Issue link: http://read.canadatravelguides.ca/i/1520274
AB 44 valley on dogsled. Drive the winter ice road to Fort Chipewyan, Alberta's oldest First Nations community north of Fort McMurray, or photograph wildflowers among the alpine lakes at Sunshine Village resort west of Banff or the Plain of Six Glaciers trail near Lake Louise. HERITAGE AND CULTURE The province's history is just over a century old, but the First Nations heritage dates to prehistoric times. Métis Crossing, northeast of Edmonton, offers a taste of the musical culture created by the melding of First Nations Peoples with European settlers in the 19 th century. Fort Edmonton tells of the city's Gold Rush era, when these same voyageurs paved the way for the fur trade. Calgary's Heritage Park Historical Village overlooks the calm waters of the Glenmore Reservoir— where dragon boat racing and other water sports are held. History is also chronicled at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, one of the UNESCO sites in Alberta, or Blackfoot Crossing—a modern interpretive centre built into the Bow River bluffs east of Calgary. Explore transportation history at the Remington Carriage Museum at Cardston or head north to the town of Wembley—24 km (15 mi.) west of Grande Prairie—to tour the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum, which chronicles the work done to preserve the world's largest hornbill dinosaur bonebed. MUST SEE, MUST DO Pilot to Bombardier! Hop aboard an open-air biplane at Reynolds-Alberta Museum for a bird's-eye view of the prairies around Camrose and Wetaskiwin. You can also tour the museum's many heritage transportation vehicles such as cars, industrial machines and airplanes (www.reynoldsmuseum.ca). Nestled into the lush coulees of the Rosebud River Valley, the abandoned railway town of Rosebud was overtaken by a group of faith- based artists three decades ago. They created a thriving professional theatre school and Special Events ESTABLISHED AS A PROVINCE IN 1905, ALBERTA WAS NAMED AFTER A DAUGHTER OF THEN-QUEEN VICTORIA—PRINCESS LOUISE CAROLINE ALBERTA. Quick Fact www.travelalberta.com/ca/ things-to-do/events-festivals JANUARY • CHISELED, EDMONTON • ICE MAGIC FESTIVAL, LAKE LOUISE • SNOWDAYS FESTIVAL, BANFF JUNE • SLED ISLAND MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL, CALGARY • WATERTON WILDFLOWER FESTIVAL JULY • CALGARY STAMPEDE • CANADIAN BADLANDS PASSION PLAY, DRUMHELLER • EDMONTON INTERNATIONAL STREET PERFORMERS FESTIVAL • K-DAYS, EDMONTON • VUL-CON, VULCAN AUGUST • BIG VALLEY JAMBOREE, CAMROSE • CANMORE FOLK MUSIC FESTIVAL • EDMONTON INTERNATIONAL FRINGE THEATRE FESTIVAL NOVEMBER • AGRI-TRADE EQUIPMENT EXPO, RED DEER Residents are devout nature lovers, flocking to the city's network of river pathways as well as the inner city Prince's Island Park, Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, and Bowness Park and its pretty lagoon, where families can skate in winter and canoe and paddleboat in summer. THE GREAT OUTDOORS Head for the hills from summer to fall for a guided multi-day backcountry pack trip on horseback. Sleep under the stars and listen to coyotes howl in a riverside tent camp in Dinosaur Provincial Park, home to some of the planet's largest fossil beds and fantastic interpretive programs. Or scramble up the Via Ferrata (Italian for iron path), a rope and cable-assisted mountain journey at Mt. Norquay near Banff. Should winter be your season, abundant ice-climbing, skiing, fishing, snowshoeing and ATV journeys can be found across the province. Explore the snow-caked Spray Lakes DOWNTOWN EDMONTON WITH THE NORTH SASKATCHEWAN RIVER • DAN SCHYKULSKI @DANSCHYK