Day Trip to Métis Crossing

Métis Crossing is a remarkable historic and recreation spot on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River, northeast of Edmonton, and south of Smoky Lake.  In addition to the living museum, which includes numerous artifacts, farm buildings, garden plots, fire pits and the like, there is a campground, bison compound, and other attractions.

The new hotel, and conference centre have an Indigenous themed restaurant and a nice gift shop.  You can get A Métis Man's Dream; From Traplines to Tugboats in Canada's North there  (and support the enterprise).  An easy day trip there in late May allowed me to drop off a case of my books, and to explore the grounds, and to my pleasure to buy a book by lawyer George Goulet, "The Trial of Louis Riel, Justice and Mercy Denied".  The title says it all. These photos show the grounds and barn, along the river from the deck of the hotel, as well as me unloading the car, and then being greeted by the gift shop supervisor!

The drive is worth it...we saw a moose!...and a number of Ukrainian churches along the way, a Catholic Shrine at Skaro, and the Victoria Crossing historic site just a few kilometres down river from Métis Crossing. Victoria Crossing shows the 'white' Methodist mission of the McDougall's including the oldest still standing habitation in Alberta. The old mission church, and a graveyard are among the historic sites worth visiting.

​Seeing these sites gives a real context to both the Goulet book and my own biographical history of Gordon Gill and growing up Métis.