Tour #2: Western Heritage

Explore the rich and colourful heritage of Canada’s Wild West. Journey back in time and discover what life was like before the Europeans arrived and how their arrival changed these regions forever.

For thousands of years before foreigners arrived, the native people relied upon nature’s abundant offerings. When the Europeans came, they created a fur trade, and set up Forts. Discoveries of gold, silver, copper and coal created lively little towns and cities that appeared and disappeared with a boom and bust cycle. Immigrants of various backgrounds came to these towns from all over the world with hopes of striking it rich and dreams of a better life.

Day 1 Calgary

A Western welcome begins your day! You’ll spend the morning meeting characters from Calgary’s past. Later, lunch awaits you in a lovely, early 1900’s mansion. Afterwards, the story of the Canadian West continues to unfold in the Blackfoot Gallery of the Glenbow Museum.

Day 2 Calgary to Waterton

You’re off to a place where the Rocky Mountains meet the Great Plains. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is the oldest, largest and the best preserved buffalo jump known to exist. Huge and powerful, these ancient beasts jumped to their deaths. Find out why.

Beyond, a Fort becomes visible. It’s 1874 and the North West Mounted Police are establishing their first outpost in Southern Alberta. You’ll see excellent displays on the mounted police, native Indians and early settlers who worked and lived here.

Now it’s 1895, and you have come upon a breathtaking site, a newly designated Park, a ‘peaceful place’. One hundred years later, this International Peace Park that straddles Canada and the USA, was deemed a World Heritage Site. (UNESCO)
Tonight, visit a timeless treasure, where dining’s a pleasure. Stop for a toast at the local Lamp Post. Cheers!

Day 3 Waterton Lakes National Park

Rise and shine to another magnificent day. Traveling the ‘boardwalk’ of time, you’ll arrive at the original home of the first European settler to pioneer here. Then, return to the place he oversaw and helped to preserve for you. During a cruise to Goat Haunt USA, on the deepest lake in the Canadian Rockies, you’ll discover the heritage of this ‘peaceful place’. Fill your soul with the splendid and wild scenery that surrounds you.

Day 4 Waterton to Fernie

Today you will visit a little known gem in Southwest Alberta. Nestled at the foot of the Rocky Mountains is a place rich in history, triumph and tragedy. Meet the people whose roots belong to this place and share their stories…suddenly the mountain collapsed…an explosion, Canada’s worst mining disaster…then there was the story about the famous rum runner…

Day 5 Fernie

Breakfast is served, in the mountains. Then hike in a nearby old growth cedar forest to retrace the steps of Sam Steele and his men on their way to Galbraith’s Ferry. The Kootenay Gold Rush was already underway.

Emerging from the forest, you will return to a city where coal was gold. Today many of the local people still work in the regional coal mines.
Ravaged twice by fire at the turn of the century, a guided tour of Fernie will reveal the unique and antique features of this ‘coal town’, situated in the undeniably beautiful Elk Valley.

Day 6 Fernie to Cranbrook

…Then the railways arrived. A visit to this Museum of Rail Travel will take you back to a time when everyone and everything traveled and depended on the railways. Slow down and experience life as it once was.

Later, you’ll come to a place the railways bypassed. Once known as Galbraith’s Ferry, it was renamed Ft. Steele in 1888 in honour of Superintendant Sam Steele of the North West Mounted Police (NWMP). Until 1898, it was the commercial, social and administrative hub of the region, and then it slowly declined into obscurity.

Traditionally, the mountains and valleys you are traveling were occupied by the Ktunaxa Nation. They were a nomadic people who gathered here to hunt and fish with the seasonal cycles. The arrival of prospectors, miners, the NWMP and the Catholic Church impacted a culture that had lived in harmony with the earth for 12,000 years. Your guide from the Ktunaxa Nation will provide you with added insight into the history and significance of the region.

Day 7 Cranbrook to Nelson

Follow the valleys to a house, a stone house. See interesting artifacts of every day life that remain from those who settled here, over a century ago. Keep your eye out for a very unusual canoe.

Moving up the lake, a house of another sort appears. Come find out what makes this house sparkle. It’s more than just the spectacular view of Kootenay Lake!

Before you ferry across this picturesque alpine lake, you’ll discover a place shared by weavers of cloth and broomcorn, forgers of iron and artisans breathing life into flowing glass…A very eclectic mix of historic crafts.

Day 8 Nelson

Awake by the lake, a view to behold. A guided tour of this turn of the century town, with its abundance of heritage homes and buildings, will surely delight you. This afternoon you will travel the winding road to a town that has survived despite flood, fire and hurricanes. Voted one of the top 10 prettiest towns in Canada, it also contains some very special historical treasures. Later, you’ll enjoy a gourmet dinner overlooking the sheltered marina. Then, finish off the day with a relaxing soak in the local hot springs.

Day 9 Nelson to Kelowna

Relax and enjoy the scenery. Daydream, as the road takes you past pristine mountains, cold clear lakes and charming little towns. Another short ferry ride and you’re almost in the fruitful Okanagan Valley. Soon you’ll arrive at a historic cattle ranch. It was originally situated here because of its convenient proximity to fodder for the cattle and a nearby glut of miners in the goldfields. See the opulence of ranch life here, in the late Victorian era.

Home for the next 2 nights overlooks Lake Okanagan and the glimmering lights of Kelowna. Dream On …

Day 10 Kelowna

This morning you’ll climb aboard the Kettle Valley Steam Train. Chugging along the rails, it’s hard to believe that this was the quickest and most efficient method of travel for both the people and the goods and supplies they relied upon. An interesting narrative will tell the fascinating story of the train and the route it traveled.A delicious lunch and a guided tour of a special family orchard take you into the afternoon.

A little while later, walking the impressive train trestles and tunnels of the Myra Canyon, you will have a chance to marvel at the incredible challenge that was met while constructing this section of railway.

Now it’s time to wine and dine at British Columbia’s most visited winery. Toast to another excellent day.

Day 11 Kelowna to Penticton

A little further south, you’ll stop at the city of Penticton. Docked and waiting you’ll see another excellent example of a Sternwheeler, which once navigated up and down the rivers and lakes delivering people and supplies along the way. Engineered to combine comfort for the passengers and practicality in operating design, this vessel operated from 1914 to 1935, but demand started to decline in 1925 as the highways improved.

Lunch is lakeside, and then you will visit a place where stories reside and a treasure trove of history is stored. Come and take a look see for yourself!!

Day 12 Penticton to Nelson

Journey 3 regions of BC today. Leaving the Okanagan Valley and entering Boundary Country, your first stop is Midway. Find out how Midway got its name. Continuing on the road, you’ll have the opportunity to meet a special group of people, an integral part of the province’s heritage. By evening you will have returned to the West Kootenay region, back into the Rocky Mountains.

Day 13 Nelson to Fernie

This morning, see a tiny but unique island and visit a Doukhobor Village. Meet the people and enjoy a healthy bowl of Borscht! Then the search for gold will take you into a Jurassic volcano. Tonight, you’ll dine and retire in a once cursed town, at the foot of the Lizard Range. Although the curse was lifted some years ago, the Ghost Rider still appears.

Day 14 Fernie to Calgary

Travel through the pass, past cold, shimmering kettle lakes and slowly the eastern face of the Rocky Mountains diminishes to a memorable backdrop. Your wagon awaits…Ride back in time as the history of this ranch is revealed.

When wagons and carriages gave way to the ‘Horseless Carriage’ and society became increasingly industrialized, gas and oil became an important and lucrative commodity. You’ll visit the Turner Valley Gas Plant, which was in operation until 1985. It accounted for 97% of Alberta’s oil and gas production between 1914 and 1947.
Later dinner is back at The Ranche, before it’s time to say farewell.

We hope that your journey of Western Heritage uncovered the obscure, delighted your curiosity and delivered ‘food for thought’.

Next...Tour #3: Western Mines of Many Kinds