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Prince George and Area Information

Prince George is a city of about 80,000 located in the Interior of British Columbia, the most western of Canada's Provinces. The city is situated in the interior plateau at the north end of The Rocky Mountain Trench at the junction of the Fraser and Nechako rivers. It is at about the same latitude (54 N) as Edmonton, Alberta or Belfast, Ireland. There are daily flights from the Prince George Airport to Vancouver and Calgary, international airports each about one hour away.

There are no traffic jams in Prince George. The activities of daily living such as shopping, going to the post office, or visiting friends are easily done but it is large enough to provide a comprehensive range of facilities and services.

The forestry industry is the economic backbone of the community with many sawmills, large pulp mills and associated secondary industries. The community has become a regional retail and administrative centre. The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) and the College of New Caledonia (CNC) are major employers and bring over 3000 students into the community. Being primarily a working community, the population is young; many with families and children so there are numerous activities for children ranging from a multitude of sports such as hockey, baseball, and soccer, to music and theatre.

The town is proud of the Prince George Public Library, the Two Rivers Art Gallery, the The Exploration Place, amateur and professional theatre: the Prince George Theatre Workshop Society and the Theatre North West, and the Prince George Symphony Orchestra. The Community Arts Council represents and promotes art in the community. Prince George After Hours lists various events in the community.

There is a modern well-equipped YMCA with squash and racquetball, exercise and weight room facilities, and child minding.  There are two community pools: the Aquatic Centre with a wave pool, Olympic size pool and diving facility, and the Four Seasons Pool. There are extensive (113 km) hiking trails throughout the city and surrounding area. There are 50 tennis courts, 36 outdoor skating rinks, three eighteen-hole and one nine-hole golf course, 110 baseball diamonds and five lacrosse boxes. There are numerous soccer fields including a 20 field location at the Rotary park and six indoor arenas including the Coliseum, and the Multiplex a 6-10,000 seat multipurpose venue. Auto racing is offered by the Prince George Auto Racing Association. For horse enthusiasts there is both indoor and outdoor, western and English riding.

The community enjoys first class hockey and supports a Western Hockey League team, the Cougars, and a Canadian Junior A team, the Prince George Spruce Kings, as well as a full range of recreational hockey for all ages, a speed skating club with an outdoor oval,  ringette, and two figure skating clubs offering both competitive and recreational streams. There many public skating rinks.

There are many ways to enjoy the winter such as skating, downhill and cross-country skiing and snow boarding, snow shoeing, and snowmobiling. The Caledonia Nordic Ski Club has extensive world class cross country trails only minutes from the city centre at the Otway Ski Centre and Tabor mountain. There are two ski hills within 45 minutes of the city: Purden Ski Village and Tabor Mountain.The Powder King ski hill, which has one of the largest snowfalls per year in North America, is 2 hours north.

 

  Here are a few links to sites about Prince George and the surrounding area                                   

Here are some links to various community web guides that can provide information about the community. The Prince George Public Library Community Site and The University of Northern British Columbia's A students guide to Prince George are good sites to start your search.


Last revised: Dec 2003