rooney2603

Hi, I have been told that Saskatchewan is a great place to live particularly Moose Jaw.

Can someone tell me what they think of the area and whether its a good place to raise children. And why its a good place to raise kids.

My husband is a Carpenter, so any companies that you know in the area, that are looking for carpenters on the immigrant worker program would be great.

Mainly though, I want to know why Saskatchewan is a great place to live.

What I have found out already about the area has been really positive but I would like to know what british immigrants think.

Thanks.

towbar

We live in manitoba, and love it, Saskachewen is the next province to the west, it is very flat, cold winters and great summers, cheaper housing than many other provinces, people are very friendly, have you ever though about Provincial Nominee, quite an easy way to get into Canada and there are plenty of jobs for carpenters
http://www.immigration.gov.sk.ca/
plenty of info on this site

Purley

Moose Jaw is nice. There are loads of people who have never been here or have been here and left that don't like it!

Its a small town but it has plenty of stores. If you are used to London or a big English town, then it doesn't have stores like that. It has a really nice public pool with a waterslide. Regina doesn't have a public pool with a waterslide.

If your kids are into sports and you don't want to live in a big city with open air restaurants and bars and big stores and loads of people and a "happening" place, then Moose Jaw would be a good place to live. There are new and old houses, its near Buffalo Pound Lake and camping sites and beaches etc.

They have the airshow every summer, at least they always did, but I am not sure right now whether they still have it.

As to carpenters. I think we are wanting every kind of tradespeople. House prices have doubled in the past couple of years, after sitting static for years and years. So finding someone to do work is impossible. I called about five different companies last year because I wanted to get a quote for some concrete work - nobody called me back! I know there are different kids of carpenters - people who do framing etc. and then finishing carpenters.

http://www.mjtimes.sk.ca/

That is a link to the local paper.

I used to have a link to a place that had jobs, but I can't find it any longer.

We moved here almost 40 years ago. My husband and I both worked in London and I lived in London for a while. The rest of the time I lived just outside Croydon. We managed to handle the quieter life! When I go home now, I just find the crowds and the masses of cars almost more than I can handle. I still enjoy being there - its getting around I can't stand!

The photos are of an area on the edge of Moose Jaw. We were watching planes from the Air Force base flying around.

MarkG

http://www.cornergas.com/ .

It's kind of flat and rural, houses are reasonably cheap by Canadian standards (and really cheap by British standards), but there's still enough industry to support reasonable wages.

Not sure about Moose Jaw, but in Saskatoon and Regina there's a certain amount of conflict between the natives and the non-natives; however that's not really a problem for the average middle-class immigrant who lives and works in one of the better areas. The official murder rate is high, but it appears to be largely down to drunks and/or native people stabbing each other.

I'd say a lot comes down to why you want to move and what kind of lifestyle you're looking for. If you're used to a big city like London you'll find it slow and limited, equally if you want to see those mountains and forests from Canadian travel documentaries you won't find them around here! But if you want a fairly relaxed life with few problems, it's quite a good choice.

scottymallo

I live B.C but have lots of friends Saskatchewan. I spent 2 day last feb in Moose jaw seemed a nice place relatively small temp was freezing -15C both days!! We went to the under ground caves and visited the spa! I would look at saskatoon fro a permanent base which is approx 4 hours away! very nice city! lots of snow winter very hot summers. Excellent for ski do lovers or sailing in the summer on the lakes which are only an hour away! Property very cheap compared to UK! lots of jobs good schools ect! Less migration than most other areas of Canada. I think we will relocate there eventually

MarkG

Nah, -15C is just a bit chilly; -30C is where it starts to get cold .

I'm taking the bus too and from work a few times a week at the moment and I'm always relieved when it's only -15C out.

printer

I worked with a guy from Saskatchewan, he said it's too cold which is why he moved to Kelowna, in fact he said it gets so cold that you actually swear under your breath "what the hell am i doing here"

rooney2603

Thanks everyone for the information. I want to live in a quiet place not a big city. As long as there is something to do for the kids. What sort of sports are there?

Howard1944

Sk is not the end of the Earth, but you can see it from there.

You can see for miles and miles and miles, cold but sunny, basic people, friendly, just starting to open up with its' Resources, not a bad time to try there.

Purley

Let's see - sports -- well hockey and curling are the big ones in winter, but there is cross country skiing and in the Qu'appelle valley there is a ski/snowboarding place, but you can also play indoor soccer and get into wrestling and stuff like that. In the summer you have soccer and football (Canadian) and baseball and softball and t-ball - which is for little kids. You can go sailing or canoeing or kayaking or water skiing. There is bowling all year. All the bowling alleys have children's leagues or you can just go there when you feel like it for fun. There are pools and in Regina and probably Moose Jaw too there is a diving club. You can go horseback riding.

There are cadets - airforce, army, navy - in fact a Regina sea cadet was named the top sea cadet in Canada, which is odd considering we are thousands of miles from the sea!

I think that should be enough to keep your kids busy!

Right now its lunch time almost and its minus 1 -- time to get your shorts and t-shirts on!!

Lorna_D

I for one love Saskatchewan and we've only been here since last September - the people are friendly, the housing is reasonably cheap compared to the rest of Canada but the prices are going up daily. it is flat, but has the Qu'appele Valley which is pretty, the sky changes from minute to minute, you can see snow coming for miles and miles. It is cold cos it's winter -30 last Sunday but the wind is the problem not the cold. Moose jaw is nice, it has the Temple Garden Spa and underground tunnels, a good shopping Mall, Tim Hortons , two schools, as Liz says not far from Buffalo Pound Lake for watersport/fishing. I've only been to Moosejaw twice but it seemed ok to me. Like any place you have to make it home. Good luck in whatever you choose.

MarkG

There aren't really any big cities in Saskatchewan, at least by British standards; I think Saskatoon is the biggest city and that's around 200,000 people.

The only sports I've seen here so far are the local kids playing hockey or 'catch' in the street outside the house .

Oh, we've just had a weather warning of -40C to -45C temperatures tomorrow with wind-chill; so if you don't hear from me again I probably froze getting to the bus stop!

Ben W Bell

Get a sheet of plain white paper (not lined or marked in any way) and lie it on a table. Put your head to the table and look across the paper. It's kinda like that.

dinger24

Sounds similar to Alberta east side, the winter seems harsh at -45? what are the summers like, if married what do the wives think?

Purley

I am not sure when it was minus 45 last. Certainly not this winter or last. A can remember a couple of days when my granddaughter was about 8 when it was that cold. I remember because I drove her and the neighbour kids who usually took the school bus, to school because it was so cold.

Like Lorna said - its not the cold, its the wind. Of course when/if its 45 below - which is not very often - it doesnt matter - its just cold. But there again, its usually sunny. We don't have too many cloudy days. When we do its often not so cold. Its the clear skies that bring the cold weather.

You just get used to it. I do get fed up with only seeing white and brown. Snow and trees! But while I was outside this afternoon I notice that there are buds on the lilac bushes. So now I know the greenery will come again!