Wabamun

Wabamun is a village in the Edmonton Capital Region, Alberta, west of Edmonton. It is on the northern shores of Lake Wabamun, the largest recreational lake in the Edmonton region.

Understand
Wabamun had a population of approximately 650 to 700 people in 2016.

Wabamun gets its name from the nearby Wabamun Lake, whose name is derived from the Cree word for "mirror", in reference to its water. The ancient name for the lake, from the Nakota Sioux language, is Wihnemne.

The main source of income within Wabamun are power plants in the area operated by TransAlta Utilities. The power plant in the village was closed down because of increased pressure from environmental agencies and aging. The Wabamun power plant was the subject of heated debate among the residents and cottagers of Wabamun Lake.

There is a large cabin-going community in Wabamun during the summer, while the village is populated year round.

The lake has a large population of walleye as of 2023. It was known as a near-trophy status lake for Northern Pike in the 1980s. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the lake was sometimes called "White Whale" due to the large size of whitefish that were hauled out of the lake and shipped to support the fur trade. The lake also contains ling-cod (burbot), white prairie sucker, and perch.

Lake Wabamun is approximately 82 km² in area, is long by  wide, and it has an average depth of, and a maximum charted depth of  - although the lake was only surveyed at 500 m intervals and the depth off of the end of Coal Point is reputed to be over  in some spots.

History
Wabamun was named for its location on the north shore of Lake Wabamun. The first post office opened in Wabamun in 1903. In the early 1900s, Wabamun was an important railway stop for homesteaders. Before the railway was extended further west, many settlers brought good and animals on train cars as far as Wabamun and then transferred to wagons drawn by oxen or horses for the remainder of trips to homesteads in the Lac Ste.-Anne area.

Get in
Wabamun is 20 minutes west of the town of Stony Plain and 40 minutes west of Edmonton on Highway 16; take exit 324 to access the village and exit 327 to access Kapasiwin and Wabamun Lake Provincial Park.

See

 * Wabamun Lake

Buy
Businesses include 4 restaurants, hardware store, bowling lanes, post office, pharmacy, liquor store, market, car wash, laundromat, motel, hotel, inn, tavern, convenience store, 2 banks, mechanic and a grocery store.

Nearby

 * Kapasiwin − small summer village just east of Wabamun and near Wabamun Provincial Park
 * Seba Beach − small summer village on the west shore of Wabamun Lake; marina, pier, restaurant, and campground available; home of the Edmonton Yacht Club.
 * Lake Isle − small lake northwest Wabumun
 * Lac Ste. Anne − northeast of Wabumun, the site of an annual religious pilgrimage.