How bad is Thompson Manitoba?

[skydivepilot]

I will be in Thompson from mid-Sept. to mid-April. Think its worth bringing the dirtbike for that time period. I have an ATV with a blade but not sure about hauling it all the way there. Do they have snow removal for driveways or am I on my own? I appreciate all the info.

[OceansEdge]

The highschool isn't great, but I've seen far worse in some neighbourhoods in Toronto, and Vancouver, ... it's a matter of perspective I suppose. Some of the elementary schools are better than others, when I left in 2006 Deerwood was still considered one of the better ones.

I spent 6 years there as a single mom, and while it wasn't maybe an idealic environment for the kids, the kid's childhoods will be what you make it - enjoy the great outdoors, get involved, do things with them, should turn out alright. Maybe not the sorta place one wants to stay forever, it's certainly not horrific if you make the best of it.

[mbav8r]

Hi, I was raised in Thompson, so I may be able to shed some light, although my info will be a little outdated. Riverside was the only school that had fench immersion and it is in one of the better neighborhoods in town. Not alot of low income housing in that part of the city. Eastwood was the worst, avoid at all cost. Deerwood was a close second to Riverside, I went to both and turned out fine, I think. The highschool wasn't bad, but again that was a long time ago, 20 years, holy crap where'd the time go. The are some newer developments in the Burntwood area, which I would say is a 3rd choice of schools. I agree with what an earlier poster said, if you can find a place at paint lake, that would be ideal. Just for the outdoors aspect not for safety, in my opinion. Not sure if a school bus runs from the lake or not but it is 26kms driving to the city limit from there. I imagine the new dirt track is by the pool, thats where it was when I used to go. Trails and lakes, never bored. I'm sure the path around the city is completed by now aswell. Dirt bike from Sept to April, considering I don't remember a Halloween without snow and there is still ice on the lakes in April, well you get the point. ATV with plow, only if you want to do your driveway in 2mins or less. You won't find too many properties with long driveways, unless you do end up at the lake, then I would say you want your atv, even if just to run over to the marina for milk.
All in all I have mostly fond memories of Thompson and even think I would retire there if I can convince my better half.

[Sheila]

[Sheila]

Hmmm, guess one positive thing is that there are no PLASTIC shopping bags anywhere due to a city by-law. Lots of people go there to work. Many transients and now immigrants.

I think they don't have the best weather for flying planes. My flight from Thompson actually got cancelled one time this past summer, due to T-storm.
The stormy weather in Thompson might have to do with the surrounding lakes. My friends observed they have nicer weather at the Setting Lake area and also the weather becomes nicer after Sasigui Rapids. Maybe Thompson is not best the place for northern flights after all. It is always cloudy and cold.

[skydivepilot]

Cloudy and cold eh? Something to look forward to. I am keeping my flying job in NB so will only be in Thompson for their tropical winters . Thank you for the reply. I leave in 4 weeks time. Should be a fun drive from NB with 2 kids and 2 dogs . My wife and I will make the best of it and be transferred in 4 years time.

[Northern Flyer]

I recently moved out of Thompson after 6 years. I lived in the Westwood area, and my two kids went to school at Westwood elementary school, and found it a positive experience. My family and I enjoyed our time in Thompson, lots of good friends and good times. There are also allot of activities for kids such as hockey, lacrosse and soccer. I kept my kids busy with extra curricular activities and they turned out fine, actually there were no troubles at all. When I was shopping for a home in YTH the real estate agents basically said if you have kids and want them in french buy a house in Riverside, if you want them in English schooling buy a house in Westwood, period. I think that was good advice. Housing prices are relatively high in Thompson, but they seem to hold or increase in value. Also property taxes are among the highest in the country.

I was an out doorsy type and there are not many places in Manitoba that offer more for the out door enthusiast. Bring your quad and plow it will come in very handy in the winter and there are awesome trails for riding in the summer. A snow mobile definitely makes the winters more bearable. As for the track you mentioned in Gimli, that will be a seven and a half hour drive, one way. There is a motocross track about ten minutes south of town.

The up town core area is a bit of an eye opener, you never really get used to the rif raf zombies wandering the streets, but most of them are harmless. I'm willing to bet you won't spend much time hanging out in that part of the city. The flying community is very tight knit and accepting, I had a few friends who where RCMP members as well and they seemed to have a pretty close relationship with co-workers. Most people are transient in town and I was always impressed with the holiday dinners and get together's that were organized by friends to include all who where away from family over the holidays.

The town is what you make of it, have an open mind and enjoy yourself. I hope it works out as well for you as it did for my family.

[skydivepilot]

Great information. My kids are currently in french immersion and my wife wants to keep them in it or even enroll them in the french school. I had been looking in the Burntwood and Paint Lake areas but will check out Riverside. Thank you.

[BuzzBeurling]

As for the flying part, taking off off the river to the east can be "interesting"...(it's in a deep gorge)
Once, climbed out with the T-Otter to 800 feet, got in a downdraft all the way back down in the water, bounced off then it was off into the sunset(out of the downdraft)which last a long time at this latitude...(the sunset, that is)
After that, I understood why all these Otters operating in mountains on wheels crashed when caught in downdrafts.


In Thompson, you'll be able to get your picture taken there:

Or there:

[vstrom]

I live in Thompson and from what I've seen people separate into two groups.. love it or hate it.

If you enjoy latte's at a trendy coffee house followed by some artsy-fartsy film festival.. probably not for you.
If you enjoy sledding, dirtbiking, hunting, fishing, riding your quad, eating moose or caribou sausage, blurry pilot garage parties, real fireplaces, bonfires 20 feet high and can put up with mosquitoes.. probably you're gonna do ok here.

If you're just going to be here from Sept to April.. leave the dirtbike and streetbike behind and bring the quad.

The weather is usually great up here, if cold. It gets cold here.. spend the money on a good parka and you'll do fine. We hit -40 for a few mornings in the winter and we generally dont have the winds that the prairies have. Generally it's sky clear here all winter and VFR most of the summer. Can be crappy with occasional chances of ugly weather in the fall and spring.

Paint lake is great. There's a school bus that comes out this way every weekday at 730 and gets back at 1630. The only downside to Paint is it's a 25 min drive to town.

Any other questions just drop a PM.

[High and Behind]

bonfires 20 feet high

The wifes cooking get away from her there V?

[vstrom]

I guess using JetA on the BBQ wasnt one of her greatest ideas.

[skydivepilot]

PM sent vstrom. Do you have a Suzuki Vstrom btw?

[vstrom]

Yep.. greatest bike ever built.

[Northern Flyer]

Greatest girl bike ever built

[vstrom]

Jealous much?

[MUSKEG]

This reminded me of a wisdom quip I heard. A man had just landed in Chicago and was riding the transit into the city. He struck up a conversation with an elderly woman and asked her what he could expect fron the people in Chicago. She asked where he was coming from,to which he answered,New York. Had a great time there, the people were so friendly and there was always someone to help you out. Great city great people. She looked at him and said he could expect to find more or less the same people in Chicago. It will be what you make it.

[skydivepilot]

Gothcha; glass half-full kind of thinking . My kids and I haven't seen my wife since mid-May so we don't care where we live, as long as we are together. I really appreciate all the replies and PMs. Looks like there's going to be lots of great people in Thompson and my wife can deal with the not-so-great .

[Johnny#5]

The Tragically Hip sang about a girl there, so they must all be hot.

[Strobes]

While most kids go to the school associated with the area of town they're in, it is possible to live in one place and send your kids to another. Paint Lake, as previously stated, is fantastic

Avoid Eastwood at all costs. You can get used to the riff-raff downtown, they're all harmless, but most of the violent stuff happens in Eastwood. I think generally the town is safe, most of it is inter and intra-gang related.

Find a winter past-time, to keep your family together - Winter is boring as f. Cops do patrol snowmobile trails near town, so if you invest in a snow machine or ATV, make sure you're legal. There is a significant cross-country ski club in town, they have over 20k of groomed trails in 2 locations near town, and there is a downhill ski resort.

Fishing is fantastic. Period

Airplane tickets out of town (and into) are very expensive due EIC monopoly. Plan accordingly - driving to Winnipeg takes 6h45 during clear and dry road conditions. If you plan on buying a car when you get here, don't go tiny (there are a couple guys with smart cars in town, not very smart move...), but no need to go all out either. Since Thompson is a fairly small market, any major purchases you need to make, especially cars, you should make after comparing prices down south. You can easily pay double what you would pay in Winnipeg.

Good luck, when is the move?

[skydivepilot]

All good points and I am learning more than I ever imagined when I made the original post. Pilots are a helpful bunch for sure. We will be driving out Nov. 10 from NB with 2 kids and 2 dogs in a minivan. Wish me luck! I am leaving my car in NB for the winter so I won't have to do the drive in the spring and then again next fall when flying is done for the season. We hope to make due with one vehicle this winter. Thanks for all the input and more is always welcome. I am leaning towards Paint Lake but think my wife is thinking in town so she's not far from the kids when on the job and I am gone all summer.

[cougarhunter]

Here ya go...
www.rec411.ca

[ei ei owe]

Airplane tickets out of town (and into) are very expensive due EIC monopoly. Plan accordingly -

Were tickets cheaper when Perimeter was seperate or when First Air or even Skyward & Canadian serviced YTH?

[CD]

I think the only time there was a shift in prices was the brief period when WestJet attempted the route in 2002... but they couldn't make money on the route so they withdrew the service.

[Northern Flyer]

Haha, I flew from YTH to YWG yesterday afternoon. Bought the ticket about 3 hours prior to the flight, and it was over $600 one way. I have bought return tickets to Orlando Florida from Winnipeg for less than that.