21 Things to Do This Summer

Story by Phoebe Dey

Experience a sampling of the best activities Alberta has to offer in food and agriculture this season

1. Head out to the Fairy Berry Festival Aug. 5 to 7 at Prairie Gardens and Greenhouse near Bon Accord. You can pick your own strawberries, visit an enchanted forest and cuddle a bunny at the petting zoo. Visit www.prairiegardens.org  for more information.

2. Get as close as you can to an authentic Icelandic settlement without travelling back in time. The historic Markerville Creamery southwest of Red Deer was built in 1902 and has since been restored to its 1932 condition. On your way out visit the Kaffistofa coffee shop for a taste of Icelandic treats. Check out www.touralberta.com/creamery for details.

3.Take in a show jumping tournament at Calgary’s Spruce Meadows, once a cattle feedlot before becoming one of the world’s top equestrian venues. A highlight is the ninth annual Agrium Country Fair, a throwback to Canadian rural living featuring exhibits, entertainment and red ribbon contests. Visit the website at www.sprucemeadows.com

4. See if a vegetable can outwit you in one of several corn mazes in Alberta. The intricately designed Edmonton Corn Maze is a few minutes from West Edmonton Mall in Parkland County (www.edmontoncornmaze.ca) and takes on average an hour to finish. Or try getting lost in the 14-acre Lacombe Corn Maze (www.lacombecornmaze.com) where you’ll find a goat walk, corn cannons and bale mountain.

5. Dig deep and discover your town’s roots at a local fair or festival. Ask your town office for details on how to celebrate your local pride or check out the Alberta Fairs and Exhibitions guide at www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/general/fairexhs.nsf

6. More than 80 acres of connected gardens – including an authentic Japanese Garden and ecological reserve – make up the Devonian Botanic Garden, located just north of Devon (www.devonian.ualberta.ca). Visit often to see the various sites at their best in the northern-most botanic garden in Canada. Or to the south, find serenity in Lethbridge’s Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden among a dry rock garden, ponds and islands, and a flat prairie garden (www.nikkayuko.com).

7. Meet the people who produce the freshest food in the province when you visit one of Alberta’s many popular farmers’ markets. Make a special trip to western Canada’s largest outdoor market in downtown St. Albert or head southwest of Calgary to a relaxed country atmosphere at the Millarville Farmers’ Market. You will see why these gatherings are the number one agri-tourism attraction in Canada. For a listing of farmer’s markets across the province, visit www.albertamarkets.com

8. Sign up for a bee safari at Lola Canola, Patty Milligan’s beekeeping and honey operation near Bon Accord – one of 750 active honey operations across Alberta. Open the hives, search for the queen and learn the difference between the worker and drone bees. Cap off the visit with a delicious honey tasting. Call 780-921-3657.

9. Get your hands dirty at one of Alberta’s dozens of working farms or ranches while experiencing authentic western style hospitality. The Brown Creek Ranch near Claresholm offers packages that include relaxing in a log cabin after a day in the saddle or shopping at some western shops. At the Homeplace Ranch near Priddis, work in some trail riding or dangle your feet in the creek after a hike. Visit the Cowboy Trail Association at www.thecowboytrail.com  or Travel Alberta at www.travelalberta.com  You can also visit albertacountryvacation.com for a listing of farm and ranch locations.

10. Take your pick, literally, from dozens of u-pick farms across the province. Fill your cooler with ice packs and leave with your fill of vegetables or fruits of your choice. Whether you’re looking for rutabagas or raspberries, the Alberta Farm Fresh Producers Association can point you in the right direction. Visit www.albertafarmfresh.com.

11. You’ve read about how you can combine a drive in the country with a medley of rural activities at the fourth annual Country Soul Stroll, July 22 and 23. Now you can savour the flavour of the region at the Taste of the Stroll, a culinary event that showcases Sturgeon County producers and chefs July 16. Visit www.countrysoulstroll.ca for more information.

12. Dust off your cowboy boots and pull on the Wranglers to hit the world-renowned Calgary Stampede. Take in all things rodeo – from stock dog competition to barrel racing – at this weeklong event from July 7 to 16.  Check out the website at calgarystampede.com.

13. Stony Plain hosts the finest artists from across Canada and the U.S.A. “to edify, educate and elucidate the traditional cowboy life and humour in music and prose.” The Stony Plain Cowboy Poetry Gathering from Aug. 18 to 20 will include the legendary poets, pickers, singers, artists, chuckwagon barbecue and singalong bonfire gathering. Check out the website at www.stonyplaincowboypoetry.com

14. See what happens in a modern hog barn and why the pig is listed as the fourth most intelligent animal at Alberta Pork’s Pig Science Centre, housed at the University of Alberta’s south campus. Visit www.albertapork.com  for more info.

15. Think fresh and hit a restaurant that brings local ingredients and food right to your table. Sample Alberta’s regional cuisine at a growing number of restaurants throughout the province. Get started at Pigeon Lake’s Eco Café, Rouge in Calgary, or Culina restaurant in Edmonton.

16. View some stunning backyards as part of an organized garden tour. Try the Edmonton Horticultural Society (www.edmontonhort.com) or the Calgary Horticultural Society (www.calhort.org). While you’re tending to your garden, plant an extra row for your local food bank. Calgary, Edmonton, Leduc and Red Deer all have organized programs (www.growarow.org).

17. Sample the idyllic country lifestyle at the Bloomin’ Inn Guest Ranch east of Pincher Creek. Relaxing in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, guests can capture the old west of a family farm while walking through Bloomtown or feeding the cows. Visit www.bloomin-inn.com 

18. Brush up on your culinary skills in a cooking class or organize a unique cooking party with such companies as Nisku’s Fabulous Food Creations (www.fabulousfoodcreations.com), the Cooking Room in Red Deer (www.thecookingroom.com) or the Cookbook Co. Cooks in Calgary (www.cookbookcooks.com). Learn NAIT’s tricks of the trade at its popular annual culinary boot camp (www.nait.ca).

19. Combine fine wine, gourmet cuisine and a working sheep farm and you’ll get PaSu Farm. Order fresh lamb from its restaurant or buy a wool product at the boutique at the farm near Carstairs. Visit www.pasu.com

20. Peek into Alberta’s past at such popular sites as the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village east of Edmonton or see the impact technology had on aviation, transportation, agriculture and industry at Wetaskiwin’s Reynolds-Alberta Museum (www.machinemuseum.net). You can also discover what life was like in western Canada before 1914 at Calgary’s Heritage Park Historic Village (www.heritagepark.ca).

21. Get the party started at Canada’s biggest country music extravaganza Aug. 3-6. Concert-goers from around the globe make the yearly pilgrimage to a 400 mini-acre village that’s created each year in Camrose at the Big Valley Jamboree. Kick off the day with adrenalin-pumping bull riding before taking in some great country acts.  Check out www.bigvalleyjamboree.com.

 Fairy Tale Adventures

It wouldn’t be a stretch to call a visit to the Prairie Gardens and Greenhouses magical.

Stroll through the flower, strawberry or pumpkin gardens or wander to the petting zoo where you can meet Funny Face the alpaca and other cute critters.

Owner Tam Andersen has spent 20 years building her horticulture and ag-tourism business on her Bon Accord area farm and her innovative ways continue this summer. “Every year, I’m trying to think of something new,” says Andersen. “This year it is the Great Canadian Corn Maze, complete with a chicken-out exit for those who don’t think they can finish it.”

Aside from being able to pick your own strawberries, beets, potatoes or peas you can visit Andersen’s quaint gift store to give your garden its own distinct look. But the highlight for many is the Fairy Berry Festival that runs August long weekend. Find the fairy tale trail in the enchanted forest or catch a ride on a pirate-driven schooner as you tour through the grounds and see more than three acres of pumpkins (and even learn the difference between male and female pumpkins). Kids can dig like pirates for hidden treasure or cast a rod in special fishing hole stocked with prizes. And only the brave dare sneak through a rickety haunted house that is sure to frighten young and old. 

This combination of rural life and family entertainment is enough to attract many visitors – 20,000 throughout the entire summer – to the site. “You get the whole kaleidoscope of farm activities,” said Ardrossan resident Angie Branham, who celebrated last year’s festival with her two children. “Being able to pack so much into one day – the petting zoo, listening to fairy tales – is a wonderful experience.”

And although the award-winning spot is growing in popularity, part of the appeal is the serene atmosphere, said Andersen. “We do have more and more people coming to visit but it somehow manages to remain a peaceful visit to the country.”

At Home on the Farm

At the Bloomin’ Inn Guest Ranch, owners Francis and Colleen Cyr are eager to show off the fine art of family farming. One day guests might collect eggs, say hello to the lambs or deliver salt to the cows. The next day may be spent taking in the warm Alberta sunshine or dining on meat raised right at the ranch. 

Whatever the activity, guests at this idyllic spot near Pincher Creek indulge in their western side during their stay. Bloomin’ Inn is such a hit that about 85% of patrons are return visitors or referrals, says Colleen Cyr.

To entice newcomers and familiar faces, the Cyrs have added Bloomtown, featuring their meat outlet, antique shop and Christmas store among a collection of antique buildings. “Because we have so many return guests, we have to keep things fresh and update everything,” said Colleen. “People can either shop in our retail stores or walk around our old-fashioned buildings.”

Bloomtown is just one of the creative ways the Cyrs attract customers to their ranch. Forty weekends a year, they offer scrapbooking workshops as well as company or family retreats and even weddings.

The ranch is so popular that weekends are already booked up for the next two years. “But in the summer,” says Colleen, “every day is a weekend so people still have a lot of time to taste this lifestyle. It’s a wonderful experience.”