The Pas

The Pas (once Fort Paskoyac and still sometimes called Paskoyac) is a small town in northern Manitoba. The Pas is known as "Gateway to the North". It had about 5500 people in 2011, a population roughly split between Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals.

Understand
It is approximately 630 km (390 mi) northwest of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and 40 km (25 mi) from the border of Saskatchewan. It is sometimes still called Paskoyac by locals after the first trading post, called Fort Paskoya and constructed during French colonial rule. The Pasquia River begins in the Pasquia Hills in east central Saskatchewan. The French in 1795 knew the river as Basquiau.

Known as "The Gateway to the North", The Pas is a multi-industry northern Manitoba town serving the surrounding region. The main components of the region's economy are agriculture, forestry, commercial fishing, tourism, transportation, and services (especially health and education). The main employer is a paper and lumber mill operated by Canadian Kraft Papers. The Pas contains one of the two main campuses of the University College of the North.

The Pas is bordered by part of the Opaskwayak Cree Nation.

Climate
The Pas experiences a humid continental climate with long, cold winters and short, warm summers.

By car
The Pas is 626 km (about 6½-9 hours) north of Winnipeg on Highways 6 and 60.

By bus

 * Operates the following routes to The Pas:
 * Operates a route three days per week between Winnipeg and Flin Flon including stops in Portage la Prairie, Neepawa, Ste. Rose du Lac, Dauphin, Swan River, and The Pas. Travel time to The Pas from Winnipeg is 9.25 hours, from Portage la Prairie is 8 hours, from Neepawa is 6.75 hours, from Dauphin is 4.75 hours, from Swan River is 2.5 hours, and from Flin Flon 1.5 hours.
 * Operates a route two days per week between Flin Flon and Cedar Grove including a stop in The Pas. Same day transfer available at Cedar Grove for transfer to and from Thompson and Winnipeg.  Travel time to The Pas from Flin Flon is 1.5 hours, from Cedar Grove is 3.5 hours, from Thompson is 8 hours, and from Winnipeg is 8 hours.

Airline

 * There is one direct flight a day from Winnipeg to The Pas on Calm Air (1 hr 40 min, $440), and one flight that stops at Flin Flon.

Go next

 * Native-owned Keewatin Railway Company operates a subsidized connecting service from The Pas to Pukatawagan which reaches isolated native communities in that region of Manitoba (7½ hr, twice a week). Reservations.