CEAG Badlands Drive - June 2012

Please don't read and drive! Have your passenger narrate for you as we go.

Following is some information on the sights that we'll pass during our drive today. Since we don't have radio communication I've prepared this 'self guided' tour of the countryside and the places that we'll either pass by, or visit today. I suggest that you reference it from time to time as we arrive at the destinations identified below. They're organized in the order that we'll see them so it'll be easy to follow as we go.

Enjoy the trip! Some of the history is quite interesting.

#1 Race City Our first highlight is the old location of our playground for many years Race City Motorsport Park. The facility was actually comprehensive facility. It contained a 2.1 mile roadcourse (several configurations are available with 2.1 miles being the longest), a ¼ mile IHRA dragstrip and a ½ mile high banked paved oval. The paddock area was routinely used for driver training and the high banked oval with the infield were used for drifting. The venue also hosted a few spectator events like concerts every year and sometimes even Christmas light displays during the holiday season.

The track first opened as an oval in 1985 and the dragstrip followed the next year, opening on May 11 1986. The roadcourse opened in 1987. Originally the roadcourse was paved by Shell Canada and was called the Formula Shell Roadcourse. The track elevation is 3,380ft above sea level.

Race City will be remembered fondly.

#2 Langdon The story of Langdon dates back to the 1880's. Langdon was established by Canadian Pacific Railway to service the large prairie area east of with the building of a railway stop. The railroad was built by a contracting company, which had two subcontractors by the names of Langdon and Shepard. Since it was custom at this time to name railroad stations after the various contractors who built the railroad, the CPR decided to honor Langdon by naming this station after him. Once the station was built the town developed around it. Just after Race City we passed through the town of Shepard - so Shepard got his due as well.

Langdon is sometimes referred to as the 'Good Luck Town', for its situation on the CPR. The new frontier Village of Langdon saw its first sod turned in 1883 and the CPR sold farmland surrounding Langdon for only fifteen dollars an acre. At that price, and with railroad access, throngs of settlers took the offer and made land purchases. In return, this generated business for the CPR with increased railway traffic.

During a major growth period from 1905 to 1914, the majority of Langdon's pioneering ranchers and homesteaders settled along the slightly rolling contour of the Langdon district's wide, treeless plain. Natural pastures of native grasses, supplemented the efforts of the earliest homesteaders as they grew oats, course grains and tame hay to support their livestock.

During the early 1900's Langdon experienced rapid growth and in 1908 Langdon was incorporated as a Village. The early industrial years in the 1920's and the resultant bustle of activity in the west brought the population to 2000 persons. However, with the invention of the Model T automobile, business began to decline in Langdon as residents took advantage of the proximity to Calgary and began driving into Calgary to purchase goods. Lately Langdon has again expanded as a bedroom community for Calgary.

#3 Strathmore Strathmore was named in exactly the same way as Langdon (and Shepard) in that the CPR named it. This time, instead of a contractor getting the nod it was named, in 1883, after one of its benefactors . Claude Bowes-Lyon, the Earl of Strathmore. The Earl's granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth, visited the community in June, 1939.

Surprisingly, the CPR moved the hamlet of Strathmore four miles north to its current location when the railway was built. The prairies made it easy for the railroaders and a track laying record was made between Strathmore and Cheadle. In one hour, one mile of steel was laid and, at the end of a ten-hour working day, the rails were laid to Cheadle 9 miles away - setting a record. Efforts by the Canadian government to develop Western Canada led to increases in Strathmore's population and its importance as a rail supply stop.

The CPR railroad tracks and station are now gone, the land having been subdivided.

Strathmore has a population of over 11,000 and that number has been growing at more than 7% year! It must be the sunshine since Strathmore has 333 days of 'bright sunshine' a year!

#4 Standard

Watch for gravel as we drive through Standard! Its' agricultural roots are showing!

Standard is a sleepy prarie town with an interesting history in that most of its early citizens were Danish settlers. Even today a glance at the Standard phone book looks like a list of Danish family names, especially Christensen. The town is slowly declining as the farms get bigger and change from family farms to corporate farms. Just the same, if you're looking for Dane, this is the place to look.

#5 Rosebud

We'll stop in Rosebud for stretch. If the shops are open we'll be able to take a bio break and maybe do some shopping.

Of all our stops Rosebud is one of the most interesting. Here we are, in the middle of red neck farming country - and there's an entire town dedicated to theatrical arts! Huh? There's no gas station, no grocery store, no Sears Catalog office, no police detachment, nothing except a dining hall that serves meals before afternoon plays and a theatre. There's also a school for the arts and some antique and curio shops.

Rosebud sits in a sheltered river valley on the Rosebud River on the edge of the Canadian Badlands. This area was called Akokiniskway by the Blackfoot people, which translates roughly to "by the river of many roses".

The hamlet was founded in 1885 by James Wishart. While following the Gleichen Trail to Montana with his family, they awoke to the river valley covered by wild roses, Alberta's official flower. Wishart then reportedly said, "Here's the Promised Land, we go no further."

The beauty of the valley has attracted many people throughout the years, from nature lovers to artists. Notable artists A. Y. Jackson and H. G. Hyde, members of the Group of Seven. spent the summer of 1944 painting in the area.

Over the years, farming and coal mining have been the primary industries. In 1972 the Severn Creek School was shut down as part of an Alberta wide education consolidating process and local children were bused to Standard (I presume to learn Danish...) and . This resulted in many of the local businesses being closed and the hamlet population dropped to under a dozen people. However, the farming community of around 400 still supported three elevators and a seed cleaning plant.

Easter 1973, a group of young adults from Calgary brought about 40 teenagers out and camped in the now empty mercantile. This pilot event evolved into a summer camp initially funded by a grant from the Alberta Government and then supported as Rosebud Camp of the Arts by Crescent Heights Baptist Church in Calgary. In 1977 high school was founded using the old buildings of the town as classrooms emphasizing the performing arts in its curriculum (with a religious backdrop that still iS part of the theatrical experience here). In the 1980s, Rosebud School of the Arts began to run theatre, which eventually developed into Rosebud Theatre and the school shifted its emphasis to post-secondary education.

Currently the primary industries within the hamlet are tourism and the arts. Agriculture along with oil and gas production are significant industries in the surrounding area - BUT and this is a big BUT - hopefully, within the next few years there will be a new racetrack in the area - The Badlands Motorsport Resort. It'll be located along the Rosebud River just couple of miles to the east.

#6 The Hill View Hutterite Colony

There's much to be said about the Hutterites. Very breifly, they originally formed in Austria in the 1500's under the guidence of Jakob Hutter and The New Testament. Unfortunately, regardless of where they went, the Hutterites never fit in. They were persecuted everywhere in their home country of Austria, then Moravia, Transylvania, Ukraine and Slovakia until, ultimately, they found peace in Canada in the mid 1870's. They immigrated in stages totalling almost 1300 souls. Of those, 400 became Hutterites and most Hutterites are descended for those early immigrants. They did establish colonies in the US but the United States enacted laws (like conscription) that denied their religious sovereignty and the right to refuse military service. Although Canada had conscientious objector laws things weren't always roses here either. Alberta was getting concerned about the fast growth of the settled colonies so they formed laws in the early 40's that denied Hutterites communal property rights - but the act was eventually repealed in 1973.

Hutterites have a few tennants that caused them friction everywhere they went. One being that they would in no way support military service. They wouldn't volunteer or even pay taxes if the money was used for a military purpose. They are also forbidden to wear a uniform like a soldier, firefighter, policeman, or one presumes even a server at McDonalds.

Today, about 75% of North American Hutterite colonies are in Canada and the total community totals about 50 thousand. There are no urban colonies they're all rural.

#7 Horseshoe Canyon

Horseshoe Canyon is 17km from Drumheller. The canyon is 3km long between Kneehill Creek and Highway 9.

The canyon received it name from its shape and it became the namesake of the Horseshoe Canyon Formation geological zone. We'll be following this zone until well after lunch. There are formations overlaying the Horseshoe Canyon Formation. They are the Battle, Whitemud and Scollard formations. Interestingly the Horseshoe Canyon Formation extends to, and is visible in. the City of Edmonton!

This formation holds several thin seams of coal which was a significant cause of settlement in this area - including the family of your's truely. Today coal bed methane (CBM) is a major economic driver of development and employment in this area.

#8 Drumheller Penitentiary

The Drumheller Institution is medium security Federal penitentiary that opened in 1967 our centenial year. It has a capcity of just fewer than 600 but currently has 514 clients'. This means there's room for all of us!

It seems that almost every year some inmates escape so suggest that we give hitch hikers a wide berth.

#9 Drumheller

During the peak of the coal era (1920s) Drumheller's population exploded to more than 30,000 and it became a city in 1930. Drumheller was Western Canada's largest coal producer; now it contributes to a vibrant energy sector and can boast Alberta's second largest natural gas deposit, the West Drumheller Field. To benefit from Provincial and Federal grants the city dropped its city charter and once again became a town in 1997, when it was amalgamated with the Municipal District of Badlands. Drumheller is the largest town in Alberta in area and since the 1997 amalgamation with Badlands, the town also includes the formerly separate communities of Nacmine, Wayne, Rosedale, Cambria, East Coulee, Lehigh and Aerial where Midland, Newcastle and North Drumheller were previously annexed by the City of Drumheller. In short, 14 old residential mining communities (now suburbs or districts) make up the current Town of Drumheller.

Drumheller has been the filming location for more than 50 commercials, television and cinematic productions.

Just north of downtown Drumheller, near the Red Deer River, is the world's largest dinosaur. It stands 86' high and is made of fiberglass. Paleontologists are divided whether real dinosaurs were made from fibreglass - but research continues.

#10 Bleriot Ferry

The Bleriot Ferry was built in 1913 and still transports about 24,000 cars a year (in a very short season!). The current ferry was built in 1997 and is 27.6m long. The crossing is only 105 meters

So the ferry is already ¼ of the way across even before it leaves!

The ferry has a load capacity of 62,500kg and is propelled by cable. The ferry, with a crew of 1. holds 99 passengers and 13 midsize cars. This will not be the longest boat trip of your life....

#11 Torrington

Well here we are, at the world famous Gopher Hole Museum. As we approach town be sure to notice 12' tall Clem T. GoFur on the side of the highway. Also take note of the fire hydrants in Torrington as they're all decorated as gophers.

#12 Calgary

This is where our trip ends. I hope that everyone had great day exploring the Alberta Badlands! Badlands Drive - June 2012

Meet point: Shell Flying 'J; Truck Stop at Barlow and 114th Ave. S.E.

First Stop: Rosebud

East on 114 Ave Turn Right (South) on 84th St. Turn left (East) onto Hwy. 22x Turn Left (North) onto Hwy. 797 Range Road 272 Turn right (East) onto Hwy. and get bored for a while Turn left (North and then east - it's a chicane!) onto Hwy. 561 Turn left (North) onto Hwy. 840 Stop on Main Street Rosebud, go for a bio break

Second stop: Horse Shoe Canyon North on Hwy. 840 Turn right (East) on Hwy. 9 Turn left into the Horseshoe Canyon parking lot - its gravel! Park on asphalt if you need to, then just walk over - it's not far

Third Stop: Drumheller

East on Hwy. We may visit Wayne if we have time We may visit the big fiberglass dinosaur if we have time We'll have lunch at an Irish pub called O'Shea's Eatery & Ale House at 680 2 St W. It's behind Boston Pizza. Pay as you go.

Note: No need for fuel in Drumheller as we'll be filling in Three Hills shortly

Fourth Stop: Bleriot Ferry

Leave Drumheller to the North but before climb out of the river valley we'll turn left onto the Dinosaur Trail, Hwy. 838 If we have time - and I’m certain that we will, we'll stop at *the church' Turn Left to stay on Hwy. 838 Turn left again to stay on Hwy. 838

Fifth Stop: Three Hills Gas Stop

Leave the Bleriot Ferry and continue on Hwy. 838 Turn right (North) on Hwy. 837 Turn Left (West) on Hwy. 27 Turn Right (North) on Hwy. 21/27 Sixth and Final Stop: Torrington

Proceed North on Hwy. 21/27 Turn left (West) onto Hwy. 27

Home: Continue West on Hwy. 27 to Hwy. 2 Turn Left (South) on Hwy. 2