Ugly Side: Part 3

Calgary Transit

To most, Calgary is a city that's deemed as "rich" by much of the country and world.  Yet, we have a 3rd world transit system. 

For starters, the C Train regularly breaks down.  Follow @calgarytransit on Twitter and you'll see an "issue" at least 3 times a week.   It is impossible to rely on this system to get you places on time.  Previous governments and their pocket book mentality have created a system suitable for a town of 100,000 people, not a major city.   Further to this, the C Train cars are not all air conditioned and the old ones have no air flow at all.  It can (and does) get to 40C in these cars in summer.  Sorry about your suit.  

Now you could always take the bus.  That is of course...if you can get ON the bus.   Take Route 3 for example.  It runs every 5 minutes yet the buses are full.  So full that often times a few of them will drive by before you can get on.  I used to use this bus then realized I was just smarter to walk to work.  Other routes are the same.  Full buses with no space at all.   And if that's not bad enough the drivers turn on the heat when we don't need heat. Do we need heat in a bus with 200 people squished in like sardines?  Often times it's so hot in the buses water vapour drips down the glass.  Again, if you live anywhere in the core, just say no to the bus and walk. It's easier and faster.  Trust me.

Other examples of Calgary Transit stupidity:  When the 10th Ave C Train station was closed down, there was no warning.  When I called Calgary Transit, they told me it was "on the website".   Really?  Do they think I wake up every morning and log into the Calgary Transit website to check the news?  I found out thanks to local media 1 day before it happened.  Clearly other people did too because I walked by the platform the next morning and there was hundreds of confused people wondering what happened. 

Or how about Chinook Station.  This is one of the busiest stations in the city and guess what they are going to do with it?  They're going to close it down while they rebuild it.  25,000 people a day use this station but instead of coming up with a plan, they close it down for apparently 8 months to rebuild it.  The result will be bedlam.  

Or how about expanding the platforms to 4 cars.  This process is going to take something like 3 years.  Oddly, they can build and entire LRT line in less than 3 years (West LRT).  4 car trains would alleviate crowding but they casually set out to change the platforms.  Meanwhile in other parts of the world they can build huge dams, massive skyscrapers & or airports in less than 3 years.   In short it's a fucking joke.  It's another reminder that Calgary Transit doesn't give a shit about YOU the customer. 

I used to be a regular Calgary Transit user.  I then decided I'd just as soon walk to work.  I do.  I spent 90 minutes a day walking to work and home, but it's more pleasant (and sometimes faster than the bus).  No overcrowding, no jerking buses sending you flying.  I also save 94 bucks a month (sans a few bus tickets on rain days). 

Oh and one last thing.  Calgary Transit has no AC on buses.  Needless to say, during summer, it's very sunny and very hot here.  The buses heat up to the point where people pass out.  I've seen men and women dripping with sweat.  It's uncomfortable walking home with business clothes on in 30C, but less so than being on the bus.  At least you get fresh air. 

Ugly side Part 2

The negative side of living in Calgary:  A city with it's head in it's ass. 


Until recently, there was a giant hole in the ground in the Mission.  It was there for 6-8 years.  Truth is, I have no idea how long it's been.   A few blocks away, there are several boarded up houses on 18th Ave.  They've been like that for 5 years.  Same can be found throughout Calgary, especially in the urban areas.  Houses which remain boarded up for years.   You don't have to be born in Detroit to know that a boarded up house doesn't help a neighborhood.  Nor does a big hole in the ground blocking the sidewalk. 

What does the city do?  Well you can complain to the city, but chances are they will do jack shit.  Case in point is John Mar, my own alderman.  Mr Mar has little to say about gaping holes in the ground or boarded up houses.  Yet, when some hippie woman and her kid planted potatoes (to give to the food bank), Mr Mar freaked out and called in bylaw.  The story hit the newspaper.  Now, it was on  a vacant lot (with a absentee landlord) so it was private property but so what.  It's OUR neighborhood, not some asshole absentee landlord.  Yet clearly "Potatogate" was an issue while boarded up crack houses are not. 

And how about parking?   A while back I was standing out front of my condo waiting for a taxi.  I stood watching TWO city parking workers measure to see if a car was too close to the stop sign.  Both of there brought out tape measures, chalk and a long stick to ascertain if the car was.  As I stood there I was reminded of no less than 2 boarded up houses within 2 blocks of where I was.  And I was reminded how the intersection I often walk through has cars who just stop in the middle making it impossible to cross.  Clearly, parking is a high priority in the City of Calgary whereas derelict houses are not. 

Same can be said for the Bylaw Zealots who drive around.  I was helping a buddy fill up a truck after he reno'd his house.  The truck was in the back (big truck for the dump) and bylaw stopped.  They proceeded to lecture us about all the material piled up beside the garage of this house in the alley.   Well duh, that's what the junk truck was for.  He then proceeded to say that just having it there could lead to a ticket.  My response was less than polite & that maybe they should go do something worthwhile with their time as Calgary has a fair share of "serious problems".  

In short, in Calgary, derelict houses are GOOD, parking too close to the stop sign is BAD.  These are the priorities of local city council.   In Calgary, it's all about revenue generation. 

Now the ugly side of things

For the most part I've remained positive on the experiences of "Moving to Calgary".  I believe that finding the good in life simply puts you in a better frame of mind.  Yet, I've had complaints on this blog about how come I never point out the bad side of Calgary.   So I shall


Chapter 1:  If you are a renter

I've rented numerous apartments in my life.  I've had good and bad experiences.  I can say that home ownership brings it's own set of challenges (like making it hard to move if you live next door to a douche).

Renting in Calgary and in Alberta is most likely going to be a bad experience.  Rental costs in Calgary are as high, or higher, than what you would find in the West End of Vancouver.  Often, you will pay outrageous rental costs for buildings that are "sub par" on the best of days.  I know personally of people who have suffered through slum lord type of conditions.  In one case, I went to visit a friend in a building managed by a well known property company.  They had 1 elevator out of service & the other was on "move in".  The result was that everyone had to use the stairs to go up.  That day I just happened to be on crutches due to a previous accident.  7 flights of stairs with a near broken foot.  The person in the building later moved. 

And speaking from personal experience, I once lived in a building in Calgary in an urban area.  The landlord (another well known company) refused to put working locks on the door.  The result was all types of scumbags would come in the building.  Of course nothing says "surprise" like some crack head in your laundry room routing through your wet clothes.   A drug den was later set up behind the place & the company refused to put out any lights.  In fact, it was pitch black back there.  The result was several folks on my floor just vacated their units because they were so afraid.   I also vacated the property & was advised I was in "breach" of my lease.  My response was I had ample evidence of their negligence & told the property manager I would share my findings with every tenant & prospective tenant that came to the building.   I also said they were welcome to sue me (I quote "I dare you, I double dare you motherfucker").   The result was they found a "loophole" to get me out of the building mid lease.  The place was full of bedbugs too but thankfully were not in my unit.  Regardless, I slept on a blow up bed for 5 months for fear my expensive bedding would be ruined. 

Another time, while living in Edmonton, I arrived to find my new apartment still filthy dirty.  I signed off on the apartment as "filthy dirty", took pictures and cleaned it myself.  When I moved out, I left it as I received it (filthy).  The landlord made it clear I would be paying for the cleanup, but a quick trip to the Alberta rental disagreement people (use it) and I received my entire deposit back. 

In fact, this specific landlord (another major company) was unreal.  I met a guy who lived on my floor and was moving out.  He had to leave by noon on the last day of the month BUT was just moving down the hall.  The unit was empty BUT they told him he could not take possession of the unit until the next day.   He was forced to move ALL his furniture down to the truck, sleep in the truck overnight & then move it all back upstairs the next day...3 doors from his original place.  I'm not lying. 

I could go on with horror stories, but expect them.  If you can, buy a house or a condo...it'll save you the grief and it'll cost the same anyway.  

What should you do in Alberta if you rent?

1.  Understand that being polite & sensible does not work.  You are required to be an asshole & escalate EVERY issue you have to every single email you can

2.  Threaten to inform the rest of the tenants about your issues.  If there is a clause in the lease that prohibits you from doing this, threaten to stand outside on public property and hand out flyers.  And then do it.  You only need to do it once. 

3.  Document everything.  Take photos & notes of the problems, even problems that aren't affecting you.  List the time, date & where it happened with a photo (with a date).   When I fought the landlord that refused to put locks on the doors (which lead to addicts in the building) I had over 30 pages of complaints with photos & dates.   The result was that the "judge" in the case (it's some type of rental tribunal thing) chastized the landlord & set out a directive to have them fix the issues within a certain time frame.  In short, I won. 

4.  Just as important, mail your local MLA and the mayor.  Advise them of how SICK and TIRED you are of dealing with this type of treatment.  Once you've said that remind them that this type of issue does not make folks want to move here.  I'm a senior professional & I can find work in pretty much any city.  Why would I move to Calgary if I had to rent (and most people rent the first year or two).   I would simply stay put or go elsewhere.  In my own case, I did (Vancouver). 

Ah, the Alberta election

Some time ago I wrote a post about how Ed Stelmach didn't have much of a future & it was likely the Wildrose Party would crush him.   Well I was right about Eddie boy, but wrong about the Wildrose Party. 

I admit to being interested in the Wildrose Party when they first surfaced in the Alberta electoral landscape.  The party was, at the time, essentially Danielle Smith.   She was articulate & the party had some ideas I thought were pretty good.   Ideals like allowing tax deductions for volunteered time & asking how come the tax write off for political donations was higher than those for your typical charity.  Later, Ms Smith then publicly stated she was not interested in using attack ads in any future election campaigns. 

Generally I hate pretty much all politicians.  While they may have grand ideas, in the long term they become like the Borg on Star Trek.  Ideas are formulated not for the benefit of the electorate, but for the benefit of the party (and to keep them in power).   Ms Smith and her party did just that.

Just a day after Alison Redford won the leadership of the PC's, the WR immediately released an attack ad.  The ad's focused on her party prior to her being in power & implied she was part of that.  It ignored that the PC Party was generally "top down" & decisions were mostly made by leaders.  I found the advertisements ridiculous because it assumed she would change nothing now that she COULD change it.

When the election writ was dropped, the PC's had a good lead.  That lead was eroded thanks to some of their past surfacing & because of some bungling by the newbie Redford.  The WR made gains but I firmly believed they would not win.  I'd written this controversial opinion in a newspaper stating that WR would never win a majority and that the media did not understand Alberta.  Truth is, I really came to understand Alberta when I lived in Edmonton.  It became clear that the "deep south" of Alberta IS Wildrose Country.  Calgary is not.  Calgary is too young & too cosmopolitan to vote in the WR even if the stereotype is different.  Once you head north, they too are PC supporters.  Central and North Alberta is oil country & oil types did not like the WR policy of land rights for land owners.  It would have created a mess for those in the energy industry.  And what of Edmonton?  While Edmonton is a gritty, blue collar & practical city, it's also somewhat left wing (in the Alberta sense).  Hey, it's home to the lone seat of the Federal NDP party in Old Strathcona.

The true colours of the WR Party came out during the election.  Comments made by a candidate about gays living in a lake of fire didn't go over so well.  Nor did comments about whites being able to speak for everyone.  Noted is that both of those candidates had their asses handed to them in the election.

And while such comments are abominable & disgusting, the real colours of the WR shone through AFTER the election.   After the crushing defeat, Danielle Smith said she might need to "re-investigate" some of her parties policies.  So you lost because of your policy so now your policy will be to change to whatever gets you in office?   I believe it was Ghandi that said all politics must have principle.  Clearly, that quote escaped Ms Smith & the WR party. 

Finally, this last election was another reminder to those in Alberta & across the country.  Alberta IS changing.  Just as Calgary voted in a mayor who is brown & a Muslim, Alberta voted in a leader who is center right & progressive.  These two elections pointed out what some of us living out here already knew.  It's not 1980 in Calgary anymore, it's 2012.  Things change & thankfully for the better. 

Go West Young Man: Vancouver

Ah Vancouver.  A city that cast a spell over me from the minute I drove into it.  I could go on endlessly about how awesome it is but this is a blog about Calgary.  I will write about Vancouver & my experiences, but it will not be the focal point of this blog. 

If you've never experienced Vancouver, you should.  I can completely understand why it's considered by so many to be one of the best places to live in North America.  By the time I'd parked my car at the hotel I was staying at I had it set in concrete that I would be moving there sometime in my future.  

I was there for 4 days.  I did not want to leave.  Thankfully, I had to return many many times in the last few years..

Go West Young Man: Fraser River Valley

In the summer of 2010 I headed into the Fraser River Valley for the first time since I was a kid.  Rihanna was playing on Beat 94.5 Vancouver.  The first thing I noticed was how green everything was.  The sides of mountains were covered with ferns & plants of all types.  Water seemed to flow everywhere and the sky was heavily overcast.  To the right of me there was a very large river (Fraser River). 

It was at that very moment I knew THIS was home.  This was where I was supposed to live & this would be where I WOULD live. 

You enter the Lower Mainland just as you pass Hope, BC.  The road levels out & while you're still surrounded by mountains, the Trans Canada is quite flat.  You officially leave the mountains when you enter Chilliwack, a BC city of about 100,000 people.  While I love nature & I love the mountains, there was always a feeling of relief coming into Chilliwack.  It seemed to mark the end of a long journey & the rebirth of civilization.  No more was CBC Radio the only choice on your car radio (not that CBC is bad, I happen to like some of it). 

The Lower Mainland is endless miles of farms growing all types of produce.  It's also a pretty rainy area too.  Personally I found it refreshing after several years of bone dry Alberta summers & brown grass & gardens.  The Lower Mainland just feels alive.   You pass Abbotsford, Langley & in some cases you are only a few kilometers to the US border.  This my friends is "weed country" lol. 

Once you reach Surrey, BC, that's when Metro Vancouver really begins.  The traffic gets very heavy and seemed to be perpetually congested at the Port Mann Bridge.  Once over the Port Mann Bridge, you need to learn to drive like you're from Vancouver

What's that like?  Well for starters, folks in BC are environmentally friendly types & as such they have a permanent HOV lane.  Don't drive in this lane unless you have a full car or you're operating a city bus.  The city surrounds you, and if this is your first trip, you need to pay close attention to what you're doing.  The road changes quickly.  The Government of BC also takes a dim view of anyone using a cell phone while driving. 

When you reach East Hastings you exit the highway and head into downtown.  I'll go more into details about East Hastings & the neighborhoods of Vancouver as time passes. This blog is about Calgary and ostensibly the focus should be on life in Calgary, not Vancouver. 

Go West Young Man: The Coquihalla

After leaving Merritt, BC, you drive up.  And up. And up. And up.  You're now driving into the Cascade Mountain range.  The Cascades are the final mountain range to cross before you enter the Fraser River Valley.

Unlike Rogers and Kicking Horse Pass, the road through the Coquihalla is 4 lanes.  It's a well maintained highway with good lighting, good pavement & roadside bathrooms & points of interest.  At this point you're about 300 kms away from Vancouver but it doesn't feel that way lol. 

Don't let the 4 lane highway & scenery of this area fool you.  This is wild rugged country.  This is also the first mountain range that all that moist Pacific air meets.  The result?  It snows like a motherfucker in the Coquihalla.   In the winter of 2011-12, snow pack was nearly 1000 cms.  The first thing I noticed was how the road signs were very high up on poles.  The second I noticed that even though it was summer..there was still snowbanks 6 to 10 feet high.   The Coquihalla also has some of the steepest hills I've ever seen.  If you are traveling west, one of these hills is named "Hells Gate".   I put my car in neutral and let it coast down the hill.  Half the way down I was up past 160 km per hour.  This is a steep hill.  On the east bound side, trucks crawl up this hill, lucky to get over 20 km per hour.  Even a car with a good sized motor is challenged by this.   There are numerous chain up areas if you happen to be driving a truck.  You HAVE to chain up.  It's the law & the first time you go through this area in a snow storm, you'll understand why. 

I drove through this area many times during bad weather.  The weather changes extremely quickly and can get very nasty.  Trucks regularly get stuck going up the hill & block the lanes causing everyone to slow down.  The result is that YOU probably get stuck & it takes forever to get your car going again.  If the road is not clear you're heading up a steep grade, trying to push snow out of your way.  If the "chain up lights" are on and you are not a good winter driver, stop your car and go back.  If you happen to be a fan of snow, well enjoy.  There is lots of it.  On several occasions I left the Lower Mainland in a T shirt only to find myself in a ass kicking blizzard in the Coq. 

This is also an area with high avalanche risks.  A few times I was driving back from Vancouver & the conditions were perfect for an avalanche.  I actually got to witness a few small avalanches happen while I was driving.   The picture above is that of the Great Bear Snowshed.  The lack of trees is because the snow wiped everything out. 

Go West Young Man: Beyond Kamloops

When you come driving into Kamloops, the first thing you notice is that it's extremely hilly.  The main highway seems to be one huge ass hill that you climb up for miles & miles.  The highway then separates into Hwy 5 (Coq) and the Trans Canada (Hwy 1).   Hwy 5 is a better choice as it is 4 lanes right through to Hope.  At one time it was a toll road, but once it was paid for, the government of BC nixed the tolls (cool if you ask me).

As you head out past Kamloops, it seems like you are either going up a very large hill or down a very large hill.  It's not mountainous per se, but this rolling type of land.  I have no idea of the elevation, but I got the feeling I was on top of a very high plateau.   Many times through this area I experienced some pretty kick ass winds & some snow.  Luckily the highway is rather wide & rarely if ever busy

Some 60ish km's past Kamloops, you start going downhill into the Nicola Valley.  I took a photo of the sign and yes..it's all downhill for 19kms.  It's pretty cool to roll down the hill & the view is quite spectacular.  Like the area just east of Kamloops, this area looks to be deforested.  It's mostly grass with some trees & looks to be heavily farmed.

At the bottom of the hill is Merritt, BC, a small town built around logging.  Merritt is just a few thousand people but the last stop before you press through the next ridge of mountains.  There are two off ramps to Merritt and take the FIRST one. The second one sends you on a short country drive winding your way into downtown.  Merritt is a good place to fuel up, eat or grab a hotel as the next part of the trip is the Coquihalla.  

Merritt is apparently used as a place for filming movies & TV shows.  I can't explain why, but I always felt "on edge" when I was there.  I have no reason to feel that way & experienced nothing bad there, but I just felt on edge.  Don't let that stop you from stopping. 

Once you leave Merritt, you start climbing up a hill into the Cascade Mountains into an area known the the Coquihalla.  (coke key halla).   The highway & region are known by locals as the "Coke" or "Coq".  

Go West Young Man: Salmon Arm/Shuswap

Once you leave Revelstoke, your cell phone goes dead and you head into the Three Valley Gap.  As you enter this area, there is a hotel that looks and feels like the hotel in the movie The Shining.  I've never stayed but I've read this place is off grid & produces it's own electricity.  Hence, you don't get creature comforts like AC when it's hot.  Did I mention the interior of BC gets hot?  I read a few reviews on TripAdvisor & some folks complained about the place being a bit "rudimentary".  I really have little sympathy for those people.  Look man, it's the interior of BC & one of the most rugged areas in Canada. 

As you pass Three Valley Gap the wilds of BC continue for about another 40 kms.  Cell phone service is non existent as is FM radio.  The first sign of civilization is Sicamous, a small town which looks like it was built around logging.   Not long after that you come into the Shuswap. 

The Shuswap is much like cottage country north of Toronto, only it's nicer.  It's an area filled with a winding lake, beautiful vistas & what seems like hundreds of houseboats.  The main city in the area is Salmon Arm, a small, modern city which is actually quite nice.  It was the place where I usually bought fuel, so, if time permitted, I'd take a walk along the water or downtown.  If you're heading out this way, take a few hours to stop & enjoy. 

Once you pass Salmon Arm, you continue in the Shuswap and head toward Sorrento.  The mountains are noticeably smaller here as is the amount of snow in winter.  Summer temperatures get VERY warm & in winter temps seemed to hover around freezing.  I never experienced any bad weather in the many times I drove this route.

Sorrento, BC is a small town along the highway and it's beautiful.  I get the feeling it's both a vacation spot (summer) and retirement area (year round).  IF you're a photographer, bring your camera & bring some time to stop and take photos. 

Once you pass Sorrento, you head toward Chase, BC, which is a small town with a few stores and gas station.  Chase seems to mark the end of the Shuswap.  The terrain is that of rolling hills in a river valley, much of the hills deforested (often just dirt).  About 20kms past Chase, BC, you start to notice civilization against as you enter Kamloops. 

I won't write anything about Kamloops as I didn't spend much time there.  I did stop there on the "drive from hell" to find a liquor store.  The fog reminded me of being in Newfoundland.  Kamloops is a city of about 60,000 people, so it has a full variety of services. 

Go West Young Man: Revelstoke

Chances are, you've never been to Revelstoke, BC.  If you have, chances are you stopped at the McDonalds, A&W or Tim's along the Trans Canada and then continued your journey.  That's exactly what I did until I was stranded in Revelstoke due to avalanche problems through Rogers Pass.  It was the best vacation that was a non vacation that I've ever had.

Revelstoke holds the Canadian record for snowfall in a year.  The record happened in 1974 where a whopping 24 meters (or about 75 feet) of snow fell. Word is it's a common place to get stranded when there are avalanche problems.  I had just that happen after leaving Vancouver one Sunday against better judgement (and not just my own).  After a drive that takes the gold medal in "snow" I finally arrived in Revelstoke.  I would have continued but that was simply impossible because the road was closed from Revelstoke to the Alberta border. 

There were several hotels along the highway, but I figured WTF, I'd head into the town and see what I could find.  I am glad I did.  I found myself at the Swiss Chalet Motel.   This unassuming little hotel is near central Revelstoke & was a great deal.  The room was less than $80 bucks for the night & included breakfast (which you cook yourself).  I can't say enough great things about this place either.  A great room with a new flat panel TV, wireless internet & my room had a kick ass bathroom in it.  The free breakfast is served in a main area where the check-in desk is.  It's a full breakfast & the cool part is you get to make it yourself.  The hotel has waffle makers, toasters, etc all in the main room.  The area also had a TV in this "lounge" which the staff put on The Weather Network.  Clearly I wasn't the only guy stranded in this place.  If you want more information on this place check out Tripadvisor for the ratings. 

After eating, I set out to explore downtown Revelstoke.  What an incredibly quaint and cool little town.  The city core is filled with a huge variety of ethnic restaurants, pubs & bars.  It had what appeared to be a farmers market, along with a variety of interesting and cool little stores there.  This is a mountain town along the lines of Jasper or Canmore in terms of amenities.  Lots of choices & a place you could easily spend a few days exploring on foot.  They even have a theatre (see photo) which plays well known Hollywood fare. 

I don't know what the ski hill is like, but word is that it's quite good & has lots of powder.  Given that the town is so modern & cosmopolitan, if you board, you might want to make a trip out there.  It's about 400ish km's from Calgary and 600 km from Vancouver.  Revelstoke is a gem hidden in the mountains and I'm glad I found it.  It's a place I'll definitely return to and serendipity just happened to put me there for a few days. 

Go West Young Man: God's Country

On your way out of Golden, BC, I'd recommend you refuel your car & definitely have some type of survival pack & food to take with you.  For starters, the next gas station is about 150 kms in front you.  While that might not seem far for those of you in small cars, it's best to have fuel because this area of road is probably the most unpredictable areas of the Trans Canada Highway.   On several occasions I've been either delayed a few hours due to weather or heavy snow forces you to turn around.  When they are shelling the mountainside, you can sit in your car and wait for hours for the road to open. 

Leaving Golden, you follow what I assume is the Kicking Horse river valley.  To the left of you you'll see the menacing looking Kootenay's off in the distance.  The drive in this area is actually quite flat & does not feel that isolated.  Traffic in all months is common & there are houses, farms & shops along the highway for the first 20 or 30 minutes.   There isn't much to listen to on the car radio, but you can still hear CBC Radio 2 which I think was at 104.9 but honestly I can't remember. 

The entire world changes when you come around a bend and cross a bridge over this river.  I've no idea what river it is, only that it starts a long drive uphills into the Kootenay's.   It's not long after you cross this bridge you enter what most folks would call "God's Country".   The area in summer has a fair bit of traffic, but in winter most of what you'll see is truck drivers.  The area is serviced by Telus and Bell but if you use Rogers, you'll  have no service (ironic given it's Rogers Pass). 

I'm guessing it's about 60 km's outside of Golden, BC that you hit Glacier National Park.  This is an incredibly isolated area with little to no roadside services, no towns & no people.  It's common to see animals along the road & the scenery is stunning.  If you drive this part of the Trans Canada at night, be prepared for some serious ass darkness.  If you drive this part of the road in winter, be prepared for some serious ass snow.  And when I say serious, I don't mean 20 cms of on the ground, I mean 600-1000 cms of snow on the ground. 

Halfway through Glacier National Park (thereabouts) you'll reach the summit of Rogers Pass.  The summit is around 4500 feet about sea level & it feels like one of the most isolated areas of Canada that I've visited.  At the top there is a hotel which is complete with a restaurant if you need to stop.  There are also large areas to park your RV, truck, etc, as this is an area where folks park and wait when there is an avalanche or while they are blasting to prevent avalanches.  It's incredibly beautiful and well worth the effort to stop the car & take a walk.  There are side roads you can go up, if you want to get a view of the mountains around you.

If you don't like winter driving, I'd seriously recommend you do not drive through here in winter (Oct to April).   Rogers Pass gets upward of 10 meters of snow annually (that's 30 feet).  If you can imagine one of those 3 story walk up's you've seen, well imagine it covered with snow.  I cannot remember a single time I drove through this area during winter when it was not snowing to some degree. 

It's not far from Rogers Pass that you'll encounter your first snow shed (see picture).  Snow sheds were built to stop frequent avalanches from burying the highway (and trapping people inside).  Take care when you enter them because they the sheds in Rogers Pass area are not well lit & your eyes suddenly have to adapt to dark.  There are also cases of wild animals wandering into these things & once inside you've got no place to go to swerve to miss whatever animal is in the road.

This is one of my favourite areas to drive through BC.  Just being out there, in a car, is quite relaxing, especially in winter (I'm a winter fan).   If you need a place to de-stress this is the place.  Standing in Glacier or Revelstoke Park it's hard to imagine there are 7 billion people on this planet.   You also realize how insignificant you are in this world & how much you rely on machines.  I often shuddered to imagine what would happen if my car broke down in this area. 

If you do drive this area, take extra caution, ensure you have fuel & best to bring along food & something to keep warm with.  This is a rough, wild area of Canada & the weather is predictable. You can climb out of a valley with a temp of 10C and find yourself in a white out at the top of a mountain.  If you're not a confident driver comfortable with the woods a breakdown in this area can turn into something ugly very quickly.  Revelstoke is a long drive in front of you. 

And speaking of Revelstoke...

Go West Young Man: Welcome to BC

If you ask most people they'll tell you that the mountains begin just before Canmore, AB.  While that's technically true, once you've crossed BC a few times you realize those are really just big foothills ;-)

Once you pass Lake Louise, AB, you really start to get into the true isolation of the Rockies.  The road narrows & there is far less traffic than there is throughout most of the Bow River Valley.  Just past the border of BC is the Spiral Tunnel on the CPR line.  It's a huge tunnel they literally drilled through a mountain.  In my opinion, this is where the isolation of the Rockies truly begin & where the best scenery starts.   As you pass this you head down a very large hill into the Kicking Horse River pass.  At the bottom of the hill there is a stretch of about 10 kms of highway that follow the river.  To the left is Field BC, a small town of 250 people & one that has absolutely no cell service.  This continues on all 3 carriers for about another 40 kms.  If you like music while driving, bring an iPod because there is absolutely nothing on the radio except distance AM stations. 

As you pass press toward Golden, BC, the area continues to be isolated.  There is a short break as the road opens up to 4 lanes, but then it narrows down to 2 lanes in what's best described as that "road in the mountains James Bond drove on".   You enter it by going over a very large bridge that apparently took years to carve through the rocks.  It's also incredibly steep & it makes for one VERY interesting drive in winter (if you can't drive in snow, do NOT go here lol).  

Once you pass this area, the road snakes itself along the side of the mountain.  And I literally mean snakes.  One shoulder is a large rock face, sometimes covered with fencing so rocks will not fall on the car.  The other shoulder is the edge of a 1000 meter embankment.  The speed limit is 30kmph & rightfully so.  I have driven through this area in heavy fog and some seriously heavy snow all the while thinking that if you skidded off the road, it's a long long way down.  It's around this point that your cell phone comes alive as does your radio.  Some local AM station is available, but rarely seems to have a live body in the studio.  Oddly, you can pick up CBC Radio 2 in the area...yet there is no local transmitter.  I'm not sure where it comes from, but looking on a CBC map I could not figure out where.  I've many fond memories of coming back to Calgary listening to Strombo's Show on CBC R2 on Sunday night. 

At the end of this snaky road, you find the small mountain town of Golden, BC.  It's situated in a valley between the Kootenay and Rocky Mountains.  Driving into town, there is a long line of truck stops, restaurants & hotels (for some good prices) if you need to eat, pee or sleep.  It's quite busy in summer, but in winter there are few people around & many of the places are closed. 

One other thing Golden acts as is a place for refuge during avalanches.  The highway near Field BC is often closed as is the road from Golden to Revelstoke.  In 2010, the road into Golden was closed nearly 5 straight days & folks in Field apparently couldn't get in or out. 

On to Rogers Pass. 

Go West Young Man

Around the summer of 2010, I ventured out to Vancouver for what would soon become an almost weekly occurrence.  Having never been to Vancouver, I decided I'd drive & make my first solo trip through the Rockies. 

When you live in Western Canada, you have a whole new world of "vacation" places you can travel too.  The Yukon & NWT is a short plane trip away.  Vancouver, Seattle & Portland are less than a good day's drive.   San Fran, LA and San Deigo are a couple of hours on a plane (shorter than flying back to Toronto). 

I made the trip across the mountains for nearly 1.5 years, in all types of weather & in all 4 seasons.  If you want to experience the "Truth North Strong and Free", a trip through BC is definitely something you need to undertake.  It's a long, beautiful and very isolated drive.  In fact, the only drive more isolated is when you drive to Yellowknife NWT (take a plane unless you have LOTS of time).  

I'll skip Canmore & Banff & start as you past Lake Louise. 

Calgary Hail Storm

Unless you've been living under a rock this year you've probably seen we've had some wild, nasty weather across North America.  Debilitating drought, smothering heat & what seems to be an unusually high number of storms.

Alberta has it's fair share of bad weather.  Bad weather has repeatedly hit Edmonton & the Big Valley Jamboree was forced to end early due to bad weather.   You may remember the Big Valley Jamboree as the place where the stage collapsed in 2009.  I was living in Edmonton at the time & we had a nasty thunderstorm that day.

Yet, in all this bad weather, Calgary has mostly been spared.  There have been weather warnings and a few storms, but nothing really bad.  If you live in Calgary, you know summer often brings dangerous weather.  One thing I have to say about thunderstorms in Alberta is that they need to be taken seriously.

Last night Calgary had it's first truly bad storm.  The sky looked like a camera's flash going off every second.  The storm was centered more over Airdrie, a small town just north of the city, but some areas of Calgary got it.  Hail started falling, some as large as small softballs started falling.  You can tell it's ugly outside when you can hear the hail smashing things.  This morning the Calgary Herald had reports of "millions" of dollars in potential damage and some cool pictures (click on the link).

On the plus side, this storm looks to be bring in some cooler weather.  Summer here has been usually hot with temps at 27 or 28C daily.  While that might not seem hot for folks living in the East or the USA, the sun in Alberta is exceptionally strong.  That, coupled with low humidity & blue skies make for some very hot weather in the direct sun.

One note:  If you are moving to Calgary & own a reasonably decent car, I'd suggest underground parking.  It will save you the cost of repairing your vehicle or driving around with little dents in it (like mine). 

The Rental Market

A long time friend of mine is trying to find a new place to rent.  He currently lives in a good downtown neighborhood, but has a smaller & older basic studio apartment.  After 4 years there, he'd like to move into something nicer.

The problem is he can't. 

Let me predicate this by saying he's not what you'd classify as a "bad tenant".  He has a stable job, which pays him a decent income.  He's a quiet guy & isn't someone who has loud crazy parties.  He doesn't ask much of people, is low key and generally in the background.  Having been to his place he's neither messy nor destructive.   In short, he's probably what most people would see as a good tenant.

Yet, his level of frustration in finding a place to rent is out of this world.  He contacts landlords about rental properties, yet often doesn't receive an acknowledgment.  The few times he gets to a viewing, often times he applies but hears nothing back from the landlord.  This is a frustration I've heard from other people attempting to find rentals out here.  Now, granted, he is only looking in specific areas & each of these areas is desired by most folk.  Of course that leads to the inevitable supply & demand thing...with more demand than supply.  I suspect that because of the high demand, more than a few people 'grease" the landlord with, um, a cash gift shall we say.

Now, I am a  pro free market kind of guy (hey, I had my own business).  I'm not a fan of Ontario style rent control & even when I rented in Ontario I wasn't.   And I recognize that being a landlord is real tough sometimes.  It's certainly not something I'd ever want to be.  Yet, I find it incredibly hard to defend landlords in Calgary.  There seems to be this short term "get the money now and fuck everything else" mentality.   It defies the business logic of building long term customer relations. 

But this extends beyond a buddy having a hard time finding a decent place to rent.  In the greater scheme of things it's just one less reason for people to relocate to Calgary.  In the age of information, word gets out about things quickly. 

Calgary is currently experiencing a labour shortage.  That shortage extends from those that wash dishes right on up to well schooled in demand professionals.  ALL of those people are likely going to rent an apartment if they make their way out to Calgary.  If the rental market is lousy, it's just one less reason for them to relocate to Calgary.

For that person working in say a kitchen, are they going to relocate to Calgary to make 2 dollars an hour more than where they live now?  Not likely.  Why would they?  It makes little economic sense. 

And what of that person who is a seasoned professional in their trade (I'm in that category FWIW).  Assume they live in Toronto or Vancouver & are offered a position in Calgary.  How are they going to react when they reach out to connect with a landlord but repeatedly get NO reply at all?   It certainly doesn't give a good impression to a newcomer.   And, for those living in Calgary, it certainly leaves a bad taste in your mouth.  If you're a landlord reading this might I suggest you take a minute to reply to a call or email sent to you.  In case you've forgotten, part of your job IS to communicate to people.  Good times don't last forever & when the next oil bust comes (and it will), your tenants will have a plethora of choices available to them.   A person doesn't necessarily like getting a rejection, but, in time, it will resonate far more positively than not answering at all. 

Don't believe me?  Ask anyone that's used online dating & doesn't get a reply to the initial email they send out.  Dating site refugees are usually bitter & angry people...much like your tenants.  Remember that. 

The Shallow End

In a recent blog post I mentioned it had been 5.5 years since I'd left Ontario and moved back to Alberta.  Much has changed in my life in that time, but I suppose I could say that for everyone and everywhere.

One of the uglier trends I've noticed in this city in the last few years is the rising level of impatience & the lack of manners.  For many years, Calgary was a place where car drivers would stop to let pedestrians cross the road.  It was a place where people were generally polite & friendly to each other in traffic, on the street & in social settings.  One would get on an elevator and normal behaviour would be to say hello to the other person.  The same could be said if you were out walking your dog.

Now that behaviour isn't completely gone, but it seems it's become more uncommon since the economic meltdown in late 2008.  A walk downtown in the morning and it's likely you will nearly get hit by a car.  If you don't experience that, you will experience the regular sound of car horns as impatient people release their frustration on their horn.  The nature of my work makes me a very mobile person but, like many, I do end up walking downtown in Calgary at times.

What I do notice is how much it feels like Toronto now.  People move quickly.  A ride on transit, especially the C Train, and the aggressive nature of people comes out...especially when trying to get a seat.  If you happen to be one of those people that walk slowly and you don't move to the side of the sidewalk, you'll experience the "huff" of people frustrated that you aren't going fast enough.   I spent several years working in the core of downtown Toronto & I find the vibe very much the same.  Noted is that this level of impatience didn't seem to exist prior to the recession.  One might try to blame it on a poor job market, but Calgary's job market is quite robust right now. 

Are we the "New Toronto".  Saying so would boil the blood of long time Albertans, but the fact is..in some ways, yes we have adopted traits of corporate Toronto.  Why have we become this way?  I'll explore my theories in a blog in the future. 

P.S.

I'll ask for forgiveness on my writing & punctuation skills.  It's been a while since I actually sat down & wrote anything. 

Calgary 'hoods: Beltline

                                **photo taken from the Wikipedia article on Beltline, Calgary**


The minor recession of 2009 aside, Calgary is a city that continues to grow. Many of it's neighborhoods have been gentrified in the past 10 years (and often not for the better). 

The Beltline is the largest of the downtown neighborhoods in Calgary.  It runs east to west from about Macleod Trail to 14th St SW & the downtown rail way tracks to 17th Ave SW.  The area has a mixed bag of residents.  There are those living in upscale condo's or heritage homes, and, at the other end of the spectrum, those living in run down apartments or houses.  In some situations, these residents could very well be next door neighbors (as odd as that sounds).  It is one of the last remaining areas of urban Calgary that has not been gentrified & overrun by yoga shops & martini bars. 

It's arguable, but the west side of the Beltline would probably be considered the "nicer" side.  A walk down the street and you'll generally find well kept buildings, larger trees & a relatively quiet area (at least relative in the sense it's 1 km from downtown).  The east side is a bit rougher around the edges.  Street prostitution is common on 12th-15th Ave SW once you get east of 4th Street.  There are noticeably more homeless & those who are destitute.  The Mustard Seed, a non profit organization dedicated to providing "basic human services" is in the East Beltline as are other places designed to help the poor & addicted. 

What type of business is found here?  Well everything from swank, upscale restaurants & martini bars to dingy, hole in the wall pizza places & liquor stores. 

Beltline is one of the last urban areas of Calgary that has not been gentrified.  Mission, Kensington, Marda Loop..have all been overrun by upscale martini bars & yoga studios.  The Beltline has not.  It's a place that still has some "grit" to the streets & it is a neighborhood with soul.  Sadly, in a city awash in oil wealth & with a penchant to be "upscale" I suspect it's days are numbered.  Each year you see more upscale condo's and less plain old 3 story walk ups.  Many of those that exist are no longer rentals but have been converted to condo's. 

In Calgary there is often talk of how we do not hold on to the past....how we level everything that is old and replace it with something new.  What we never talk about is how our urban streets continue to be gentrified & turned into the equivalent of Queen Street in Toronto.   Once vibrant & cool, these neighborhoods are now overrun by hipsters & wanna be artsy types who are likely to be seen sipping an over-priced latte while doing whatever on their Macbook.   As much as they don't want to believe it, it has very little to do with being creative & individualistic & more about assimilating and fitting in.  

You cannot design or build a cool neighborhood.  It's a collection of people and business who have a vested interest in the area that goes beyond profit.  Anyways, I'll shut up now. 

A bridge...err tunnel to nowhere

If you've lived in Calgary for any length of time, you've probably seen public infrastructure that makes you shake your head.   Take the Deerfoot Trail, Calgary's major highway.  Drive the Deerfoot & you can't help but notice how it goes from 3 lanes down to 2 lanes then back to 3 lanes for no reason.   Or how about the C - Train?  The C Train, while crowded, is a efficient light rail transit until it reaches downtown Calgary.  Once in downtown, it runs along a road which has pedestrians & intersections where it comes in close proximity with vehicles.  The result?  There are frequent delays on the system due to switch failures, accidents, people getting hit, etc, etc, etc.  My own personal estimation is that a delay happens at LEAST several times a week (if @calgarytransit is correct). 

You are probably asking who was the genius that designed things this way?  The answer is former governments who did things on the cheap.  Those planning the Deerfoot, C Train, stop lights, etc, etc never expected Calgary to become what it is.

After Mayor Nenshi came into power, one of the first things he approved was an airport tunnel.  The tunnel was to replace a road which had existed for decades, but had to be removed to make way for a large runway.  The cost of the airport tunnel IS very high at around $300 million dollars.

The reaction to the decision was immediate & loud. And predictable.  The pocketbook citizens of Calgary IMMEDIATELY freaked out.  It was a huge waste of money. Yet, many of these same people who commented on the tunnel would then comment on the stupid planning of the Deerfoot or the C Train downtown.

The airport tunnel is NOT about right now.  The airport tunnel is about 20 years from now.  It's a decision that recognizes that Calgary will, in all likelihood, continue to grow. YYC, the airport, will continue to attract more air traffic.  That alone will necessitate TWO ways to get in and out of the airport.  The airport tunnel was a decision that was made for the future, not for today.  If you ask me, that's a first in this city.

For those of you that dislike the decision, I remind you of this.  The same pocketbook citizens wanted the Deerfoot built on the cheap.  And they didn't want to spend the $$ to bury the C Train downtown (or elevate it).  Those decisions were made at the time for "now", not for the future.  The result is clear.  They were bad decisions & the fix for both of them is going to be incredibly expensive (as in billions).  

It's about time Calgary starts planning for the future. 

The Purple Revolution Part 2

For many folks, the image of Calgary is that of cowboys, Calgary Stampede & right wing redneck conservative voters.  At one time, I think that was a fair representation of Calgary, but I don't feel it is in 2012.  Yet, the stereotype of "Cowtown" continues & I often read disparaging remarks in news columns & forums on the net.  The election of Nenshi changed that opinion. 

The morning after the election, newspapers across Canada gave unusual column time to the successful win by Mr Nenshi.   You see, Nenshi is from Toronto.  He's also the son of two immigrants.  Mr Nenshi is also brown AND he is also Muslim.   There is some speculation that he is gay. 

I was admittedly nearly salivating while reading the news in the Toronto Star and other like minded newspapers that often portray Calgary as redneck.  How could this be?  Redneck Calgary had voted in a young, brown, Muslim mayor.  Such an happening was the equivalent of Texas electing a vegan lesbian for governor.  The rest of the country seemed stunned.  How could such a thing happen?  For those of us living here we already knew the answer.  Calgary is NOT redneck.  It's a young, growing & somewhat cosmopolitan city trying to shed it's hick stereotype from the past.  

To add more icing to the cake, Toronto elected Rob Ford as mayor.  While this comment might upset his supporters, Mr Ford is the epitome of the negative stereotype of a redneck. His platform "Stop the Gravy" was as typical as they come from politicians.  A simplistic motto for a complex city that has many problems.  Nenshi was well mannered & articulate.  Rob Ford is loud & bellicose.  They are polar opposites in all respects except one: both are fiscally conservative.   Months later when Nenshi visited Toronto, I found is amusing to see how the local media scrambled to meet him.  Here was the CBC and The Star squealing in glee to interview Nenshi, ignoring that Nenshi IS a fiscal conservative.   If anything is shows you that Canadians are open to fiscal conservatism, it just needs to be done by a person with manners & class.   Are you listening Mr Harper? 

I'm not sure how Nenshi will fare as mayor but I know one thing.  He has changed the perception of Calgary to those who don't live here.  I remember reading comments in newspaper forums where people commented they would now consider moving to Calgary because of the mayor.   A stereotype takes a long time to break, but this was/is a great start.  

The Purple Revolution Part 1

Prior to the 2010 civic election, I recall sitting in a Denny's style restaurant with a friend I'd known since high school.  We were discussing politics & the coming election in Calgary.  Long time mayor Dave Bronconnier had stepped down & the current favourites to win the mayor's seat were Ric McIver, a long time alderman & Barb Higgens, a media personality from CTV Calgary.  

The person I was sitting with commented how she hoped that she had met Nenshi & hope he would win.  I commented that his support was in the single digits & he was unlikely to even register with the voters. 

As the election neared the unlikely happened; Nenshi started getting support.  At the time I was living in the north area of Mission on 17th Ave.  The day of the election, I set out to walk downtown & the corners had "Vote Nenshi" scribbled in chalk on the sidewalk. The same was written on the walls of buildings, at bus stops & on every other public place one could write in chalk & do it without fear of getting fined.

After work I headed over vote.  My polling station was on 18th Ave just up the street from where I lived.  I arrived to find a line that came out the door and headed down the street.  The typical municipal election gathers little interest to voters but today it was clearly the opposite.  I set out to wait in line, finally getting inside after about 45 minutes to vote.  I knew something was up. 

Nenshi won, beating out second place Ric McIver by over 28,000 votes.  Calgary entered a new era in politics and a new era in Canada.  

5.5 years

I was watching TV the other night and stunned to see a photo I recognized on TV.  It was one I'd posted on this blog about Sobey's Urban Fresh in Edmonton.  I realize I've neglected this blog for several years now.  Life gets busy and it gets hard to find time to write.

I sat and read the blog and realized it had been over 5 years since I returned to Calgary.  What I had no mentioned prior is that I'd lived here several other times, including growing up in public school, later leaving in high school during an oil bust. 

Much has changed since I moved back to Calgary and most of it for the good.  Reading my former posts I am reminded how much my opinions change over time & how much has happened in life.  Here I thought I had a dull life as I sat around studying, exercising & working. 

I'll start by updating significant changes to Calgary first.