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Crescent Falls on the Bighorn River |
Rocky Mountain House/Nordegg
Trail History
Even though they weren’t cowboys, the fur traders put Rocky Mountain House on the map in 1799 when the North West Company and then the Hudson’s Bay Company established trading post forts on the North Saskatchewan River. The two companies competed for the lucrative beaver pelt market from the North Saskatchewan basin and into B.C.’s Columbia valley. The competition continued until their merger in 1821.Three more versions of the fort would eventually rise up on the site until it was deserted in 1875. The remains of the two large chimneys from the last fort can still be seen at the National Historic Site that commemorates the fur traders and explorers.
One famous resident of the fort was David Thompson, “the greatest land geographer who ever lived.” who used it as a base during his explorations of the western Canada. Blind in his right eye and with a limp from a badly mended broken leg, Thompson surveyed 3.9 million km2 in western Canada and northwest US and is credited with opening trade with the interior mountain tribes.
Heading west on the David Thompson highway, stop in Nordegg, once considered one of the most modern mining towns in North America. The Brazeau Collieries began mining coal in 1911. By the late 1940s the Collieries were the second largest coal briquette maker in North America. Now it’s a town with tourism services and it’s still possible to visit the Brazeau Collieries Industrial Minesite as well as the Museum at the Nordegg National Historic Site.
Around Town
Rocky Mountain House is the centre of a vibrant oil and gas industry as well as forest products and agriculture. But it is still cowboy country and you can see it in and around town.
The Rocky Mountain House National Historic Site’s signed walking trails offer insight into the colourful history of the fur trade history, while the kids will love the pint-sized play fort and puppet theatre along with a chance to see the bison.
Side Trails
Rocky Mountain House is aptly tagged the “Gateway to Adventure” and there are hundreds of miles of wooded foothills and front range mountains to explore. Here you can hook up with well-established outfitters and ranches to try your hand at working cattle, backcountry trail riding, canoeing wilderness rivers, fishing spring fed trout streams or maybe just relaxing. There’s no need to rough it at the end of the day, either. Expect everything from hearty
home-cooked meals to luxurious log cabins complete with hot tubs – guaranteed to sooth those aching muscles!
There are some fabulous lakes; Crimson, Cow and Sylvan closeby with great beaches and camping. The Grandview Stage offers bluegrass music, camping, cabins and chef prepared meals at its resort.
Farther west on Hwy 11 and off the Forestry Trunk Road you will find the Land of the Falls: Siffluer, Ram, Bighorn, Crescent and Hummingbird to name just a few. At the west end of the Abraham Lake are the Kootenay Plains an important native heritage site with its unique grasslands where the North Saskatchewan River breaks out of the mountains.
Continuing west on the David Thompson Highway will connect the traveler to the Banff-Jasper Icefields Parkway. Looping north will take you to Jasper next to the Columbia Icefields.
From Jasper it is easy to head east back to Edmonton, north to Grande Cache and Grande Prairie and onto Alaska or west into British Columbia.
Looping south will take you to Banff next to the Wapta Icefields and past Lake Louise. From Lake Louise it is easy to head west over to British Columbia or east back to Calgary.
Rocky Mountain House
Phone: 1-800-565-3793
Web Site: www.rockymtnhouse.com
Look for our Partner Logo at all participating venues in the Cardston Area.
- Canalta Family of Hotels
Let the Canalta Family of Hotels Be Your Guide Along the Cowboy Trail. Ramada Pincher Creek, Drayton Valley Ramada, Cochrane Super 8, Rocky Mountain House Super 8.
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