Fort McMurray is a community within the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, Alberta, that is considered amongst the largest municipalities within North America. Fort McMurray remains a designation utilized by Canada Post for mail delivery in this area. Fort McMurray is a multicultural community, and it draws individuals from all walks of life. The majority of the migrants in the city are Albertans, followed by 17 percent of people for Labrador and Newfoundland province.
The first known settlers of Fort McMurray were the Cree, who were the dominant First Nations people within the area. It was believed that they typically used the oil sands in order to waterproof their canoes. The first explorer from Europe of the area was Peter Pond, who came to the region to look for fur. The explorer, Alexander MacKenzie made the very first recorded description of the oil sands during 1790, and by that time, the explorers and Crees were already happening between them. The community has played a major role in the history of the petroleum industry within Canada, as oil exploration has been existing within the region for as early as the 20th Century.
Fort McMurray Tourism offers several oil sands tour packages from the months of May up to September each year. In the summer season, Fort McMurray city offers wilderness adventure packages, kayaking, and canoeing, whereas during winter, tourists could select from watching the breathtaking northern lights or take a snowmobile tour, go hunting and fishing in lodges. Vista Ridge All Seasons Park provides beginners to a top-notch fully accredited school, intermediate level runs, and a quad chairlift. Snowboarders and thrill-seekers will even enjoy a downhill playground with half-pipe boxes in the park.
Aside from oil, Fort McMurray City also relies on oil pipelines and natural gas, forestry and also tourism. The two largest oil sand mining companies in the city of Fort McMurray are Suncor Energy and Syncrude. Various industries, comprise drilling rig services, forest protection services, refineries and sawmills are considered economic players in Fort McMurray city.
The airport in Fort McMurray manages the air transportation within the city. Among its major airlines consist of: WestJet, Northwestern Air, McMurray Aviation, Integra Air, Air Mikisew, Air Canada and Air Canada Jazz. Their scheduled flights are generally to Saskatoon, St. John's Toronto, Lethbridge, Peace River, Fort Smith, Fort Chipewyan, Calgary and Edmonton. Public transit is managed by Fort McMurray Transit, that operates within the community, and Greyhound Canada and Red Arrow operate scheduled bus services to Edmonton and various communities along Highway 63. Rail services are maintained by the Canadian National Railway, which operates between Fort McMurray and Edmonton.