Antique equipment is still in use at Smithbilt Hats Inc. Pam LeBlanc photo
Cowboy hats and boots. Rodeos. Home-grown beef and a thriving oil and gas industry.
They call Alberta, Canada, the “Texas of the North” because of similarities between the two regions, as I discovered during a trip to Calgary and Banff. The nickname dates to at least 1951, when Time Magazine published an article comparing the two.
A historic poster at the SAM Center advertises the Calgary Stampede. Pam LeBlanc photo
Ten Texas-y things to do in Alberta
Here are 10 things Texans can do in Alberta to feel right at home.
1. Attend the Calgary Stampede, first held 112 years ago, at a time when the Old West was fading away. Today the 10-day event, set this year for July 3-12, includes everything from chuckwagon races to First Nation horseback relays, traditional rodeo events, live music, a teepee village and more.
2. Visit the SAM Centre in downtown Calgary, where visitors learn about Stampede through stories and memorabilia from people who played an integral part in its history. The highlight? A 12-minute video in a 270-degree space that puts you in the middle of all the action, the vibration of thundering hooves included.
3. Watch bootmakers at work at the Alberta Boot Co., founded in 1978. You can custom order a pair made or traditional cowhide of something more exotic, like ostrich, stingray, kangaroo, python or pirarucu, the world’s largest freshwater fish. The company has been making boots for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police since the 1990s.
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4. Wear a white hat. Russian immigrant Morris Schumiatcher founded Smithbilt Hats in 1919, mostly making fedoras and women’s dress hats. Then, in 1946, the company introduced a white cowboy hat, which became a symbol of Calgary’s hospitality and the annual Stampede. Today craftsmen use machinery from the 1870s to mold, press and shape cowboy hats of all shapes and colors. Customers have included Kevin Costner and Shania Twain.
5. Sure, you need snow to do it, but the winter sport of skijoring – in which horses pull skiers around a course and over jumps – is pure Texan at heart. Banff holds an annual skijoring festival downtown, and Calgary hosts SkijorDue, which involves skijoring plus fondue, Canada’s version of queso. Over-the-top western fashion is part of the scene.
Alberta Boot Co. in downtown Calgary makes custom boots. Pam LeBlanc photo
6. Learn about the oil and gas industry, which drives much of the economy in Alberta. Companies like Cenovus Energy and Enbridge are headquartered in Calgary.
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7. Go boot scooting at Ranchman’s Cookhouse & Dancehall in Calgary, which bills itself as Canada’s greatest honky tonk. The club features live music, a mechanical bull, and free dance lessons on Thursday nights. Or go for “cowboy karaoke” at the Dusty Boot in Banff, where you can sip on a North of Texas Tea, Canada’s version of a Long Island Iced Tea.
8. Enjoy some Alberta beef. At Caesar’s, which feels like a ritzy New York City steakhouse circa the 1950s, customers can watch the grillmaster sizzle up supper on a cauldron-shaped grill at the restaurant’s center.
9. Soak up some history while eating lunch at Deane House, an elegant restaurant housed in a structure built in 1906 at the site of Fort Calgary.
10. Drop by The Confluence in downtown Calgary, where the Bow and Elbow rivers merge at what was once an important meeting place for indigenous people. The park and historic site hosts educational events; April’s lineup includes a Q&A about the Indian Act and how it impacted Alberta’s indigenous population, a workshop about herbal medicines, and an exhibit of Blackfoot traditions.
