To most people Crowsnest Pass is little more than a series of signposts on Hwy-3 as they head west from the Albertan plains to the charms of Fernie & The Elk Valley.

But slowly the well-preserved string of rag-tag mining settlements that cling on the the sides of the pass are developing as places to stop.

Things are still in their infancy, but there's a bit of real Western heritage to explore here, including two extra-ordinary attractions: Frank Slide, a visitor centre devoted to a huge landslide that once devastated the valley, and Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, another rewarding visitor centre (a little beyond the pass in Alberta) devoted to a different form of devastation: that of buffalo at the hands of local First Nations tribes.

The Outdoors

Then there's a bit of skiing, hiking and biking around Crowsnest too. The trail networks are relatively small, but benefit from the near-absence of other users at most times.