Highway 33 marker Highway 33 marker

Highway 33

Grizzly Trail
Route information
Maintained by Alberta Ministry of Transportation
Length218.6 km[1] (135.8 mi)
Major junctions
South end Hwy 43 near Gunn
Major intersections Hwy 18 in Barrhead
Hwy 32 in Swan Hills
North end Hwy 2 near Kinuso
Location
CountryCanada
ProvinceAlberta
Specialized and rural municipalitiesLac Ste. Anne County, County of Barrhead No. 11, Woodlands County, Big Lakes County
TownsBarrhead, Swan Hills
Highway system
← Hwy 32→ Hwy 35

Alberta Provincial Highway No. 33, commonly referred to as Highway 33 and officially named Grizzly Trail, is a north–south highway in west–central Alberta, Canada.

Highway 33 begins at Highway 43 near the hamlet of Gunn and travels north to the town of Barrhead. North of Barrhead, Highway 33 turns northwest, crossing the Athabasca River at Fort Assiniboine, before reaching the town of Swan Hills. Highway 33 continues north from Swan Hills to Highway 2 east of Kinuso. Highway 33 is about 219 kilometres (136 mi) in length.[1][2]

History

Highway 33 follows the original Klondike Trail, which was advertised by Edmonton merchants as the shortest route to the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush, from the Athabasca River at Pruden's Crossing, near Fort Assiniboine, through present-day Swan Hills and along the Swan River to north to present-day Kinuso. The trail followed a very difficult and dangerous route and by 1901-02 use of the trail declined, soon after it was abandoned altogether in favour of other routes to the Peace River area.[3][4]

Highway 33 originally started as short highway that connected Highway 43, 7 km (4 mi) south of Onoway, to Alberta Beach.[5] In the 1970s, Highway 33 was extended north to Barrhead from Gunn, resulting in an 8 km (5 mi) gap between Alberta Beach and Gunn.[6] Highway 18, which ran between Barrhead and Swan Hills, was renumbered to Highway 33 and the highway was extended north to Kinuso.[7] In c. 1985, the original section to Alberta Beach became part of Highway 633.[8][9]

Major intersections

From south to north:

Rural/specialized municipalityLocationkm[1]miDestinationsNotes
Lac Ste. Anne County​−18.7−11.6 Hwy 43 – Grande Prairie, EdmontonSouth of Onoway; former eastern terminus
−10.6−6.6 Hwy 633 west – DarwellFormer Hwy 634
Alberta Beach−8.1−5.0Former western terminus
8 km (5 mi) gap
​0.00.0 Hwy 43 – Edmonton, Whitecourt, Grande PrairieEast of Gunn
Rich Valley13.58.4
Birch Cove25.816.0
County of Barrhead No. 11​28.017.4 Hwy 651 east – Legal
30.018.6Crosses the Pembina River
31.919.8 Hwy 654 westSouth end of Hwy 654 concurrency
38.323.8 Hwy 654 east – ManolaNorth end of Hwy 654 concurrency
Barrhead44.827.8 Hwy 18 west (53 Avenue) – MayerthorpeSouth end of Hwy 18 concurrency
​48.029.8 Hwy 18 east – WestlockHwy 33 branches west;
north end of Hwy 18 concurrency
Camp Creek66.941.6
​79.749.5 Hwy 763 south – Tiger Lilly
↑ / ↓​82.351.1Crosses the Athabasca River
Woodlands CountyFort Assiniboine83.952.1 Hwy 661 east – DappHwy 33 branches northwest
​91.156.6 Hwy 658 west – Goose Lake, Blue Ridge
Big Lakes CountySwan Hills145.290.2 Hwy 32 south – WhitecourtHwy 33 branches north
​218.6135.8 Hwy 2 – Peace River, Slave Lake, EdmontonEast of Kinuso
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
  •       Closed/former
  •       Concurrency terminus
KML file (edit • help)
Template:Attached KML/Alberta Highway 33
KML is not from Wikidata

Photos

References

  1. ^ a b c Google (2017-12-18). "Highway 33 in Alberta" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 2017-12-18.
  2. ^ "2015 Provincial Highway 1-216 Progress Chart" (PDF). Alberta Transportation. March 2015. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-04-10. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  3. ^ "History of Barrhead". Town of Barrhead. Archived from the original on May 20, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
  4. ^ Thome, Michael (2012-07-19). "Klondike Trail". RETROactive. Government of Alberta. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  5. ^ The H.M. Gousha Company (1956). Shell Map of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba (Map). The Shell Oil Company. § C-12.
  6. ^ Travel Alberta (1976–1977). Alberta Official Road Map (Map). The Province of Alberta. §§ H-4, H-5, I-5.
  7. ^ Travel Alberta (1978–1979). Alberta Official Road Map (Map). The Province of Alberta. §§ H-4, H-5, I-5.
  8. ^ Province of Alberta Canada 1985 Official Road Map (Map). Alberta Tourism and Small Business. § I-5.
  9. ^ Province of Alberta Canada 1986 Official Road Map (Map). Alberta Tourism and Small Business. § I-5.
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