CANADA Travel: Outdoor Adventure Sports & Whitewater Rafting Info

Canada is the second largest country by area in the world (after Russia) and the largest in North America. Its only land border is with the United States, and remains the longest land border in the world. The US border is situated at Canada's Southern edge. The border with the United States varies depending on the area you are visiting. The 49th parallel is the border from mainland British Columbia to Ontario, but drops as low as the 41st parallel in southern Ontario. Canada also has a long border with the US state of Alaska in the Northwest. Canada is a major tourist destination, and is one of the world's wealthiest countries. The country is renowned worldwide for its vast, untouched landscape and its unique culture.

Canada is a land of vast distances and rich natural beauty. Economically and technologically, it resembles its neighbor to the South, the United States, and shares with it the longest undefended border in the world yet there are significant differences between the two countries. Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 by an act of the British parliament, and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Though a medium sized country by its population, Canada has earned respect on the international stage for its strong diplomatic skills. Domestically, the country has displayed success in negotiating compromises amongst a culturally and linguistically varied population, a difficult task considering that language, culture, cuisine and even history vary significantly over the country. In contrast to the United States' image as a melting pot, Canada prefers to consider itself a mosaic of cultures and people. All Canadians are used to living and interacting with people of different ethnic backgrounds on a daily basis and will usually be quite friendly and understanding if approached in public. You will never look out of place or feel like an unusual sight while traveling Canada. The information below will get you started, but be sure to check the specifics for given regions and cities. It has universal health care too (for Canadian residents only!)
[edit] Time zones

The Canadian Sir Sandford Fleming first proposed time zones for the entire world in 1876, and Canada is covered coast to coast with multiple zones.

    * Yukon and most of British Columbia are within Pacific Time (UTC-7 during Daylight Saving Time, UTC-8 during Standard Time)
    * Northwest Territories, Alberta, parts of eastern British Columbia and part of western Nunavut are within Mountain Time (UTC-6 during Daylight Saving Time, UTC-7 during Standard Time)
    * Saskatchewan, unlike the rest of Canada, does not adjust its clocks for Daylight Savings Time and remains on Central Standard Time (or Mountain Daylight Time) year-round (UTC-6). Daylight Savings Time begins 2nd Sunday of March until 1st Sunday of November.
    * Manitoba and Ontario west of Thunder Bay, as well as central Nunavut are within Central Time (UTC-5 during Daylight Saving Time, UTC-6 during Standard Time)
    * Ontario from east of Thunder Bay to most of Quebec and eastern Nunavut are within Eastern Time (UTC-4 during Daylight Saving Time, UTC-5 during Standard Time)
    * Most of Labrador, north-eastern Quebec and all of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia are within Atlantic Standard Time (UTC-3 during Daylight Saving Time, UTC-4 during Standard Time)
    * The island of Newfoundland has its own time zone, Newfoundland Standard Time (UTC-3:30), which is a half hour ahead of Atlantic Standard Time. The south-eastern corner of Labrador is also within this time zone.

It is often forgotten that Canada uses a metric system, because you will often hear imperial for a few things by Canadians. What does this mean? All the temperatures you check on the net or the TV will be in °C.

Trying to distill the climate of Canada into an easy to understand statement is impossible, given the vast area that this country occupies. The southernmost point of mainland southern Ontario, Point Pelee, and the nearby islands in Lake Erie are at a very similar latitude to northern California, and has a climate similar to the eastern US. Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut, is just south of the Arctic Circle and remains very cold for most of the year.

However, as most of the Canadian population resides within a few hundred kilometers of Canada's border with the United States (Edmonton being the only major city that isn't), visitors to most cities will probably not have to endure the weather that accompanies a trip to the northern territories. In fact, summers can be hot in parts of Canada. Summer temperatures over 35°C (95°F) are not unusual in extreme Southern Ontario and the southern Interior of British Columbia, with Osoyoos the hot spot of Canada. Toronto's climate is only slightly cooler than many cities in the northeastern United States, and summers in the southern parts of Ontario and Quebec are often hot and humid. In the BC Interior, Alberta and Saskatchewan, the humidity is often low during the summer, even during hot weather. In the winter, Southern Ontario is only slightly cooler than the northeastern United States, but temperatures under -20°C (14°F) are not uncommon in Southern Ontario.

The climate in Canada also depends in large part on how close to the coast you travel. Many inland cities, especially those in the Prairies, experience extreme changes in weather. Winnipeg, Manitoba (also colloquially known as 'Winterpeg') has hot summers easily exceed 35°C (95°F), yet experiences very cold winters where -40°C (-40°F) is not uncommon. The hottest temperatures in Canadian recorded history was in southern Saskatchewan, at 45°C (113°F). Conversely, coastal cities in British Columbia are generally milder year-round and get little snow. The Atlantic Provinces are usually not as mild as the Prairies and the Territories although they constantly experience temperatures below zero in the winter. The Atlantic Provinces are also well known to experience many blizzards during the winter season. In British Columbia, Vancouver and Victoria are temperate and get very little snow, and seldom experience temperatures below 0°C or above 27°C (32-80°F).

Apart from having usually milder temperatures year-round than the interior areas of Canada, coastal areas can have very high rainfall. Areas such as coastal British Columbia get some of the highest rainfall in Canada, but it can be very dry in the southern BC Interior due to the Coastal Mountains acting as a rain shadow. The wind can be a big factor on the Canadian Prairies because there are wide open areas not unlike those in the Midwest states of the US, and makes for unpleasant windchills during cold weather in the winter. The average temperature is typically colder in Canada than in the US and Western Europe as a whole, so bring your jacket if visiting between October and May, and early and later than this if visiting areas further north. The rest of the year, in most of the country, daytime highs are generally above 15°C (60°F).