Trucks, trailers & northern highways
Tow it right, from the door sticker to the Mackenzie Highway
Clear, sourced guides on towing ratings, hitches and winter driving for people who haul boats, campers, sleds and equipment across northern Alberta.
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Latest guides
Winter and highway towing
Towing on far-north Alberta highways: Highway 35, 88 and the La Crete ferry and ice bridge
What to know before towing on Highway 35, Highway 88 and Highway 697 in northern Alberta: long gaps between services, the La Crete ferry and ice bridge, the freeze-up gap, and checking 511 Alberta.
Towing capacity explained
2026 Ram 1500 towing capacity by engine, and the door-sticker math that really matters
Max towing and payload for every 2026 Ram 1500 engine in Canada, what those numbers assume, and how to check whether a half-ton can handle your travel trailer.
Illustrative imageTowing capacity explained
How to read a truck's towing sticker: GVWR, GCWR, payload and tongue weight
What every weight rating on your truck's door sticker means, how to work out your real payload, and why the advertised towing number usually assumes an empty truck.
Illustrative imageWinter and highway towing
Winter towing checklist for northern Alberta highways
A sourced, step-by-step checklist for towing a trailer, sled deck or camper in winter: tires, hitch and chains, trailer brakes, lights, following distance, sway and hills.
Start with a topic
- Towing capacity explainedGVWR, GCWR, payload and tongue weight, and how to work out what your truck can really tow.
- Hitches and trailersBumper pull, gooseneck and fifth wheel, plus safety chains, brakes and wiring.
- Winter and highway towingTires, following distance, sway and road reports for long northern drives.
- Work-truck ownershipKeeping a hard-working truck on the road through northern winters.
- Truck shopping guideWhat to check on a spec sheet or a used truck before you buy one for towing.
Who writes this
Northern Tow Guide is written by the editorial team at Butler Motor Group Ltd., which owns three AMVIC-licensed dealerships in northern Alberta. We sell trucks, so we say so up front. Our guides stick to facts we can source, and we link to every source we used.