Looks like we're going this year. What's it like, any recommendations for things to do/avoid?

Cowpies. Avoid the cowpies.

If a Cow asks you....are you looking for a good time? just say no.

I'd really like to go but don't want to get locked up for wrongthink.

I had a Cow ask me that one time and I replied, let me drink a few more beers baby!

Lol, she told I was an ass hole! LMAO!!

The stampede is in Calgary, not Ottawa or Toronto. They don’t do that dystopian Orwellian stuff in Calgary. They have oil, lots of it, and trucks and eat beef. You will feel right at home. Tucker Carlson is there at the moment and he loves the city.

Nick

He was never going.

He just likes the attention.

Good times, it's worth a stop in Banff National Park on the way up if you have not been. Make sure you get a place to stay with transport to and from the arena, forget driving during the stampede.

We went the first year we lived in Calgary and, short of the stock dog show, thought it was nothing special (like the Houston show) and headed to Idaho every year after during Stampede. Dim Sum from the Silver Dragon is always good though.

It's been 25 years since I was there so my information is very dated, but I will tell you my experience. It was a fun day for the family. The rodeo was very much the real deal with cowboys from all over Canada and the United States. It had a very international flavor with the opening ceremonies having a strong US and Canada friendship vibe. The chuck wagon races were a hoot. They were one part Ben Hur and one part roller derby as the outriders with each wagon try to interfere with the other wagons while protecting their own. As I recall there was organized betting on the outcome. The evening entertainment in the grandstand was a spectacular along the lines of the opening of the Olympic Games or a Superbowl half time again with a strong theme of US and Canada together. The agricultural show and displays were along the lines of a typical county fair in the Midwest. They were not on a par with a large state fair like Texas or Ohio, but thanks to Canada's french heritage you will see breeds of livestock that you have never heard of here in the states. The kids enjoyed the Indian encampment or first nations people as they say in Canada. I will also say that although Calgary is not Toronto even 25 years ago the first person we encountered in the parking lot was a man wearing only a cowboy hat and a diaper with a rainbow ribbon collecting money for AIDS victims.

It's been a long time, but I believe the grandstand events including the rodeo were all additional significant costs. You may need to book ahead so do your research before you go.

You are transposing your need for virtual validation on others. Be sure to let your therapist know.

Hope you already have a motel room reserved the city is pretty full during the stampede.

Be prepared for huge crowds and lots of traffic especially near the arena.

Be sure to watch a chuckwagon race - they are something.

drover

Thanks for the input, the park is actually our primary destination, but we'll be in Calgary during the Stampede so we picked up some tickets.

So any input on the park is welcome too.

"Locked up for wrongthink".....give us a break.

LOL, I almost got locked up once for "wrong way on a one way," does that count?

if you were thinking you could get away with that ................you're guilty of wrongthink

I did get away with it because I was on a curvy road and spun out. By the time the cops got there I was in the river and they couldn't find me.....

Bwhahahahahahaha !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The strangest thing was, Jim Conrad was there on the riverbank with Tulsi Gabbard, drinking PBRs and setting jug lines for catfish.

I call BS.

Weren't a river.

Twas a snowbank

I went through one in Kaycee, WY. while on a prairie dog shooting shindig.
They sure do schit-up the roads

True. And Jim and Tulsi weren't catfishing, they were doing hot yoga.

And drinking PBRs.

A visit to the Royal Tyrell Museum in Drumheller, about an hour north east of Calgary is also worth a stop. That is if you like dinosaurs ( who doesn’t).

Nick

smokepole;
Good afternoon my cyber friend, I hope the day's been behaving for you and you're all well.

With the understanding that my post will assume the following:

A) unlimited time
B) unlimited budget
C) similar tastes to what I might enjoy

Here goes.

Going up:

If you're able to swing west a wee bit, cross on Highway 2 which will take you up past Waterton National Park. Head in and look around as it's very, very pretty.

Continue on up Highway 2 until you reach Fort McLeod which has the old NWMP fort there, as well as the NWMP graveyard where one of the most colorful people in our history, the half Blood NWMP Scout Jerry Potts is buried.

Once you're done there, head west a few minutes and go to Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump which is a UNESCO heritage site and interpretive center run by mostly Blackfoot Confederacy folks.

If it's not too, too late then, we'll head back to Fort McLeod, then west on Highway 3 until you hit Highway 40 which is the Kananaskis Route and it's just been opened up for summer travel.

As someone who has wandered around in mountains all over North America and a wee bit in the Alps in Austria and Switzerland, I'd put the Kananaskis road near the top of the "must see mountain roads" list.

At risk of offending our Montana friends, it equals the Going to the Sun Road in Glacier Montana park for jaw dropping beauty.

Once you come out at the 541 Highway, then roll into Calgary.

Do your thing at the Stampede. Bring a hat or buy one there, everyone has one.

The Glenbow Museum in Calgary used to be nothing short of fantastic, but I've not been through there in decades.

You can go up the CN Tower in the middle of Calgary to see around the neighborhood if so inclined.

Going home:

Go back west and hit Banff, which is okay but a sad remnant of what it used to be and a tourist trap, but go there and head up to Jasper. The drive alone again is nothing short of spectacular.

Cross into BC at Valemount and head south on Highway 5 through Blue River, Clearwater and into Kamloops. You're now in rolling sagebrush, BC cattle country at its best and most of the world doesn't know that exists. It's a really pretty drive getting there too.

From Kamloops, there's a fast way and a scenic way down, take your pick, but you could backtrack on Highway 1 and drop down at Golden and head south through Radium, into the Kootenays, so Cranbrook, Creston and then cross into Bonner's Ferry.

Also, you could wander down through more cattle country on Highway 97, hit Vernon, Kelowna, Penticton, stop here for a coffee and then cross at Oroville WA.

If I think of more things to see and do or you put up a few parameters for me to follow, I'll do my best.

Until then, then...

Dwayne

Link?

Smokepole: Dwayne pretty much nailed it. Waterton is much less crowded than Banff. Book ahead for any accommodations in the national parks and prepare for sticker shock with the price of accommodations.

The Tyrell Museum in Drumheller is world class as is the Calgary Zoo. Heritage Park is worth a look as well.


I lived in Calgary for 55? Years and avoided the Stampede unless we had out of town guests so I can’t offer much in the way of useful input.

Thanks Dwayne and GRF. Great stuff.

There's a video but I can't distribute it, it's copyrighted. I heard Pabst is going to run it as a commercial during the Super Bowl.

I saw a preview, it was a cameo appearance from Tulsi, all I could see was the top of her head, then looks into the camera for an instant, then go's back to work, Jim seems happy.

Dang, not even a rise from Conrad. This place just ain't no fun any more.

There are things I would like to do in Canada but I guess getting a DUI in 1990 is frowned upon up there.

How our Canadian members are not in jail is a mystery to me.

tag

In all the years of traveling, especially my younger years traveling across country every summer with grandma and grandpa, the Calgary Stampede is the one thing that I’ve wanted to do but never have.

I hope you take pictures and share your trip with us since I’m sure that there are many guy’s who are interested.

Just watched a youtube clip of the Chuck Wagon races, WOW, moved me in a way no horse race ever has...

The amazing thing is watching the single or lone riders running with them, the wagons are FAST.....

Must be added to my 'To Do' list.....

Those chuckwagon races look like a blast. My dad and I went to the chariot races in New York and that was fun. I was pretty good at reading the program and handicapping my picks but with the chariot races I was simply guessing. We were at the races the same day OJ Simpson was performing his low speed chase. 😂

It is definitely my favorite event.
Most of the horses used for chuckwagon racing are throughbreds that weren't quite good enough for the big-time throughbred racing. A good chuckwagon horse can cost a lot of money.

drover

Dwayne,
You have missed your calling my friend.
That was a suggested itinerary a professional tour director could be proud of.
Your typically pleasant and good natured posts are a breath of fresh air on this site and I’m glad you’re here.
You Canucks are my favorite “neighbors”.

I hope you and yours are well and Spring treats you right this year.

Best Regards,
Fenton (Mike in North Idaho)

I will add a little to Dwayne's post.
If you are a rodeo fan,Calgary will host the best Pro Rodeo Cowboys there is, most will be at the NFR in Las Vegas in December.
There is one exception, you will see the very best Chuckwagon races during Calgary Stampede.
It is an amazing, dazzeling, dangerous event.
Try highway 22 from Highway #3( Crowsnest Highway) It is now called the Cowboy Trail.
You will see some of the best Grazing land in North America. Big Cow/calf operations with a good chance of seeing wildlife, including Grizzlies.
Waterton Park is a Gem, south of this and it blends into Glacier Park / Montana.
I rodeo'd but as a amateur...if you follow Rodeo, Calgary pays the Cowboys very well
* for any hayseed...Calgary is big , fast and noisy city.
Beware and Good Luck