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Hey all, I'm off to Canada on a year long working visa in September. Anyone done this before? At the moment I'm ive booked my flight to fly into Calgary with places like Canmore on my mind, for the biking and skiing. This could change to Vancouver if i was pursueded enough by places like Whistler though!
Hoping to work as a ski tech, boot fitter, or just in a general bike and ski retail shop. Anyone got any experience of just jetting off there and looking for jobs etc?
Even better, anyone got any useful contacts i could use? 😆 🙂
Anyone get anything to say?? 😯
I'm going to Whistler (well, Whistler Creek) in August, maybe see you out there 🙂 Got 2 months' accomodation booked and may stay for longer if I can get a job, as I'm also going with a working holiday visa. Can't wait!
See ya!
Es-ce-qu'on peut parlais Francais?
You should be fine without the Franglais out west; in Ontario it's a bonus but not necessary; in QC you'll need it.
Anyone get anything to say
I suspect something along the lines of "you lucky, lucky, barsteward" for most people.
I'm already out here, but in Toronto, and having to do a proper job to stay here... 😉
I'm already out here, but in Toronto, and having to do a proper job to stay here...
Well im hoping to somehow work my way into proper job so i can get a work permit. Either that or marry a Canadian, or just convince my employer that i'm one in a million 🙂 .
[i]Anyone get anything to say??[/i]
What, apart from, 'jammy t*at'?
enjoy, you lucky sod!
Lived with a friend for 3wks up in Saskatoon, not impressed and would not make me want to move to Canada 🙄
My suggestion would be to try a site like natives for more advice on working etc. The biking season is far shorter than the skiing season is my only useful comment - Biking has only really taken off in the past month and I was skiing until May (Back country mainly)
enjoy 🙂
had 2 weeks in Canada summer 09. 6 nights Canmore, 2 nights Calgary, 1 night Kamloops en route to Vancouver (3 nights there), then 1 night in Lake Louise (not IN the lake!) en route back to Calgary.
Best holiday I've ever had. I'd live there if I could.
One word of warning though: winter. It lasts 8 months in Alberta. First snow October, still a risk of it in May...
enjoyhad 2 weeks in Canada summer 09. 6 nights Canmore, 2 nights Calgary, 1 night Kamloops en route to Vancouver (3 nights there), then 1 night in Lake Louise (not IN the lake!) en route back to Calgary.
Best holiday I've ever had. I'd live there if I could.
One word of warning though: winter. It lasts 8 months in Alberta. First snow October, still a risk of it in May...
Hey wow thanks. What do you think of the biking in Canmore? Were you impressed by it? You went to Vancouver and didn't go to Whistler 😯 aren't they only about 2 hours away from each other...
I'm aware of the long winters! It has its pro's and con's i suppose. And i actually like cross country skiing, which i can do to break the boredom from the turbo trainer. And back country skiing i hope!! 😀
Lived with a friend for 3wks up in Saskatoon, not impressed and would not make me want to move to Canada
What part of Canada is that in? What did you not like about it? 😕
Saskatoon is the main (only?) city in Saskatchewan, even deeper into the prairie country than Alberta. MidWest...
sadly I didn't do any biking in Canmore, but I wish I had.
There's a bike shop in the town, sells Trek & Rocky Mountain IIRC, probably also do guided rides if you ask nicely. The main downtown area isn't huge, you'll probably find it by accident 😉
big back country almost on the doorstep - including the local "nordic" centre. "Three Sisters" mountain range immediately behind the town.
Canmore-Calgary is about 1 hour drive; Banff is about 20-30 minutes away but you WILL need a national park pass - either a day pass or a season ticket - to access the Banff or Jasper national parks. Canmore-Kamloops was a good 8 hour drive, Vancouver was another 4-5 hours depending whether you take the REALLY scenic route or just the SLIGHTLY LESS scenic route.
Icefields Parkway is worth the drive, especially up to the Athabasca glacier & take a ride on the Icebus.
some pix here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnhooper_drum/sets/72157621868287748/
also try this: http://www.canmorealberta.com/
we stayed at a place I can't remember the name of! but it's not listed on the Canmore site any more 🙁 no great loss though...
trip to Whistler wasn't really on the cards, we were only in Vancouver for 3 nights & Mrs_drummer isn't into the outdoor stuff. What really surprised me though, was the temperature in Kamloops. 38degC in the shade at 6pm - it was 1st August though. A lot of the high prairies around Kamloops looked very arid, a lot more so than I expected.
Despite many radio reports in Canmore of active bears, I never saw a single one. Nor any moose, wolves, coyotes or anything other than 1 elk and a few eagles high in the sky
Windtower Lodge, that was the name of the hotel. I'd recommend an upgrade to a suite if staying there again. Kananaskis Way, just off Highway 1
Hey,
I moved from the UK to Canada 3 years ago, came over on the 1 year Bunac visa and ended up settling here. I live in a small ski town called Fernie (about 3 hours from Calgary) The biking here is amazing as is the skiing during the winter. I can't even begin to describe the sheer number of bike trails there are around the valley here.
My best advice is be prepared - turn up early if you want jobs in ski/bike shops as thousands of people turn up looking for those jobs each season. Also do plenty of research on the smaller places, you might find some hidden gems. In my mind I would much rather live in towns like Fernie, Nelson, Rossland - which all have amazing biking and skiing then the bigger more touristy places like Banf and Whistler, etc.