To travel to much of North America's northern quarter, whether by rail, road, or air, most travelers pass through Edmonton. In many ways, Edmonton is a typical Canadian city. Here, as in most of Canada, we do not plant our gardens before the third weekend in May for fear of a late frost.
Snow can fall in any month of the year.
Ice hockey and skiing are two of the most popular sports. In Canada only Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver have populations over one million residents. In 1991, only twenty-five metropolitan areas had populations over 100,000. As is typical of many Canadian cities, Edmonton's economy is varied. The city has a strong corporate sector as the regional center for a vast hinterland of agricultural activity and oil and gas exploration.