I'm just curious what it's like living in CF Bases throughout Canada. I don't really just mean "on base", since I'm sure most people live in the towns surrounding the bases. Is the atmosphere in these communities different from others?
Examples: Portage la prarie, Moose Jaw, Cold Lake, Comox, Greenwood, Trenton
Thanx
Life in CF Bases/Towns
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groundpilot
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I was hoping someone with more time in would comment but I will do my best Avro.
From my experience from west to east coast:
Victoria - haven't been there in a while but I assume its great
Comox - awesome. Its on Vancouver Island so there is lots to do
Edmonton - a good base because your pretty much right in the city and you got the Oilers
Cold Lake - a 10,000 person town 3 hours NE of Edmonton. Its what you make of it. Its relatively remote and the base is quite large so the town is quite a military town. The winter here so far has been pretty rough. Keep busy with intramural sports, training and weekend trips to Edmonton. Summer hopefully will feature fishing/boating
Moose Jaw - 30,000 person town. Base is tiny so the town barely knows we are there. You are forbidden from entering the local drinking establishments so your forced to either go to the mess on base or go to Regina (45 mins away) I didn't mind MJ and with Regina nearby you have some ok options.
Winnipeg - right in the city. Good because your in a city. Bad because the city is Winnipeg. Not a big fan, needs a NHL franchise
Trenton - only been there briefly but seemed a bit of a hole. Lots of nearby towns and Toronto is 1.5 hrs away
Borden - I thought it was alright minus all the army stuff. Barrie is nearby and Toronto is just down the road by an hour or so
Ottawa - onced again just been there briefly but I like Ottawa and your right it in the city so I thought it was quite nice
Havent been anywhere else so I can't comment although I hear Shearwater/Halifax is a fun place to live
From my experience from west to east coast:
Victoria - haven't been there in a while but I assume its great
Comox - awesome. Its on Vancouver Island so there is lots to do
Edmonton - a good base because your pretty much right in the city and you got the Oilers
Cold Lake - a 10,000 person town 3 hours NE of Edmonton. Its what you make of it. Its relatively remote and the base is quite large so the town is quite a military town. The winter here so far has been pretty rough. Keep busy with intramural sports, training and weekend trips to Edmonton. Summer hopefully will feature fishing/boating
Moose Jaw - 30,000 person town. Base is tiny so the town barely knows we are there. You are forbidden from entering the local drinking establishments so your forced to either go to the mess on base or go to Regina (45 mins away) I didn't mind MJ and with Regina nearby you have some ok options.
Winnipeg - right in the city. Good because your in a city. Bad because the city is Winnipeg. Not a big fan, needs a NHL franchise
Trenton - only been there briefly but seemed a bit of a hole. Lots of nearby towns and Toronto is 1.5 hrs away
Borden - I thought it was alright minus all the army stuff. Barrie is nearby and Toronto is just down the road by an hour or so
Ottawa - onced again just been there briefly but I like Ottawa and your right it in the city so I thought it was quite nice
Havent been anywhere else so I can't comment although I hear Shearwater/Halifax is a fun place to live
Hey thanks for the help groundpilot! You mentioned Ottawa and Victoria? Are there air force guys at those bases? Also just curious if cold lake is super flat, or are there a few hills (any good snowmobiling up there)? Never been, and I'm from BC so the praries are an enormous change (not that I couldnt cope). Thanks again.
Victoria - Sea King sqn at Pat Bay
Ottawa - VIP transport (Challengers)
My take....it's been a few years since I've been to some of them....
Moose Jaw - not a bad spot. Everything you want (more ammenities than Regina almost). The bar situation only applies to students. Not sure how they don't know we're there, with all the noise we make, but, I've met a few who didn't know. Some locals aren't big fans of the CF.
Comox/Courteny - you're from BC, so I'm sure you know
Portage - typical small Prairie town. Don't care for the military types too much.
Winnipeg - grows on you. Kinda like a fungus.
Borden - I agree with GP, but, I'm from S Ont, so I'm biased.
Trenton - isn't all that bad, just depends what you like to do. At least it's on the St Lawrence for sailing, close to Algonquin for the outdoorsy types, close to Toronto, Kingston. Trenton is primarily military or ex military, Belleville is next door. Good for a family I imagine.
Ottawa - awesome time!!
Valcartier - close to Quebec City = french girls. Need I say more? Just ignore the army stuff.
Bagotville - Chicoutimi = french girls. See above. PS learn french.
Gagetown - Fredericton is next door, and that's not bad. Lots of good hunting, fishing, snowmobiling. Drawback....army.
Shearwater - the airbase area (Dartmouth) is a hole, but Halifax is awesome. Always a good time. Sociable!! Lots of military presence and people are very welcome to members of CF.
Greenwood - Like Trenton, good for a family. NOTHING to do for a single guy. Good ATVing, fishing, right near Bay of Fundy, good camping/outdoorsy stuff. Sunday shopping is now a bonus. Locals are very welcoming to CF types. LOTS of retired folks, so speed limits reflect this. Good wine from Wolfville region. 1.5 hrs to Halifax.
Gander - 2.5 or so to St John's. It's expanding and has most amenities. Flying is wicked....sqn is on it's own, so isn't tied up with as much bs as with large bases. Often spouses don't have too many good things to say. Good hunting, fishing, camping, snowmobile to work etc.
As GP said, and this applies to all postings......it's all about what you make of it.
Ottawa - VIP transport (Challengers)
My take....it's been a few years since I've been to some of them....
Moose Jaw - not a bad spot. Everything you want (more ammenities than Regina almost). The bar situation only applies to students. Not sure how they don't know we're there, with all the noise we make, but, I've met a few who didn't know. Some locals aren't big fans of the CF.
Comox/Courteny - you're from BC, so I'm sure you know
Portage - typical small Prairie town. Don't care for the military types too much.
Winnipeg - grows on you. Kinda like a fungus.
Borden - I agree with GP, but, I'm from S Ont, so I'm biased.
Trenton - isn't all that bad, just depends what you like to do. At least it's on the St Lawrence for sailing, close to Algonquin for the outdoorsy types, close to Toronto, Kingston. Trenton is primarily military or ex military, Belleville is next door. Good for a family I imagine.
Ottawa - awesome time!!
Valcartier - close to Quebec City = french girls. Need I say more? Just ignore the army stuff.
Bagotville - Chicoutimi = french girls. See above. PS learn french.
Gagetown - Fredericton is next door, and that's not bad. Lots of good hunting, fishing, snowmobiling. Drawback....army.
Shearwater - the airbase area (Dartmouth) is a hole, but Halifax is awesome. Always a good time. Sociable!! Lots of military presence and people are very welcome to members of CF.
Greenwood - Like Trenton, good for a family. NOTHING to do for a single guy. Good ATVing, fishing, right near Bay of Fundy, good camping/outdoorsy stuff. Sunday shopping is now a bonus. Locals are very welcoming to CF types. LOTS of retired folks, so speed limits reflect this. Good wine from Wolfville region. 1.5 hrs to Halifax.
Gander - 2.5 or so to St John's. It's expanding and has most amenities. Flying is wicked....sqn is on it's own, so isn't tied up with as much bs as with large bases. Often spouses don't have too many good things to say. Good hunting, fishing, camping, snowmobile to work etc.
As GP said, and this applies to all postings......it's all about what you make of it.
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groundpilot
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Victoria has Seakings and Ottawa has the Challengers plus headquarters where if you get a ground tour there is good chance you will be sent there.
Cold Lake has excellent snowmobiling trails and there are some ok hills.
Oh and I forgot to mention Portage la Prairie! (How could I forget a place like this... )
I had a lot of fun there on primary but the town is another 10,000 person hole where you run into everyone you know at Walmart. Winnipeg is 45 mins away plus you can stay at the base for cheap. The local bar can be fun but be weary of the locals.
Cold Lake has excellent snowmobiling trails and there are some ok hills.
Oh and I forgot to mention Portage la Prairie! (How could I forget a place like this... )
I had a lot of fun there on primary but the town is another 10,000 person hole where you run into everyone you know at Walmart. Winnipeg is 45 mins away plus you can stay at the base for cheap. The local bar can be fun but be weary of the locals.
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Machiavelli
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I can speak a little for Cold Lake...
There's hills around but they're smaller than what you might be used to in BC but bigger than most anything in Sask. and Man. Lots of snowmobilers- all the oilworkers have trucks with one in the back. You won't have to go far to get into the bush and I understand there's plenty of good trails and lots of snow.
There's a new rec facility on the base with a swimming pool/gym/weightroom etc. so there's always that. They were about to build new arenas as well but I don't know where they're at with those.
In the summer, the base has an excellent golf course. Some holes on the front nine are weak but the back is great. The beach in what I think they call Cold Lake North is OK. Get a boat, drive around the lake and you can find your own private beach. True to its name, the water is freezing.
Among the highest male to femals ratios in Canada. Lots of competition for female companionship. Leave town if you can during Maple Flag (mid-May to end June).
Like a lot of places I'm sure, there's the usual local vs. military issues.
There's hills around but they're smaller than what you might be used to in BC but bigger than most anything in Sask. and Man. Lots of snowmobilers- all the oilworkers have trucks with one in the back. You won't have to go far to get into the bush and I understand there's plenty of good trails and lots of snow.
There's a new rec facility on the base with a swimming pool/gym/weightroom etc. so there's always that. They were about to build new arenas as well but I don't know where they're at with those.
In the summer, the base has an excellent golf course. Some holes on the front nine are weak but the back is great. The beach in what I think they call Cold Lake North is OK. Get a boat, drive around the lake and you can find your own private beach. True to its name, the water is freezing.
Among the highest male to femals ratios in Canada. Lots of competition for female companionship. Leave town if you can during Maple Flag (mid-May to end June).
Like a lot of places I'm sure, there's the usual local vs. military issues.
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shitdisturber
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They must have changed the course; when I was posted there the front nine was the good part of the course and the back nine was just plain boring.Machiavelli wrote: In the summer, the base has an excellent golf course. Some holes on the front nine are weak but the back is great.
Like a lot of places I'm sure, there's the usual local vs. military issues.
Hopefully he's retired now but the publisher of the local rag had a real hate on for the military in my day. Except for our money of course; he used to get very upset that we could and would go to Edmonton to shop.
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mellow_pilot
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floatpiperdriver
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Hey Avro,
By brother get recruited by the CF a couple of years back to do avionics. Since then he has lived on base in North Bay and now in Bagotville. Other than having to suddenly learn french he has liked living on base.
If you have a young family, like him, they generally have a daycare in the housing complex and a school very close. The grocery and such are also walking distance.
About peace and quiet, the airport doesn't seem to be all that loud at night and his neighbours are quiet.
If you're planning on moving to base housing, it seems like a good deal.
By brother get recruited by the CF a couple of years back to do avionics. Since then he has lived on base in North Bay and now in Bagotville. Other than having to suddenly learn french he has liked living on base.
If you have a young family, like him, they generally have a daycare in the housing complex and a school very close. The grocery and such are also walking distance.
About peace and quiet, the airport doesn't seem to be all that loud at night and his neighbours are quiet.
If you're planning on moving to base housing, it seems like a good deal.
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shitdisturber
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Never ever move into PMQ's or if you're single barracks if you don't have to. PMQ's are all WW2 era houses; they're old, they were old when I was living in them as a kid and they haven't gotten any younger. The other side of the coin; is that the military will pay your real estate and legal fees etc etc for you to buy and sell a house on posting. Why throw money away on renting an ancient place that surveys have had unkind things to say about in recent years, when you can pay a mortgage and get it back when you're posted? They'll even cover a loss if you sell your place for less than you paid for it due to a market downturn.floatcessnadriver wrote:
If you're planning on moving to base housing, it seems like a good deal.
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mellow_pilot
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