The Giants of the Prairies are a group of "world's biggest" roadside attractions found in Western Canada, especially in small towns populated mostly by Ukrainian Canadians.
Attraction | Community | Image |
---|---|---|
World's Largest Badminton Racket | St. Albert, Alberta | |
World's Largest Beaver | Beaverlodge, Alberta | |
World's Largest Bee | Falher, Alberta [1] | |
World's Largest Honey Bee | Tisdale, Saskatchewan [2] | |
World's Largest Blue Heron | Barrhead, Alberta | |
World's Largest Border Markers | Lloydminster | |
World's Largest Bucking Saddle Bronc and Rider, "The Legacy" | Ponoka, Alberta | |
World's Largest bunnock | Macklin, Saskatchewan | |
World's Largest Curling Rock | Arborg, Manitoba [3] | |
World's Largest Coke Can | Portage la Prairie, Manitoba | |
World's Largest Chuckwagon | Dewberry, Alberta | |
World's Largest Dinosaur | Drumheller, Alberta | |
World's Largest Fire Hydrant | Elm Creek, Manitoba [4] | |
World's Largest Animated Grizzly Bear | Innisfail, Alberta [5] | |
World's Largest Geese | Hanna, Alberta | |
World's Largest Golf Tee | Trochu, Alberta [6] | |
World's Largest kubasa | Mundare, Alberta | |
World's Largest Mallard Duck | Andrew, Alberta | |
World's Largest Mosquito | Komarno, Manitoba | |
World's Largest Mushroom | Vilna, Alberta | |
World's Largest Oil Can | Rocanville, Saskatchewan [7] | |
World's Largest Oil Derrick | Redwater, Alberta | |
World's Largest Oil Lamp | Donalda, Alberta | |
World's Largest painting on an easel (reproduction of Van Gogh's Sunflowers) | Altona, Manitoba | |
World's Largest Piggy Bank | Coleman, Alberta | |
World's Largest Putter | Bow Island, Alberta | |
World's Largest Softball, "Susie" | Chauvin, Alberta | |
World's Largest Railroad Spike | Hines Creek, Alberta [8] | |
World's Largest Sundial | Lloydminster | |
World's Tallest Teepee | Medicine Hat, Alberta | |
World's Largest Wagon Wheel and Pick | Fort Assiniboine, Alberta | |
World's Largest Western Boot | Edmonton, Alberta | |
Giant Horse | Irricana, Alberta | |
David Thompson Monument | Lac La Biche, Alberta | |
Giant Pumpkin | Smoky Lake, Alberta | |
World's First UFO Landing Pad | St. Paul, Alberta | |
Giant perogy | Glendon, Alberta | |
Giant Vegreville egg (Pysanka) | Vegreville, Alberta | |
Giant potatoes | Vauxhall, Alberta | |
Giant replica of the Star Trek starship USS Enterprise | Vulcan, Alberta | |
Giant gopher | Torrington, Alberta | |
The Happy Rock | Gladstone, Manitoba | |
Canada's Largest Baseball Bat | Battleford, Saskatchewan [9] | |
Canada's Largest Baseball Glove | Heisler, Alberta [10] | |
Canada's Largest Buffalo | Wainwright, Alberta | |
Canada's Largest Dragonfly | Wabamun, Alberta [11] | |
World's Largest Moose, "Mac the Moose" | Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan | |
Battle between Bear and Swan | Swan Hills, Alberta | |
Giant Skunk, "Squirt" | Beiseker, Alberta | |
Alberta's Largest Northern Pike | Rochon Sands, Alberta | |
World’s Largest Fishing Lure | Lacombe, Alberta |
These attractions are referenced in the Kubasonics song "Giants of the Prairies".
The phenomenon was parodied in the sixth episode of the first season of Corner Gas , "World's Biggest Thing". Wherein one of the characters proposes the construction of the "world's biggest hoe" to draw in tourism to the town of Dog River, leaving some citizens unaware of the double entendre the name elicits. [12]
Alberta is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta borders British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S. state of Montana to the south. It is one of the only two landlocked provinces in Canada, with Saskatchewan being the other. The eastern part of the province is occupied by the Great Plains, while the western part borders the Rocky Mountains. The province has a predominantly continental climate but experiences quick temperature changes due to air aridity. Seasonal temperature swings are less pronounced in western Alberta due to occasional Chinook winds.
Canada has a large domestic and foreign tourism industry. The second largest country in the world, Canada's wide geographical variety is a significant tourist attractor. Much of the country's tourism is centred in the following regions: Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City, Vancouver/Whistler, Niagara Falls, Vancouver Island, Canadian Rockies, British Columbia's Okanagan Valley, Churchill, Manitoba and the National Capital Region of Ottawa-Gatineau. The large cities are known for their culture, diversity, as well as the many national parks and historic sites.
Grande Prairie is a city in northwest Alberta, Canada within the southern portion of an area known as Peace River Country. It is located at the intersection of Highway 43 and Highway 40, approximately 456 km (283 mi) northwest of Edmonton. The city is surrounded by the County of Grande Prairie No. 1.
Tisdale is the business centre for the rich agricultural boreal forest area in central Saskatchewan, Canada. This town is in the Rural Municipality of Tisdale No. 427, Saskatchewan.
Corner Gas is a Canadian television sitcom created by Brent Butt. The series ran for six seasons from 2004 to 2009. Re-runs still air on CTV, CTV2, CTV Comedy Channel, Much, MTV, E! and are streaming on Crave and Amazon Prime. The series was followed by a feature film titled Corner Gas: The Movie, with the entire cast reprising their roles. The film was released for a limited theatrical run in December 2014.
Rouleau is a town in southern Saskatchewan, Canada, on the Canadian Prairies. It lies within census Division No. 6 and rural municipality Redburn No. 130.
Redcliff is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. Adjacent to the City of Medicine Hat to the east and Cypress County to the west and north, the town is bisected by Highway 1 and is located on the north bank of the South Saskatchewan River.
Whitecourt is a town in Northern Alberta, Canada that is surrounded by Woodlands County. It is approximately 177 km (110 mi) northwest of Edmonton and 279 km (173 mi) southeast of Grande Prairie at the junction of Highway 43 and Highway 32. It has an elevation of 690 m (2,260 ft).
A roadside attraction is a feature along the side of a road meant to attract tourists. In general, these are places one might stop on the way to somewhere, rather than being a destination. They are frequently advertised with billboards. The modern tourist-oriented highway attraction originated as a U.S. and Canadian phenomenon in the 1940s to 1960s, and subsequently caught on in Australia.
Bow Island is a town in Alberta, Canada. It is located on Highway 3 in southern Alberta, approximately 100 km (62 mi) north of the United States border, 320 km (200 mi) southeast of Calgary and 51 km (32 mi) southwest of Medicine Hat.
Novelty architecture, also called programmatic architecture or mimetic architecture, is a type of architecture in which buildings and other structures are given unusual shapes for purposes such as advertising or to copy other famous buildings without any intention of being authentic. Their size and novelty means that they often serve as landmarks. They are distinct from architectural follies, in that novelty architecture is essentially usable buildings in eccentric form whereas follies are non-usable, purely ornamental buildings also often in eccentric form.
Glendon is a village in northern Alberta, Canada that is north of St. Paul. The community has the maiden name of an early postmaster's mother.
Highway 16 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is the Saskatchewan section of the Yellowhead Highway, and also the Trans-Canada Highway Yellowhead section. The main purpose of this highway is to connect Saskatchewan with Canadian cities such as Edmonton and Winnipeg. The highway runs from the Alberta boundary in Lloydminster to the Manitoba boundary near Marchwell. Major cities it passes through are Saskatoon, North Battleford in the central part of the province, Yorkton in the far east and Lloydminster to the far west.
The Kalyna Country ecomuseum is a heritage and eco-tourism district in East Central Alberta, Canada, named after the highbush cranberry plant, pronounced (Ka-lyn-na) in the Ukrainian language. The Ukrainian folklore states: "Without Kalyna, there is no Ukraina".
Central Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta.
Northern Alberta is a geographic region located in the Canadian province of Alberta.
The "World's Largest Dinosaur" is a roadside tourist attraction shaped like a modelTyrannosaurus rex, situated in the Town of Drumheller, Alberta, Canada. The World's Largest Dinosaur is one of several dinosaur-related attractions in Drumheller and the surrounding areas, including Dinosaur Provincial Park.
Carlyle is a town in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. Carlyle is the largest town servicing the far south-eastern corner of Saskatchewan and as a result, has become the economic and services centre of the region. Estevan and Weyburn are the closest cities and both are a little over 100 kilometres away. Regina, the provincial capital, lies 200 km to the north-west.
But perhaps the most outrageous roadside statue ever proposed was never actually built. In probably my favourite episode of the sitcom Corner Gas, a small group of civic-minded souls in fictitious Dog river, Saskatchewan, are sitting in the local diner brainstorming ideas for a new roadside attraction that will inspire drivers to stop in the little town. What's unique about Dog river? they ask each other. Well, it's a rural community, so they decide their "world's biggest thing" should be a farm implement. they discuss various options and finally settle on a hoe. But it shouldn't be a shiny, new-looking hoe, someone says. Dog river is a hardworking town, after all. It should have clumps of earth on it and look as though it's been well used. What the town needs, the mayor's grandmother concludes, is "a big dirty cracked hoe."