Calgary

[xlthumper]

Well just came back from 8 days of vacation and i have got too say that is such a beatiful province, we hit Banff, lake Louise, some Hot springs, and then jumped over to BC and hit Emerald lake and the Takakakaw falls( i think that is right)
the people in Banff are just awesome, some of the nicest and so polite. we dropped our 2 yr old of to my wifes family, they moverd there 2 yrs ago, since they have only seen him once last year and then went and played in the mountains.

Now the other thing there, is that almost every truck is new and lifted, i am talking f350 crew cab 6inch lift and 35s on nice rims, just sweet eye candy, do we have friends of CNTC in Alberta? and are their X lifted?

just thought i would share that with ya

[Snafu]

Well there is Mookie and Pete (if he still has his X).

Friend of mine picked up a truck out there. An F350 (1-ton dullie diesel) lifted and shod as as described. Done by bigasstrucks.ca. It is the first pickup I have ever been in where you are nearly eye level with semis. A sweet truck but sadly won't be taken off-road.

[Pezzy]

Well there is Mookie and Pete (if he still has his X).

And Spider 007 (he has a Mazduh pick up). And our friends from http://www.cn4xc.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[xlthumper]

i think I would be kicked out if i did not have my truck lifted and blinged....they would just point and make comments like " hey that is a cute car, nissan huh?" i would be like "no its a truck !", reply" yeah it is cute"

but there were a couple of monsters that were just covered in mud, looked sweet. my wife and i wondered if they were lifted for the snow problems.
i will check the website out that Pezzy showed should be interesting.

[Spider 007]

There are quite a few X's around here. I see them all the time and as weird as it sounds, 99% are stock. To be honnest, I think I only saw one modified X, and it only had an ARB bumper on with no winch...

Although I did manage to convince a friend who owns a 2006 OR X to get a bit of lift and he's now waiting for the parts to come in...

I think the reason for trucks here to be so big is that some of these guys work for some oil-related company that sends them all over the place. Most of the oil pumps are far from the roads and they really didn't bother making nice paths to get to them, so a decent off road truck is needed and it also needs to be able to carry quite a bit of weight because of the tool and equipment they use, so that's why you see a lot of F350's and the like. Of course, a great part of those huge lifted trucks are pavement queens just built up for looks and will never see mud... I guess it has a lot to do with that redneck mentality of "my truck is bigger than yours"!

One thing's for sure: it has nothing to do with the snow. We barely got 35cm of snow here over the whole winter last year (while Ontario and Quebec had lots and lots...) so there really is no need for such big trucks. A 4x4 is quite usefull as most of the city streets aren't plowed at all, but a small 4x4 car like a Subaru will get you around just fine.

[xlthumper]

i figured that the oil rigs or the out back construction would be the most likely reason, we saw the workers on hwy 1 going from Banff to BC they we all carrying ATV's and tools

[mookie]

i figured that the oil rigs or the out back construction would be the most likely reason, we saw the workers on hwy 1 going from Banff to BC they we all carrying ATV's and tools

Glad you enjoyed your visit! I'm headed out again to the Mountains for a few days for our last camping of the summer.
We always say that, "last camp of the season" until the next weekend. Then it's winter camping....brrrrrr.

Ton's of Seismic, Oil, Surveying, Gas around here so no wonder you saw all the trucks with quads (right, ATV's as they are referred to out east!). The dealerships here sell the trucks with lifts and tires off the lot brand new. Your choice of 3", 6" or 8" lifts.

[Nd4SpdSe]

I've been in Edmonton for the last 4 weeks, heading home for ths weekend than back for another 3. I will say I much like AB than BC. Spent some time meeting an old friend in Calgary, went to Banff a few times...man that's georgeous.. There's no real way to describe what you see execpt, even in person, it still looks like just a picture. I have seen alot of Xterra's around, even on the 2, but nothing modified as of yet. Despite going to Banff twice, I still have yet to get in the hot springs. I'll probably check out Jasper. I'd like to see what Fort Mac is about, but it's just too damn far away and nothing that much to see for what I've heard.

After being here, I really want to take a road trip to BC in the near future. Of course there probably won't be much in the Prairies, but it's all new to me.

[Spider 007]

The Hot springs in Banff are a tourist trap. There's nothing more to it than a giant pool filled with regular water... they only use the heat from the thermal source to keep it warm. If you want to see something neat, go see the Cave & Basin interpretation centre... it is far more interresting IMHO: you'll get to see the actual thermal source (and smell it too...) and you'll learn quite a bit about the history of the town.

Jasper is really nice too. It is a fair bit smaller than Banff, it also has it's share of annoying souvenir shops and the train can get very loud at times, but I find it feels a bit warmer and intimate than Banff. There's all sorts of things to do there and don't pass the chance to go up the mountain in the tramway (I don't know why they call it that, it looks more like a cable car to me... ) because the view will take your breath away! Also take the time to follow Maligne canyon up to Maligne Lake, it's a very nice drive and the scenery is amazing. If you're into hiking, there are a lot of trails around Maligne Lake that are worth the trip.

If you really don't mind the drive, the road from Jasper to Banff is by far the most beautiful I've ever seen. There is a lot to see and do on the way (the Arthabaska falls, the tour up on the glacier, hiking in Lake Louise... etc) so if you plan on doing it, figure it takes at least a full day to get from Jasper to Banff with all the stops you'll make.

I've been here for over a year now, and I am still very impressed by the size and beauty of the mountains! There is so much to see and enjoy with the Rockies that I don't think I'll ever stop being amazed at how magnificent they are.

[xlthumper]

you guys are so right just georgous and yes it does look like a picture, we will be back next year and we will check out some more remote areas. we wnet to banff inthe middle of the week so it was really quite there and that was nice. we did go to the cave and basin but too be honest it smelt like sewage so we left, but the Takakakaw falls and Emereald lake in BC were the last 2 sights and they probably made the whole trip just perfect. we would like to go to jasper and more remote areas next year. and of course when we got Back to TO it really made me love the remote areas even more!!! X fingers on the lotto tonight. hehehe

[inblack]

So Speaking of Calgary ......

I'm gonna be there Thanksgiving weekend, Thursday thru Monday am.

I have been there only once for a day when i was like 12 or something.
Where are the hot spots, Im out there for the Men's National Field Championships ....

So whats to do in the evenings for a bunch of guys 1/2 a country away from the significant others ....

LEGAL activities only please ....