Chestermere is a city of about 20,000 people (2016) in the Calgary Region. It is largely a commuter town of Calgary and surrounds Chestermere Lake, a small reservoir that was constructed for irrigation and now used for recreation.
Chestermere Lake was established in 1907 when a dam and canal system was built on a natural wetland as a irrigation reservoir for area settlers. Following the irrigation development, the lake began to be used for recreation with people building cabins and staying along the lake during the summer months, with a slow increase of permanent residents. In 1992, Chestermere was incorporated as a town just over 1000 permanent residents, but by 2014 the population has grown to 17,200, and was incorporated into a city the following year.
Chestermere is about immediately east of Calgary's eastern perimeter, with it being less than 10 minutes east of Stoney Trail (Calgary's ring road) and about 20 minutes from downtown.
Chestermere can be reached from Northeast Calgary on Highway 1 (Trans-Canada Highway), which is also known as 16 Avenue NE. Another option is to take 17 Avenue SE (formerly Highway 1A) from Southeast Calgary.
Chestermere Boulevard is the main roadway through Chestermere. There is also a network of walking paths which encircle the lake and connect the different neighbourhoods.
Chestermere Lake is in the heart of Chestermere, with lakeside parks and beaches being:
Activates available in Chestermere Lake including boating (both motorized and non-motorized), fishing, and swimming in the summer, as well as skating and snowmobiling available in the winter.
There are no hotels in Chestermere. The closest hotel accommodation can be found 15 minutes away in Northeast Calgary.
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