The morning was sunny and warm as we boarded the bus.

The Oilsands Discovery Centre was the first tour.

We began with a demonstration of the extraction process used to separate the oil from the oilsands. The procedure is astoundingly simple. I had never given it much thought, but since sand always sinks and oil always floats, it makes sense that adding hot water will separate the two elements!

Inside the centre we saw displays of the layers of rock and soil, and the molecular structure of oilsands. We were able to climb on a simulated big haul truck and explore the cab.

While most of our group was absorbed in these exhibits, Lyle and I headed outside where we found a large area with various samples of the equipment used in the beginning of the oilsands development. We had worked our way to the far end of the grounds when I heard an announcement that the bus was loading. Scurrying back to the bus, we took our seats to the applause of our travel mates!

After a quick lunch (at the hotel for most but we scooted next door to McDonalds), we returned to the Discovery Centre to catch the Suncor tour bus. This was a Diversified bus. Diversified runs about 1,000 buses in Fort McMurray, transporting the workers to and from the mines. This increases the safety of the workers and eliminates the congestion of parking thousands of vehicles. Our driver was Mohammed and our tour guide was Shayla.

During the half-hour ride to the mine site, we were given an overview of the activities and buildings we would be viewing. Seeing the site firsthand made one realize the immensity of the oilsands operations.

Miles of pipe runs parallel to the road and across the bridge, providing the hot water for separation and taking oil product to and from various stages of the process. The crude oil is then piped to places such as Fort Saskatchewan for further upgrading.

The care taken for the environment by these large corporations while performing such enormous operations was impressive. Every tree is used, the topsoil is moved while dormant to provide a natural start to growth in reclamation, and the sand is replaced in reclaimed ponds. (Red Deer could take a lesson here.) Suncor recycles 80 to 90 per cent of the water it uses, and the total water used is only three per cent of the total flow of the Athabasca River. They generate their own electricity for their operations and refine the diesel fuel for all their equipment and the Diversified bus fleet.

One of the tour members, a retired farmer, asked about the cost of a big haul truck. The reply was $6.5 million, plus the tires. The tires cost about $55,000 each, and each truck takes eight tires. That’s not your average pickup truck! They say it is comparable to sitting on your bed on the second floor of a two-storey house and driving down the street. The driver cannot see anything within 30 feet of the truck. Loading is done by GPS.

Further down the road at the Syncrude site, we visited “The Giants of Mining,” a display of an actual dragline and related equipment used in the pioneering of oilsands development. We also stopped at the buffalo paddock, where we saw part of the 300-head Wood Bison herd that grazes on reclaimed oilsands land.

We were also introduced to the Wood Buffalo Trails. As described on Syndrude’s website, “At the entrance to the trail stands the Bison Gateway, a massive stone sculpture of a Wood Bison herd. The stone sculpture marks the beginning of the Matcheetawin Discovery Trails (a Cree word meaning beginning place) and the Sagow Pematosowin Trail (Cree for living in peaceful co-existence with the land). This four-kilometre interpretive trail system on 50 hectares of land offers visitors the opportunity to see various types of reclaimed land – spruce/aspen forests, jack pine forests, grasslands and wetlands.”

We returned to Fort McMurray bordering on the brink of information overload. This four-hour tour was well worth the trip!

In the evening, there was an optional tour of the city on the Parsons tour bus. We saw many of the same areas as the previous evening, but with a different perspective. It gave one a feel for the day-to-day life of the residents.

Fort McMurray is a city of young adults and young families. There are few tree-lined streets, but an abundance of recreational facilities and wooded trailways.

The day had left us much more accurately informed about life and work in the Alberta oilsands.

***Watch for Day 3 - the trip isn’t over yet***