This in-town hike has two personalities. For a time you’ll take in the far-reaching green space that is Calgary’s much loved Nose Hill Park. Go deep inside and you’d never know you were in the city – how pleasant. Another section has you in a 1960s/1970s era neighbourhood, full of Brady Houses and quite a bit different in vibe. Along the way, it’s a mix of dirt or paved pathways and city sidewalks. There’s coffee stops and eateries to have lunch if you didn’t bring your own (we don’t always when doing the urban thing). It’s a push regaining Nose Hill on the return leg, but otherwise it’s pretty easy stuff.
Park at the lot, top of the hill off Shaganappi Trail @ Edgemont Drive, east side at the lights. Take the main path heading west. Nose Hill here is broad and flat and soon the noise and bustle of Calgary are behind you. Just past a grove of trees (reminder: it’s mostly grasslands here), bend hard right, then soon after take a secondary trail heading away left in a southeasterly direction. By this point, the crowds at the start will have probably dispersed. For us, for a time, it’s as though we had the entire place to ourselves. That it’s so big helps spread out the users.
Urban Trek: Nose Hill Park & Huntington Hills – great fun any time of year. Another Chris & Connie adventure.
There’s a maze of trails, some official, many not, and to help with the former there’s maps here and there to guide you along. Still, it’d be easy to get off track or lost. You can mix it up as you like too, taking what ever route pleases you, keeping in mind there’s only a select few exits points on the 14th Street side of the park (tunnels or road crossings). You’ll want to aim carefully should you wish to follow our route beyond that point.
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After a while start dropping down, mostly a gentle grade but a bit steeper as you reach the pedestrian tunnel. In spite of being busy with people, a lot of animals live on Nose Hill. Deer, coyotes and birds of all kinds can often be spotted in wooded coulees to your right. Rose hips, a low bush with bright red fruit, can be found in abundance in sheltered hollows and is food for some of those critters. Once in a while, there’s a bench where you can sit and relax and take in nature. You don’t always need to go-Go-GO and take the time to put your feet up too.
Cross underneath 14th Street and continue on the pathway, here in a green belt separating two neighbourhoods. That’s Huntington Hills on your right, which you’ll loop around almost in its entirety and Beddington Heights opposite. Meet up with Beddington Boulevard (snack/java options across to your left) and continue east. At 4th Street, turn right then almost immediately left at Bedfield Gate and drop down to the Nose Creek Pathway.
Paralleling the railway, continue south. No trains showed for us this day. Just before 64th Avenue take the route heading up to your right. On hitting the streets, here’s some more food places. Pho sounds good! Continue west down 64th, Huntington Hills is now on your right and Thorncliffe from the 1950s on your left. Pass John A MacDonald School and soon after 4th Street (NW) marks the start of an up-grade. At 14th Street go hard right. There’s a pathway beside the road, but we choose a parallel alley as it was further back from all the busy and so less noisy.
It was mid-winter on our visit with the sun perpetually low in sky and we have some fun with long shadows. It was a crisp -10c to 15c on our visit, incidentally. No much stops us, but the cold slows down at times. We have kid-fun making snow angels at a playground – young at heart, that’s us.
Duck under 14th Street and take the path heading up on the left side of the gully. It’s a short, steep push for a time with the grade easing near the top. On a point looking out over the city: “I’m King of Nose Hill!” (& have the nose to prove it – also holding title in Bolertown). To the south it’s the downtown skyline but it’s soon out of view as you head in deeper. Go north for a wee bit before turning west on a obvious trail. Where it starts bending south, take the well beaten path to your right. Here Nose Hill is flat, featureless and higher in elevation than most of the surrounding communities and one would be hard pressed to believe there’s a population of over a million surrounding you, just out of sight. This is an urban trek? Sure doesn’t look like from here!
Coming over a low rise, the city reappears off in the distance and the illusion of being in the middle of nowhere is shattered. Soon join up with another well-trodden path, pass that grove of trees seen early on, followed by a hard left, then in no time you’re back at the car. With a whole bunch of trails converging, it’s busy along this last section.
Nose Hill is one of the biggest urban parks on the whole continent and comes in at eleven square kilometres. There’s hundreds of clicks of trails, many of them informal. At the south end scars from a gravel pit operation are evident – you won’t see them on this adventure. There were plans to turn the hill into a residential community prior to 1980, but fortunately the land was set aside for the people to enjoy instead. It’s little developed and is very much a natural grassland and home to a huge number of plant and animal species.
Watch this site for more new content coming.
They’re saying…
”One of the great places to see great places, online! Wonderful work Chris and Connie…!” Greg Herman.
If you wish more information about this route, by all means contact us!
Date of adventure: December, 2019. Location: Calgary, AB. Distance: 16km loop. Height gain maximum: 200m. Height gain cumulative: 250m NOTE: all distances and heights are approximate and may differ slightly from other trip reports.
(A long read) After twelve years it's time to put a face to the name and come clean on something. That's rarely-seen Chris in the photo, one half of Team BIGDoer, my best friend for almost thirty years and orchestrator of everything you see here. For his entire adult life, he's battled a deep depression.
Mostly it's manageable, but there are extended bouts where it's crippling and his life comes to a grinding halt. Sometimes there are days or weeks where he's lost. Sleep does not come easy at this time and further aggravates the issue. As he ages, it's worsening and seems intent on destroying him from the inside.
If you see a lack of posts here, or ones poorly worded, confusing or simply off, it's from one of these periods.
Through all this, he remains as kind, thoughtful and loving as ever, but is somewhere else. To the family, it's just Chris and accepted as it should be. The kids and grandkids adore him no less. Until today, however, this has been hidden from the outside world, although closer friends and some readers were probably already suspect of his condition. I hope admitting this does not break the site.
He finds clarity when we're out and doing things, hiking or documenting something historic and it's only THE reason this page and our website exists. It's therapy. Then he's a new and passionate person, but the monster as he calls it always returns. The Beer Parlour Project has brought out a side I've never seen and when out in the field he's never been so on point and confident.
This post is not for sympathy but to inform. Just so you know where he is and here's what you can do to help (a last ditch request)...
If you see a missed comma or oddly worded sentence in a post, please be kind. You'll probably see his uncertainty when he's off and be nice there too. But if you like what you see, even if the write up could be presented better, post your encouragement. Say something and say it loud...it's important and will keep him sharing. Help Chris get better by cheering him on.
Other than some photos that are mine, everything else comes from him. All the tiring research and the writing (he admits he's NOT a writer), are his.
Chris puts every dollar he makes into this "project of a lifetime", and it's supplemented by donations from readers who enjoy the content. If you want to help...
Admittedly he was not thrilled with the idea of posting this but agrees it probably should be said, even if it makes him uneasy. He doesn't like appearing in photos either. He's so shy, thinks he looks goofy and hates his husky eyes. I love them and they're windows into a wonderful, complex and quiet, but tortured soul. It breaks my heart when he's in a bad space.
This image comes thanks to photographer Arturo Pianzola and was captured while exploring the historic Riverview Mental Hospital in Coquitlam BC. Chris thought since he was in the area last year, he'd stop by to visit with a grandfather he never really knew, who spent his last years at the facility and is buried on the grounds.
Thanks for listening and your understanding. Hopefully we'll see you next week. Johanna (Connie).
Journey of Natty Gann (Disney 1985) and the same location in the Crowsnest Pass 2014. We're visiting the Pass over the new year, as we often do, and this time we'll be staying at a house that appears (briefly) in the film. How cool, eh? Chris has decided it's time on this visit to reshoot this and other Natty Gann comparison shots we did from ten years ago. Stay tuned!
This scene was shot in historic downtown Coleman and shows the former Holyk's Grocery. It was built in the early 1900s and the store closed in the '60s. _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Johanna (Connie).
From 2015. Rob Pohl and his strange old-style view camera joined us in documenting the Laing House (with permission). Head down to the comments to see an amazing coincidence with something I found inside.
From the Crossley slides, it's an undated view of Towers School, out near Cluny Alberta. It was originally called Swastika School but that's before the word and symbol were ruined by negative connotations. Built 1922. Gone? _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Chris.
The same alley in downtown Calgary's west end, in the 1970s & today. You have to look hard to see the connection! The area was quite run down back then and is in stark contrast to all the shiny condo towers seen present day. Calgary Place West, an apartment block, appears in both images although it's barely a sliver in ours. Check the comments for more info.
Photo credit: James Tworow collection. _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Chris.
Lost highways (2022): a section of old #93 in Southeastern BC. That BIGDoer-mobile is gone now but quite famous and had a following of its own. Old mine roads, cow paths, 4x4ing across fields - no problem and people would recognize us out in remote areas just by this car. _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Chris.
Thanks, vicariously enjoy your trips, hope you folks are doing well and continuing your forays!
So happy to hear that and we’ll keep posting as long as we can.
We need to do this more again.
Amen! With nicer weather come more adventures.
I recognized the jacket that is.
And now I see that was it. Be sure to smile and wave next time.
I think I saw you on Nose Hill that day!
It must have been the jacket!