Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

Minister Kent Invites Canadians to Discover Canada's World Heritage Sites

MarketWire; April 18 2012

OTTAWA, ONTARIO — The Honourable Peter Kent, Canada's Environment Minister and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, today recognized the 40th anniversary of UNESCO's World Heritage Convention and called on Canadians to use the anniversary year to learn more about, and visit, Canada's fifteen World Heritage Sites.

"World Heritage Sites are unique places on Earth. They are considered to have outstanding universal value, and as such, they are part of the common heritage of humankind," said Minister Kent. "These include such places as the Egyptian Pyramids, Australia's Great Barrier Reef and the Great Wall of China, as well as Canada's own World Heritage Sites including the Rideau Canal National Historic Site."

Ten of Canada's fifteen World Heritage Sites are managed by Parks Canada, and will mark the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention with special activities throughout 2012.

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Canada holidays: Alberta trip itinerary

The Telegraph; April 14 2012

To help you get a better idea of what there is to see and do during your summer holiday in Canada, we've put together a two week holiday itinerary that focuses on Alberta’s cowboy country and the Calgary Stampede.

Days 1-4:

Make sure the centenary of the Calgary Stampede, July 6-15, is in your diary and you’ve booked tickets. This spectacular cowboy event with its rodeos and wagon races fully deserves a few days at the start of your holiday. There’ll be a special atmosphere in Calgary city centre, too. Also take a trip out of town to the wide-open prairie at Drumheller to see amazing fossils, dinosaur relics and “hoodoo” rock formations.

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Waterton Lakes National Park: Where The Mountains Meet The Prairie

By Debbie McKeown; Snow Shoe Magazine; February 14 2012

As a big fan of Canada’s National Park system, I’m pretty pumped about knocking another one off my bucket list. My husband Jack and I have spent time in Alberta’s more well-known mountain parks, Banff and Jasper, and have even enjoyed the more subtle beauty of Elk Island National Park near Edmonton. This, however, is our first time at Waterton Lakes National Park which is located in the southwest corner of Alberta. Bonus points for going in the winter and taking our snowshoes!

After arriving at Calgary International Airport, we quickly leave the city behind as we drive south on Highway 2 through flat ranch land and small towns. Nanton’s colourful grain elevators exude prairie character, while views to the west reveal the distant ramparts of Canada’s Rocky Mountains.

We parallel the mountains for a couple of hours before detouring to one of Canada’s most fascinating and flamboyantly-named historic sites, Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We can’t resist stopping to explore further. The interpretive centre is artfully built into the side of the escarpment that was used as the buffalo kill site.

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