Westworld Alberta
Issue link: http://westworldmagazine.ama.ab.ca/i/68789
road trip In the Mapmaker's Footsteps Alberta's David Thompson Trail by Lucas Aykroyd SOUTHERN ALBERTA'S EAST-WEST Hwy. 11 takes its nickname from legen- dary English cartographer and fur trader David Thompson (1770-1857), who surveyed nearly four million square kilometres of North America for the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company. Today's voya- geurs-by-car will discover vintage trains, trading posts and trail rides along this more laid-back alternative to the Trans-Canada Highway (Hwy. 1). JAUNT Stettler to Saskatchewan River Crossing, Alberta DISTANCE Approx. 400 km DURATION 2-3 days PRIME TIME June to early September (this page, top to bottom) Abraham Lake, a man-made body of water that runs along the David Thompson Trail between the Saskatchewan River and Nordegg; a mock train robbery on an Alberta Prairie Railway Excursions tour; the train's dining car; (opposite page) a horse-drawn carriage at Red Deer's Heritage Ranch; modern-day voyageurs check out the play fort at Rocky Mountain House National Historic Site. LEG ONE: Stettler to Big Valley and Back, Via the Alberta Prairie Railway (Approx. 70 km) The trail begins in Stettler, a down-home, compact agriculture and oil-services centre a three-hour drive northeast of Calgary. First, ride the rails with Alberta Prairie Railway Excursions (1-800-282-3994; absteamtrain. com). Vintage railway cars fi tted out with wood panelling and brass lamps chug south along a century-old line to the village of Big Valley. Escape a "train robbery" with horseback-riding actors, shop for pumpkin fudge and oil paint- ings and devour a community-hall roast 18 WESTWORLD >> JUNE 2012 beef dinner. It's about six hours round-trip. Good eats and sleeps: Stettler's Phoenix B&B (403-742-3602), in a 1916 home restored by owners Dave and Barb Goodwin, serves up blueberry pancakes and award- winning gardens. LEG TWO: Stettler to Rocky Mountain House (Approx. 180 km) Before forging westward, potter around the Stettler Town and Country Museum (403-742-4534). With 26 historic buildings, including a courthouse, school and church, the eclectic collection features two Model T Ford cars, a huge 1905 spinning wheel and Estonian immigrant artifacts. Then drive 20 km west on Hwy. 12 and turn left on Hwy. 11. Another 55 km through gently rolling farmland leads into Red Deer, where aspen trees fl ourish by the Red Deer River. Equidistant between Edmon- ton and Calgary, the city offers respite at Waskasoo Park (waskasoopark.ca), an outdoor playground with more than 80 km of trails, Travel Alberta