Article by Dwayne Zaba – Photography by Dr. Robert Berdan

When I met the founder of Kananaskis Country, the Honourable
Peter Lougheed, to interview him for the article that appeared in
the Fall 2011 issue of this magazine, he revealed that he and his
team had always envisioned a second Kananaskis Village. Upon
hearing this, I immediately thought that Bragg Creek should be
that second village. A year later, after giving the premise more
time and thought, I feel even more strongly about this idea.
Lougheed and his team initiated Kananaskis Country in 1976 to
give Albertans their own mountain park. Although Waterton,
Banff and Jasper are stunning National Parks, Kananaskis
Country – lying a half-hour drive west of Calgary and sharing a
western boundary with Banff, Canada’s first National Park – is
Alberta’s only provincial mountain park.
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Calgary's Own
Highway to Heaven
Article by Dwayne Zaba – Photography by Dr. Robert Berdan
As Lougheed then explained, he and his team protected
Kananaskis Country to provide Albertans with a place of their
own to recharge their batteries. Its proximity to Calgary makes
Kananaskis Country a popular destination for Calgary residents,
and as Calgary grows to realize its enormous potential as the
financial epicentre of Canada’s energy industry, the appeal of
this one-of-a-kind, natural recreational Mecca will increase
exponentially.
The 4,200-square-kilometre world-class forestry reserve that
is Kananaskis Country begins its vast sprawl at Bragg Creek,
whose strategic proximity to both Calgary and Kananaskis
Country makes it ideally positioned to fulfill Lougheed’s
pioneering vision. Bragg Creek is the closest gateway

The amazing vistas that engage you as you
drive along Highway 40 (above), are typical
of what you could expect to see at every
corner of the proposed extension of Highway
66, from its current end-point near Forget-
Me-Not Pond, through to its connection to
Highway 40 near Kananaskis Village.
__________________________________________
Whatever draws you to the country – hiking,
horseback riding, cycling, rafting, camping
– the proposed extension to Highway 66
would provide greatly increased access to
regions of K-Country that the vast majority of
visitors have never experienced before.
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To
Banff
to Kananaskis Country for the vast majority of Calgary
residents, and by keeping additional commercial development
outside of Kananaskis Country, the picturesque hamlet of
Bragg Creek is also the most ecologically-sound ‘second
village’ option.
Calgary residents have three major access routes to Bragg Creek:
a 20-minute drive from the south end of Calgary via Highway
22X; a 20-minute ride from the city’s west end via Highway 8;
and a 30-minute drive from the city’s north end via Highway 1.
The combination of Bragg Creek’s direct adjacency to Kananaskis
Country and the triple access it affords to Calgary makes it the
natural staging area for Calgary residents wishing to explore
Kananaskis Country.
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Canmore
Kananaskis
Village
40
W
N
S
1
Although access to Bragg Creek from Calgary is excellent,
access into Kananaskis Country from Bragg Creek is
unfortunately limited. For much of the year, the main route
into Kananaskis Country from Bragg Creek, Highway 66, ends
at Elbow Falls. This limited access from Bragg Creek into
the heart of Kananaskis Country forces Calgary residents to
take a much more circuitous route: north through Calgary
to Highway 1, west on Highway 1 to Highway 40, and then
double-back south on Highway 40 to Kananaskis Village.
However, if Highway 66 is extended to connect with Highway
40 and kept open year-round it will greatly increase the
amount of time Calgary families spend in Kananaskis Country
– on average, per outing, the proposed highway extension
would provide Calgary based-families with two more
memorable hours to spend together in God’s Country!
The extension of Highway 66 to Highway 40 would not only
provide Calgary residents with a direct route to majestic
heavenly vistas, but it would also greatly diminish the
volume of traffic within both the city of Calgary and on
Highway 1, facilitating much-needed relief on these major
traffic arteries as Calgary continues to expand and grow.
E
Elbow
Falls
Bragg
Creek
Elbow
River
To
Cochrane
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66 22X
Proposed Extension to Highway 66
Exact route to be determined
To North Calgary
and Calgary Airport
8
To West Calgary
and Downtown
To South
Calgary

The momentous anticipated land swap
deal between the Province of Alberta and
the Tsuu T’ina Nation to accommodate the
much-needed Calgary ring-road creates
the potential for a grand-slam Win-Win-
Win-Win for Kananaskis Country, Calgary,
the Tsuu T'ina Nation and Bragg Creek.
This proposal would transfer 988 acres
of Tsuu T’ina Nation land near Calgary
for 4,858 acres of provincial Crown land
that lies directly west of the Tsuu T’ina
Nation. Such a land swap would extend
the western boundary of the Tsuu T’ina
Nation land from Redwood Meadows
to Kananaskis Country or, from a Bragg
Creek perspective, from the Wintergreen
Estates development in north Bragg
Creek, above all of west Bragg Creek, to
Kananaskis Country.
This deal will not only greatly increase
the land size of the Tsuu T’ina Nation,
but also present an exciting opportunity
for it to become a world-class tourist
destination by offering visitors from
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Proposed Land Swap to Accomodate the Calgary Ring-Road
KANANASKIS
COUNTRY
Proposed 988 acre land transfer from Tsuu T'ina Nation
Proposed 4,858 acre land transfer to Tsuu T'ina Nation
Calgary ring-road
Proposed new highway through Tsuu T’ina Nation
Wintergreen
66
Bragg
Creek
Redwood
Meadows
around the world the unrivalled
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while providing visitors with guided-tour
access to one of the most extraordinary
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www.timberwolffdesigns.ca
22
TSUU T’INA
NATION
22X
8
Sarcee
Trail
Bragg Creek has long been called the
Gateway to Kananaskis, and the extension
of Highway 66 to Highway 40 into
Kananaskis Country will enable it to literally
realize its calling. If logic prevails, Calgary
families will get their kicks off Route 66.
________________________________________
For additional information go to:
www.braggcreek.net/341
From single rooms to entire homes, I
personally guarantee that we’ll turn your
vision into something that you’ll cherish
for years to come.
Glenmore Trail
Rod Wolff
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