time in the wave pool as well.

A small but significant detail that I liked about the wave pool: apart from being enormous, the waves don't incessantly pound you into submission. Instead, they come three at a time, before giving you a moment to catch your breath, and then three more are on their way. It also seems like the people operating it can "aim" the waves to be more central, or more to the left or right. This means that sections of the pool are less wavy than others, which is great if you have smaller kids. Probably makes it easier for the life guards to monitor as well. A nice touch.

On our way out of town, we had two more playground-related stops to make. The first was at a public school where the key piece of equipment was a "Victory Wall" - a ninja course-type element that is very challenging, but which both my kids were determined to conquer.

The second stop was in the suburb of Spruce Grove, home of Heritage Grove Park, which has an enormous skate park, pump track, and playground, and where my kids could probably have spent hours if the temperatures hadn't dropped to single digits and if we didn't have some mountains to drive towards.

We're ready for the Rockies, but Edmonton sure levelled up our prairie experience!

But before you go...if you believe in the power of play (and if you're here you probably do) please consider donating to our cross-Canada road trip by clicking here. It would mean a lot!