What are the Badlands?
Tucked away quietly and a very well kept secret of Alberta is the amazing Canadian Badlands. With a dramatic sedimentary rocky terrain and fossil beds as far as the eye can see, it really feels insane to see just a 2.5 hour drive from the city of Calgary. The Badlands stretch from Alberta to Saskatchewan and are home to the biggest dinosaur fossil deposits in the world. How insane is that? You get to walk and hike in the region where once the dinosaurs roamed free, it’s insane! I came across this first on Instagram and I just knew I had to visit on my way back from the Canadian Rockies (see Banff and Jasper guides here).
How to Get to the Badlands
The Canadian Badlands are quiet vast. They stretch across multiple provinces which means when you choose to go here, you will have to decide on a specific region. For us, this was the Dinosaur Provincial Park. It falls as a 2.5 hour drive from the city of Calgary and 3.5 hours from the town of Banff. We left the rockies and Banff at 5am and drove straight through the vast terrain to reach just as the park opened. There is no entry fee or parking fee. All you have to do is park, find a self serve trail and marvel at nature’s glory!
Exploring Dinosaur Provincial Park
We just about had enough time to spend the morning here. We ended up driving the scenic road loop which winds around and goes up and down giving you so many incredible views of the valleys and rock formations from above. There are also many parking areas in the region. We chose to take the main 45 minute Badlands trail loop where we got up on the dunes and got to take in the views around. Be warned though, the area is known for snakes and dangerous spiders so sticking to the marked trails is VERY important. It’s also wise to stay away from longer grass because you never know what might jump out.
Truly, the Canadian Badlands were so completely worth the drive out and I would 100% recommend the extension to anyone who is venturing out the Canadian Rockies or Alberta in general!
