My trip across Canada.

· Landforms: The landscape of British Columbia is composed of a great variety of landforms. It ranges from soaring peaks in the Rocky Mountains, to the plains in the Lower Fraser Valley and lava plateaus in the central interior. The Rocky Mountains pass through British Columbia and reach down through the United States.

· Climate: Summers are hot and sunny, with daytime temperatures often exceeding 35 °C. During summer clear, dry air allows nighttime temperatures to fall quickly. The city averages about 300 millimeters of precipitation per year, with about 1/3rd of the precipitation falling as snow. The inherent dryness of Kelowna's climate is a factor in the forest fire risk as, for example, during the Okanagan Mountain Park Fire of 2003, a large residential evacuation (over 30,000 residents) was ordered.

· Closes National Park: Myra- Bellevue Provincial Park, the historical artifacts found along the trail system and the wilderness attract many people to the park who enjoy hiking, mountain biking, bird watching, sightseeing and horseback riding in the summer. In the winter months, the trails become cross country ski and snowshoe routes.

· Industries: Service Centre, tourism, agriculture, wines, forestry

· Ecozone: Montane Cordillera

· Tourism: Kelowna Museum & British Columbia Orchard Industry Museum, Father Pandosy Mission, Rotary Centre for the Arts, forestry tours, industrial tours, winery tours, Okanagan Lake Bridge is North America's Longest Floating Bridge, waterslide park, Knox Mountain, Woodhaven Nature Conservatory, Kasugai Gardens, Art Gallery, Stuart Park on the Waterfront Promenade.

Going from Lethbridge to Kelowna, British Columbia

To get to Kelowna, BC took about 10 hours from Lethbridge, we stayed in a cozy lodge in the middle of town. The day after we drove to Myra- Bellevue Provincial Park, we snow-shoed along the routes and trails, it was really fun. We also tried some cross-country skiing which fun but really tiring. We did that during the morning and after lunch we were going to go skating. I even convinced my mom to join us. It was tough at first but once she got the hang out it she didn’t fall too much. My brother and I kept having races on the ice rink trying to see who could go faster, I won.

There wasn’t too much to do there, because it was winter, but we did go see the “Father Pandosy Mission” which was actually pretty interesting. In the 1960s, the Okanagan Historical Society took on the task of preserving the historic Pandosy Mission site on Benvoulin Road in Kelowna. It was here that Father Pandosy, an Oblate priest, established the first white settlement in the Okanagan Valley in 1859. After we got back to the hotel we all just sat around the fireplace and drank hot chocolate. It was really relaxing and we talked about trip and how we all really enjoyed it. Now all that was left was the drive back home.

Lethbridge, Alberta Information

· Latitude: 49° 41' 36.564" N

· Longitude: 112° 50' 30.624" W

· Population: 86,659 people

· Population Density: 3.5 /km²

· Landforms: The Mountains in the west help protect this area from receiving large amounts of precipitation. Most precipitation results from convectional rainfall in the summer time. Lethbridge lies southeast of Calgary on the Oldman River. Close proximity to the Rocky Mountains provides Lethbridge with cooler summers than other locations in the Canadian Prairies

· Climate: Lethbridge has a moderate continental climate with warm summers and relatively cold winters that are moderated by the Chinook winds. The area has a temperature range of about 26 degrees C and annual precipitation of around 400 mm. Lethbridge winters have the highest temperatures in the prairies, reducing the severity and duration of winter cold periods and resulting in fewer days with snow cover.

· Ecozone: Prairies Ecozone

· Closes National Park: Waterton Lakes National Park is located 270 km south of Calgary, Alberta, and 130 km Southwest of Lethbridge, Alberta.

· Industries: Initially built around agriculture and coal-mining, Lethbridge now has a diverse range of key industries within private, public and non-profit organizations. While agri-foods continue to thrive and remain one of our key industries, new and emerging sectors such as alternative energy are also gaining strength. There was also the Core Industry – what sectors provide most of the gas for the local economic engine – agriculture, transportation, manufacturing Information and Communications Technology, aerospace, alternative energy etc.

· Tourism: Some tourism areas are the interpretive centre at the reconstructed replica of Fort Whoop-Up as well as the serenely Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden created in 1967 as a centennial project and symbolizing Japanese and Canadian friendship. Also, the Southern Alberta Art Gallery, the Bowman Arts Centre and the Sir Alexander Galt Museum and Archives are good places to go when visiting Lethbridge. You can also picnic and hike the trails in Indian Battle Park.

Going from Thompson to Lethbridge, Alberta.

It only took about 17 hours or so to get to Lethbridge, Alberta. So, again, when we got there we checked into the hotel and the next day we started exploring. We couldn’t go to the national park because it was too far away but we went to the reconstructed replica of Fort Whoop-Up. There were so many things to see there, like all the old artifacts and such. It was quite a sight to see, the day after we all went to the “Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden” it was so pretty. There was a layer of snow on everything, icicles were hanging from trees, it was like a winter wonderland. There weren’t too many people there the day that we went so that was nice. After we got back to the hotel we had dinner at a fancy Italian restaurant and with that the day ended.

The next day we all went to the Southern Alberta Art Gallery, there were some interesting pieces of artwork there but still fun to look at. After lunch we went to the Sir Alexander Galt Museum which was pretty fun as well as the Bowman Arts Centre which wasn’t that bad. Around 5 we went back to the hotel and watched some movies that we brought with us because the weather was getting pretty bad. During dinner we went to the restaurant in the hotel and had a nice big family meal. When the day was coming to an end we all decided to go back to the room and go to bed early, tomorrow was going to be the last destination of our trip.

Thompson, Manitoba Information

· Latitude: 55° 45' North

· Longitude: 97° 45' West

· Population: Approximately 13,446 people

· Population Density: 3.9 /km²

· Landforms: Located in the Canadian Shield, an area known for its rugged natural beauty and abundance of natural resources. The landscape consists of many lakes, deep river valleys, boreal forest and plains which are located in the southern part of the area.. The vegetation of the area consists mainly of Boreal forest where hardy coniferous trees such as the black spruce and some broadleaf trees like the white birch are able to survive.

· Climate: Thompson, Manitoba experiences a Continental climate, that is characterized by warm temperatures in the summer and the winters are fairly cold, with quite low precipitation in both winter and summer. The temperature range is about 40°C, while the annual rain fall is around 600 millimeters, which is low, and occurs mostly in the summer months.

· Ecozone: Boreal Plains

· Closes National Park: Paint Lake Provincial Park is characterized by the waters and shores of Paint Lake, a portion of the Grass River system. Classified as a Natural Park, its purpose is to preserve areas that are representative of the Hayes River Upland portion of the Precambrian Boreal Forest Natural Region, and to accommodate a diversity of recreational opportunities and resource uses

· Industries: The primary industries are Mining and Forestry, hydro-generation, and fisheries are all important contributors to the Thompson economy, Extensive logging also occurs

· Tourism: The Northern Canadian boreal forest the city of Thompson is surrounded by wildness, creating a unique outdoor experience for locals and visitors; to the south is the Paint Lake Provincial Recreational Park which envelopes Manitoba's largest marina. Even further south are the majestic Pisew Falls, Manitoba’s highest waterfalls accessible by road. There is a golf course in town and also a river air-base where planes can be chartered to reach some of the more remote parts of the province. Mystery Mountain Winter Park hosts the town's downhill skiing, snowboarding, and cross country skiing facilities. Snowmobiling is another popular activity around Thompson, boasting more than 200 groomed trails. Another attraction is Thompson Zoo and Lights in the Wild teaches traditional ways and a chance to experience the mysterious and beautiful Northern Lights.

Going from Montreal to Thompson, Manitoba

We drove from Montreal to Thompson, Manitoba, which took about 2 days of driving to get there. We drove for one night and the other we spent in a Motel. We had to go through the USA to make the drive over to Thompson shorter. When we finally got there it was only 8 pm but we were all so tired that we checked into a hotel and went straight to bed. When we woke up the next day we went to “Mystery Mountain Winter Park” and went skiing. I fell a lot, and my mom stayed inside but Simon and Melanie were surprisingly good at it. My dad on the other hand stayed on the bunny hill with me. We tried going on a bigger hill but then I fell and one of my skis slid half way down the hill while I rolled beside it. Once I came to my feet my dad and I had a contest of who could make it down the hill first, sadly my dad won.

During the next few days, we visited some of the nature parts of the city. There were a lot of sights to see, we also went snowmobiling which was really fun, and I’ve never done it that before. As we started leaving Thompson we went to a Provincial Park called “Paint Lake Provincial Park” it had a lot of forests, but not too many hills and defiantly no mountains. We also did some shopping while we were there; there were a lot of neat stores and restaurants. There was also this little bakery that sold freshly baked muffins each day, it was the best muffin I’ve ever tasted, needless to say we bought a lot of them. So, with that, we went off to our next destination.