Drumheller

We drove 201 miles mostly east further into Alberta to Drumheller. The landscape changed dramatically from Rocky Mountains to flat wheat farmland to Badland hoodoos. It felt very surreal to be out of the mountains as we’ve been mostly surrounded by them since June 11th. The major reason most people travel to Drumheller (including us) is to visit the Royal Tyrell museum. With only a population of 8,400 people the museum attracts over 500,000 visitors each year. Opened in 1985 and named after the paleontologist who found the Albertosaurus, this 135,000 sq ft building houses over 160,000 fossils and some of the most complete fossils in the world. Each exhibit is beautifully created and maintained with clear information on each specimen. There was even a section on fossils found by oil companies as they dug and the relationship between the museum and these companies to properly deal with those situations. Some of the fossils were stained black from an increase in manganese in the soil including a T. rex specimen nicknamed Black Beauty. Outside of the museum are walking trails through the badland terrain and stairs leading you up to a nice overlook of the scenery.

From there we ventured outside of town to some historical areas that had quick stops. First up were the hoodoos, which although very neat to see were much smaller than the photos advertised. Then we drove past a suspension bridge and a restored coal mine without stopping as these just weren’t in our motivation today. We did drive to the tiny town of Wayne (population 25) which is known for having 11 bridges cross the same tiny, winding creek to get to the town. Although we only crossed 9, so we aren’t sure if we actually arrived at the town or accidentally stopped early at the only place to grab food or drink 🤷‍♀️

After refueling we headed to an area called Horseshoe canyon outside of Drumheller. It’s an interesting region of badlands surrounded by prairie and farmland. The two mile hike meandered down into the canyon and at times was flat and easy to see, and others were more of a “make your own way” adventure. Finally, we headed back to town and enjoyed a burrito from a food truck along with some local beverages. All in all a great day filled with history and beautiful scenery.Read more