Drumheller - The Rookie Charge - 23 Jul 2010

Taken on a country road - a Canola Farm, some 40 kilometers north of Calgary

Untangling The Trap

23 Jul, 2010

This was no planned trip. The guys here had been wanting to get out of their busy weekday schedules and ease out on a quick weekend getaway. So on the 23rd of July me and Monojit set out to look for a car to rent. We tried out a couple of options online but no agency had a vehicle remaining on them. We then sneaked out during lunch hour and visited a couple of agencies in Downtown Calgary, but to no avail. Just about 2 PM the Enterprise guys called me in and told me that my reservation was in queue, but getting a car was not guaranteed. We frantically tried calling agencies at the Airport but either they did not have a car we wanted - a 7 seater, or the rates were far too high. In the evening we popped up at the National Agency on 10th Ave, Downtown Calgary, to try our luck. And the guy had a six seater Dodge RAM Truck. I had never driven a truck before. Being the too-large-a-vehicle it is, I found it a bit difficult maneuvering corners, but soon got adjusted to its ways. In the evening we decided to go to the North-East to buy some eatables.

Just before the start - Back Alley of Garden Towers

The Plan - There was no Plan

24 Jul, 2010

I had parked the truck on 8th Ave for the night of 23rd and I had to get it in before the free time parking ended at 9 AM. The guys came down much later at 9.30 to the back alley of Garden Towers where I had parked the truck temporarily. We had no fixed plan in our minds but we had thought of just getting out of Calgary and drive out to some place which would be within an hour or two's reach. We drove up straight on Deerfoot Trail for about 40 kilometers and then made a right onto a gravel road. The colours that paint out most of the landscape at this time of the year are - yellow and light green. The blend they bring about in infusing panorama in the area is spectacular and indescribable beyond words. It makes you feel as though you are in some European Nation, Holland I would say. The yellow colour is of the Canola plantations. Canola flower is used to make edible oil. The land east of Calgary is pretty much Prairie land and we came across many such plantations on the way.

The Gravel Road Which We Drove On

The sight of the Canola fields was an out-of-the-world feeling for me as I had witnessed it for the first time. We stopped at one stop amid the fields to enjoy the sight.

Our Truck Parked Aside A Canola Plantation

A Farmhouse Near Where We Stopped

In The Middle Of Contrasting Yellow

We then drove up further east on this road for some 20 kilometers and made a right turn. There were bogs on the way but the 4 X 4 and the powerful 5.7 litres of muscle in the truck helped crunch any amount of rough terrain.

The Gravel Road Which Made A Good Part Of The Journey

We stopped by in between at another spot after we caught up the tar road. The snap below I feel is a masterpiece.

Beautiful Cottage Amid Tranquillizing Yellow and Sober Green

From here on, we drove till we reached Drumheller. It must have been about a 100 kilometers drive from the spot we had stopped. Drumheller is located in the Red Deer Valley and is famous for its badlands. The landscape is totally different from that which had been prevailing in the aforesaid Prairies. Badlands are formed from extensively eroded clay and sedimentary rocks and canyons are a commonplace occurrence. The color is a definitive striking contrast of blazing yellow and sometimes crimson patched against the blue abode above. Drumheller is famous for its Dinosaur fossils.

The Entrance to Drumheller - Badlands in the Background

We made a good long stop at Drumheller to break for lunch. We then turned left to head North West to reach Keiver's Lake Recreational Area. This area is 90 kilometers from Drumheller. The ride is refreshingly resplendent with blissful yellow and green doting the landscape. Keiver's Lake has a Campground and RV Park area.

Keiver's Lake

The lake is not as beautiful and picturesque like the ones in Western Alberta that have colours varying from bright emerald to brilliant turquoise. We spent a good amount of time here at Keiver's Lake. There was nothing much we did other than sit and chat while basking in the lovely summer sun whilst the soft breeze conspicuously gushed through the thin strands of tall grass standing on the lake shore.

Our Truck - The Dodge RAM

We then started towards Three Hills. We kept going straight and then turned South on HWY 27 and went all the way down to stop at Badlands. The Red Deer River has carved out a grand canyon here and the sight is just too beautiful to let pass by. So we stopped here to shoot shoot and shoot.

Badlands on The Red Deer River

We went further south to cross the river. The crossing has no bridge but a motor powered ferry called the Bleriot Ferry. The ferry was first built in 1913, when it was known as the Munson Ferry. It was a 42 feet wooden scow at that time and was operated by current boards. The operator used to turn the wooden current boards to tap the flow of the river current to move the ferry. The ferry was guided by steel cables to maintain a straight path. In 1966 this ferry was renamed the Bleriot Ferry in honour of a homesteader named Andre Bleriot. It is interesting to note that Andre was the brother of Louis Bleriot, the first person to fly across the English Channel. The ferry was rebuilt in 1997, and engaged with an engine powered barge. The dimensions of the ferry - 27.6 metres long, 10.36 metres wide, hull depth - 10.37 metres. The length of the crossing is 106 metres and it takes anywhere between 1-2 minutes to cross. The ferry can haul a load of 62.5 tonnes.

The Bleriot Ferry

The Route Map

Map Legend -

1. HWY 9 South - To Calgary

2. Point B - Beynon

3. Point C - Drumheller

4. Point D - Kiever's Lake Recreational Area

5. Point D1 - The Bleriot Ferry across The Red Deer River
6. Point E - The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaentology
7. Point F - The Hoodoos

Then we went to the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaentology. We all had seen dinosaur skeletons before in the US so we did not go inside, but just saw the area from outside. After this we rode back down to Drumheller. Here we have the world's largest dummy dinosaur. 

 The Dummy Dinosaur - 26.2 Metres High

We then proceeded 16 kilometers further South-East of Drumheller to a place called the Hoodoos. The Hoodoos are simply a marvel of nature's artistic creation. They are formed of sedimentary rocks protruding all the way up and are covered by harder rock sheets at the top. The sheet at the top keeps the shape intact.

The Hoodoos - 16 km South East of Drumheller

We then drove back to Calgary. On the way back we stopped in the North-East in Bombay House to relish Indian cuisine. It was one more memorable trip - short yet sweet.