Riders in Western Canada are discovering that the lake landscapes and boreal forests of the Prince Albert region offer some of the most enjoyable snowmobiling in the world. With the Trans Canada Trail winding through the spectacular scenic topography of several provincial and regional parks, a dozen snowmobile clubs connect their own primary and secondary trail systems beginning at the northern edge of the Prince Albert city limits.
The Prince Albert Trail will take riders east to the Candle Lake club trails or straight north along the Forest Fringe to the Christopher Lake club trails, both of which connect to the Trans Canada Trail network. These popular trails are immediately outside the boundaries of Prince Albert National Park and are often called the Prince Albert Lake Lands because of their easy accessibility and proximity to the city.
Light up Candle Lake
At Christopher Lake, sledders can explore Christopher Lake, South, Middle and North Emma Lakes, Olga Lake, Oscar Lake, Marguerite Lake, Nora Lake, Blanche Lake and then on to the wild and beautiful Anglin Lake trails. Here, riders can also connect at several points to the Trans Canada Trail and go east by Discovery Lake, Sampson Lake and half a dozen small rivers to join up with the exciting Candle Lake club trail systems.
See Shell (Lake)
Go west to access the Canwood Club trails around Shellbrook and Shell Lake. The Trans Canada Trail takes snowmobilers to the wild west side of the national park and onto the vast Big River club trails.
By road, Christopher Lake is 20 minutes north of Prince Albert; as a result, you can be in the wilderness in minutes. Alternatively you can sleep in a three-and-a-half-star hotel or resort, have lunch at a lakeside café, park your snowmobile and trade for a dogsled adventure, go ice fishing or try out several options for cross-country skiing and wildlife viewing. Some resorts will rent snowmobiles to their guests, and many of the Lake Land outfitters will provide guides for those who want to experience the northern trails at Thunder Hills.
A perennial favourite
Being one of Western Canada’s favourite recreation destinations means the city of Prince Albert serves a large trading area (40,000 population and approximately 160,000 in the trading area), which translates into some of Canada’s best recreation and sports dealerships and shops. You can buy, service or accessorize all your equipment needs with help from the experts.
Talking to the snowmobile club members themselves is another way to plan a grand adventure; join them for a ride, rally, dinner or dance. These veterans of 1,000-plus kilometres of trails love to share their stories, experience and wisdom. Prince Albert Tourism, through its website or year-round visitor centre, can provide those contacts.
Discover the details
Well-marked trail maps identify warm-up shelters and fuel stops. Tourism can tell you about the resorts, restaurants and Lake Land cafés that are scattered throughout. We also suggest a visit to the Saskatchewan Snowmobiling website for downloadable copies of full-colour trail maps; click on Zone 2 for snowmobile club maps from Prince Albert.
Whatever you imagined your adventure to look like, Prince Albert is your first destination. This area is gently developed; so sledders can either stay near the activity centres of the closest lakes or venture to wilderness landscapes.
In the summer there are trailers carrying boats parked all over the city and from December to the end of March there are snowmobiles on those trailers and hundreds of thousands of acres calling the adventurous spirit. Welcome to Prince Albert.
