Go Big or Go Home! On our recent trek back from camping in Cold Lake, we decided to take our time and check out some of the large roadside attractions in the area. It added a few extra miles and hours to our trip, but it made for a fun and exciting drive back home to Edmonton.
Bonnyville – Angus Shaw Statue
Our first quick stop was in Bonnyville to check out the Angus Shaw statue. I did not quite know what to expect, but it turned out to be an impressive wood carving in honour of Angus Shaw, the first European fur trader to come to the area in the mid 1700’s. The 23 foot tall statue welcomes visitor’s to the Bonnyville and District Museum. We didn’t stick around to check it out, but the museum did look like a fun place for the kids to explore.
Glendon – World’s Largest Pyrogy
Stop number two was slightly off our route, but turned out to be well worth the extra drive up the road. Glendon’s 25 foot tall pyrogy on a fork is well maintained and an impressive ode to this popular Ukrainian dumpling.
Best of all, there is a great playground that shares the park where the pyrogy is located so our kids were excited to get out and have some fun. My son could not wait to try the zip line!
St. Paul – World’s First UFO Landing Pad
The town of St. Paul has been made famous for their 130 ton concrete UFO landing pad. Built for the Canadian centennial celebration in 1967, it also contains a time capsule to be opened on the 100-year anniversary in 2067. The large flying saucer shaped tourist center to the rear was added in the 1990’s and houses UFO memorabilia including photographs of alleged landing sites, mysterious cattle mutilations, and crop circles.
Andrew – World’s Largest Mallard Duck
I think Andrew’s mallard duck is my favourite roadside attraction. We have driven past the flying duck several times on our way to my mom’s farm, but it was nice to get out and have a closer look. It’s impressive wingspan stretches 23 feet and the fiberglass and steel sculpture weighs over 1 tonne.
Mundare – World’s Largest Sausage
Mundare is famous for it’s Stawnichy’s sausage, so naturally there is a massive statue version of it right in the middle of town. This 42 foot tall statue plays tribute to Stawnichy’s Meat Processing, a family-run sausage factory operating in town since 1959. Their kielbasa has a reputation for being the best Ukrainian sausage in all of Canada so don’t forget to head across the street to pick up a pack or two while in town.
There is just something so fun and quirky about seeing these oversized statues in the heart of these small prairie towns. Plan out a route like we did and make a fun day trip out of discovering a handful of these roadside attractions. You never know what other fun things you might uncover along the way!
You can discover all the “Big” things with the Go East of Edmonton website. To add more fun to your trip, they also a running a Roadtrip Adventure Game this summer that allows you to collect stickers at different sticker stations throughout the region and adhere them to a bingo-style gameboard. Once you have 7 stickers collected, you can enter for great prizes! Or post and tag your photos with #goroadtrips2021 and #goeastofedmonton on social media until August 31 to enter in the 2021 photo contest.
