Wild west honeymoons come in all forms in the Canadian Badlands.
The venerable Heartwood Inn & Spa is in Drumheller
Any place that has “heart” in its name is likely associated with romance and indeed, the Heartwood Inn & Spa has had its share. The inn in downtown Drumheller, an hour and a half east of Calgary, is a favourite with honeymooners. Built to withstand strong prairie winds, the old farmhouse once stood on the open prairie. Years ago, it was moved to a quiet street across from a railway line. That may sound like an oxymoron except that the two times I’ve stayed here, I’ve never heard a train. My suite had a raised king bed and an in-room jacuzzi for two. A honeymoon cabin and a former chancel are also on site. While breakfast isn’t included with accommodation, you can order one. I did. My eggs came on a bed of rye toast with wild mushrooms, fresh ricotta cheese, asparagus and greens and they were delicious. In the off-season, the Heartwood is a popular getaway for small groups of women from Edmonton and Calgary. Package deals include spa treatments. Check their website for details.
Ask for Gus or June at the AB Cottage Rest Awhile B&B north of Hanna
The AB Cottage Rest Awhile B&B and That Country Place B&B are both near Hanna, a town an hour northeast of Drumheller. Take the scenic route through the Handhills region to Hanna. It’s worth the time. We stayed at the AB Cottage Rest Awhile, twenty-two km north of Hanna on a serviced gravel road, and loved it. That Country Place also comes highly recommended. A Quebec photojournalist I know stayed here last year with her young family. She told me one of her best Badland memories was sipping her morning coffee on its back porch which has a magnificent prairie view.
Mother Mountain Tea House & Restaurant in Delia
We didn’t stay at the Mother Mountain Enchanted Cottage but we did have a great meal at its sister restaurant, the Mother Mountain Tea House. The restaurant is in an old Crown Lumber storefront that has been lovingly restored by Yvan, a Quebec expat and his wife, Heide. It’s one of the finest examples of early prairie architecture (circa 1900) that we came across in our Badlands travels. Unfortunately their Enchanted Cottage was occupied, so we couldn’t see its interior, but the outside looked lovely. If you choose to stay here, please feel free to add your thoughts in the comments area below.
The Rosebud Country Inn is a great place to stay after a night at the theatre.
Rosebud (pop.100) is home to the famous Rosebud Theatre, the largest rural theatre in western Canada. Many of the 40,000 theatregoers who travel to this hamlet every year stay at the Rosebud Country Inn. I got a peek inside when we stopped in Rosebud for a tour and it looks wonderful. If you plan to stay here, please share your comments below with our other blog readers.
The welcome desk at St. Ann Ranch, just outside of Trochu
Dry Island Buffalo Jump is the highest and the furthest north of all the buffalo jumps in Alberta. It’s not known even to many Albertans but we think this drop dead gorgeous park is a Badlands highlight. If you don’t want to camp at the park, we found two interesting places to stay nearby. St. Ann Ranch is just outside of Trochu, the closest town to the park. Our stay at St. Ann’s was a walk through history (literally). The property has the original Trochu townsite on-site and both have historic ties to the French Royal Cavalry. It’s quite the place!
Cattle roundup at the TL Bar Ranch
I’ve peppered Willi and her daughter-in-law with questions about staying on their ranch, 15 km outside of Trochu. The TL Bar Ranch is a working cattle ranch close to Dry Island Buffalo Jump. It accommodates guests either in a self-catering cottage or a rustic cabin. Camping is also available at the ranch. You can also ride horseback on the ranch’s trails or rent a canoe and paddle the Red Deer River which flows nearby. Both the ranch B&Bs are self-contained which means you do your own cooking. Groceries are best purchased in Drumheller which has big chain stores and is a one hour drive south.
Cozy cabins at Fawn Meadows B&B, Lodge, Cabins and RV Park
We had a good steak dinner that was reasonably priced at the Delburne Cafe. Delburne is forty-five minutes east of Red Deer. Our home away from home was a wee cabin at Fawn Meadows in town. It was wee alright, but newly constructed and neat as a pin, and it served us well. We had a little bedroom off a little kitchen that came equipped with a microwave, small fridge, table, and futon sofa. The three piece bath had a nice shower. The night we were there, a group of women scrapbookers were staying in the main lodge. They were having a great time and kindly let us see the place. A huge common room overlooked Delburne’s nine hole public golf course. This is where the scrapbookers were spending the bulk of their time. The room was equipped with a full kitchen and a big lounge with TV and fireplace.
The Norland B&B near Lethbridge reminded me of a southern plantation
Near Lethbridge, we stayed at the beautiful Norland B&B. Blink and you would swear you were in the deep South at this plantation-like place. It has a wonderful story too. Every piece of lumber in the mansion was numbered and put into a kit that could be ordered through a magazine catalogue. That’s what Missouri-born Charles Roland Daniel did in 1909. He was an early Lethbridge pioneer. We stayed in a delightful room here with ensuite bath. The Norland has an indoor pool, a large common area and beautiful gardens. A tasty breakfast is served and its location can’t be beat. It’s between Coaldale, home of the Alberta Birds of Prey Centre and Lethbridge’s main attractions: the Galt Museum, Fort Whoop-Up, Helen Schuler Centre and Nikka Yuko Gardens.
A business card with the name, Coutts Crossing Horse ‘n Hound Hotel, caught my eye when we visited the Travel Alberta Information Centre in Milk River. This pet-friendly B&B is a stand-alone, three-bedroom pre-fab on a little ranch outside of Coutts, a small Badlands town that borders the state of Montana. Besides humans, horses, livestock, dogs and cats are welcome just as the business card says. The owner recognized that people often travel with animals in tow and need a place to feed and water their critters. Coutts Crossing has stalls and paddocks for horses and livestock, kennels for dogs, and kitty condos for cats. Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park is an easy day side trip from here and a local rafting company offers moonlight tours down the Milk River.
Classic, cozy, Canadian prairie accomodation and hospitality awaited us in the lodge at Western Uplands Ranch
Western Uplands Lodge is on a spectacular 34,000 acre ranch two hours north of Medicine Hat. The lodge is a refurbished 1903 homesteader’s log cabin that sleeps twelve comfortably. It operates as a B&B in the summer months. Breakfast was brought to our lodge kitchen. We had a memorable visit here. You can read more about our stay in this post.
Nestled in the Cypress Hills – the lobby at Elkwater Lake Lodge
Elkwater Lake Lodge was another of road trip highlight for us. It’s in the Elkwater townsite of Cypress Hills, Canada’s only interprovincial park. The park straddles the Alberta-Saskatchewan border and overlooks the Sweetgrass Hills of Montana. Sitting Bull hid in Cypress Hills following the Battle of Little Bighorn. Our Elkwater stay was in a two-storey “condo” with flat screen tv and living area, dining room and fully equipped kitchen. The couch pulled out into a bed but we slept in the loft. Elkwater also has room and cabin accommodation. Cypress Hills is a designated Dark Sky Preserve, one of the world’s darkest thanks to a lack of light pollution. Every summer, the park runs stargazing sessions that include powerful portable telescopes for optimum viewing. You can read more here.
Dinosaur Provincial Park is desert-like and HOT at the height of summer so, A Lakeshore B&B Spa on Lake Newell, 45 minutes south of the park, was a welcome respite for two tired travelers. On the outside, it looks like a typical suburban home but the B&B owner here really understands how little touches make all the difference to an overnight stay. Her guests have the entire lower floor of her home which comes complete with three generous suites, all with ensuite bath. Ours had a huge whirlpool tub and the first thing I did when I arrived was climb in and soak for the better part of an hour. Then I wrapped myself in one of her big terrycloth robes and settled into a night of relaxation in a comfy lounge complete with flat screen tv, snacks and even a sip of sherry, if I so desired. Breakfast was a gourmet affair and spa treatments were easy to book. It was the perfect spot to end our fabulous visit to Dinosaur Provincial Park.
Finally, a trip to the Badlands would not be complete without a visit to Blackfoot Crossing Historical Park. Canada’s largest aboriginal historic site offers its guests tipi sleepovers in an authentically recreated tipi village. The sleepover was a highlight for a German journalist who stayed here with his wife last year.