As the weather starts to get more like spring we noticed that the Farmers Markets in Stony Plain and Spruce Grove were getting started this past weekend so my wife and I thought we would take a look.
If you are passing through Spruce Grove and Stony plain on a Saturday morning mid-April through September its worth checking out both of these markets which are about 10 minutes away from each other just off Hwy 16.
At this time of year there is not a lot of fresh produce yet but we were able to find some organic green house tomatoes at the Spruce Grove market and some fresh sausage at the Stony Plain market. Both markets have the usual collections of crafts and home made items. As the weather gets nicer both these markets selection increase considerably.
Taking advantage of these markets and buying local has a huge benefit to our environment as the fresh produce does not have to be shipped from where ever saving untold litres of oil and gas. It is also great for our local economy as money earned from these markets stays mostly in the local economy.
We headed off to the Stony Plain market first and it is fairly easy to find. Take the overpass exit into Stony Plain from Hwy 16 and head south. At the first set of lights head west until the next stop sign and then follow the well marked signs.
Stony Plain’s market is held in a covered multi-purpose facility which is used for a large number of festivals and events through out spring summer and fall. If you have time check out the Pioneer museum as Stony Plain has a long and eventful history.
We then headed east back to Spruce Grove and turned right at Hwy 16 and Calihoo / Golden Spike Road. North of the highway this street is called Calihoo and south of the hwy its call Golden Spike Road. **Warning – this intersection is a RED LIGHT trap in that you will get a ticket if you turn right on a red light so please be warned.** Just to make this more confusing its not on all right turns. It’s only an offence if you are turning south on to Golden Spike off of Hwy 16 and East on to Hwy 16 off of Golden Spike. But I digress.
Once you are headed south on Golden Spick take a left (east) on to south avenue and follow the signs. If you miss the signs just make your way to the big green Grain Elevator and you will find the market.
The grain elevator is run by the Spruce Grove Agricultural Society. If you are city folk or have never seen the workings of a grain elevator take the time to get a tour.
I am a big proponent of buying local. Especially local produce when it is available. When I learned that the average carrot travels 1500 miles to the dinner table in North America I started to appreciate how much buying local saves fuel for transportation and the environment. So Buy Local when ever possible.