The Calgary Stampede

This 10 day odyssey starts with the Stampede Parade. It is of course, a western-themed parade and is supposed to be the world's largest parade of this sort. It has its own website where you can find out all sorts of details, such as the parade route (basically it's along 6th Avenue, cuts down 10th St SW, and then goes along 9th Avenue), timings and where to get tickets for the stands.

Photo from Flickr

Now where? Where is the actual Stampede? Well, all over really, but the main grounds are here: 1410 Olympic Way SE, Calgary, AB T2G 2W1. I've included a snapshot of a Google map showing that area in this module. The Google maps module doesn't work yet for Canadian destinations so this is the best I can do.

It's actually super-easy to get there... just hop on the C-train (the grounds are just south of downtown) and get off at one two stops - Victoria Park (main entrance) or Erlton/Stampede station. That's actually the best way to get to Stampede... parking, although available, is always a nightmare. And it'll cost you a lot less...

At the main grounds, you'll find the agricultural exposition (where else?) in the Agriculture building(s), the rodeo, chuckwagon races and Grandstand show in the Grandstand building(s), a casino and a kids-themed area in the Big Four building, stages where big name bands are featured in the evening, and which have entertainment all day, shopping in the Round-Up Centre, a Midway, and an Indian Village... plus more. I'm sure I've left a whole bunch of things out. Here's a map of the grounds from the official website.

It does cost you to enter the grounds... but if you are going to the rodeo, chuckwagon races or the Grandstand evening show, you just buy that ticket and the entrance to the park is "free". Info on the prices of tickets for the various events, and for general admission to the grounds again are listed on the official website, so I won't repeat it here.

And once you tire of the activities and events at the Grounds themselves, check out the rest of the city, especially downtown along Stephen Avenue and 17th Avenue. Both those big shopping areas are all decked out with Stampede "stuff", and all the bars and restaurants are buzzing. As well, there are often a number of street shows and buskers.

Once you've found the main Stampede grounds, then there's the question of what to do. There's the rodeo, the chuckwagon races, evening grandstand shows, an agricultural exposition, the midway, and so on. Let's start with the rodeo here...

Not my favourite part of the Stampede personally, as I'm always scared that an animal is going to get hurt or killed, but many people enjoy it. And they apparently have vets, etc on site during all the shows, and people from animal protection agencies around to make sure that no animals are being mistreated, and if they are hurt, that they get attention right away.

So if you like such things as bullriding, bronc, steer wrestling or barrel racing, then the rodeo is for you. It's got its own info area on the on the official Calgary Stampede website - here.

Photo from Flickr

Now, I've only seen this event on TV, but it sure looks exciting. Of course, there is the same concern as for the rodeo - what if a horse get hurts? And sometimes they do :( At any rate, a team of four horses are hitched to a chuckwagon and race around a series of barrels at very high speeds. If that's your thing, then check it out!

Photo from Flickr

Every evening during Stampede, there is a "Grandstand show" which ranges from musical acts, to Cirque de Soleil type acts, to motorcycle stunts. Grandstand shows are on every night starting on the second night I believe. Oh and there's fireworks at the end of the show every evening. It lights up the whole downtown!

Photo from Flickr

I mentioned earlier that Stephen Avenue and 17th Avenue are buzzing with activity during the Stampede as well. Well, this slightly blurry photo was one that I captured with my cell phone while dining out with my husband and my brother. We were sitting out on a restaurant patio (Milestone's I think it was) along Stephen Avenue when we heard a loudspeaker, and some Blues Brother music. Then up rolled a beat-up old police car (you can see it just entering the photo on the upper right) and a couple of guys in suits and sunglasses. Voila, free street entertainment courtesy of the "almost" Blues Brothers :)

You'll also find all sorts of buskers (from bagpipes to balloon animals), and many of the bars and restaurants have some sort of "cowboy" themed entertainment on. And of course, all the shop clerks, waiting staff, etc are decked out in their cowboy/cowgirl finest.

Okay, you're looking at this now and have decided to partake in the festivities (early to mid-July timeframe). Ummm, do you have friends here? That might be your best bet to try and find a place to stay. It gets a little crowded here that time of year, and people have been known to book hotel rooms a good six months to a year ahead of time. Most of the downtown hotels (especially the well-known ones like the Marriott, the Delta Bow, Sheraton, etc will likely be booked, but go ahead, give them a call. Here's a link to Trip Advisor showing a search of hotels in Calgary. And one from Nextag comparison shopping showing hotel rates in the "Hotel Village" which is a bunch of hotels near to the University (outside of downtown), but on the C-train line, so it is an easy trip to downtown, and to the Stampede.

If you're travelling by RV, or otherwise roughing it, you might be able to find a space at some of the RV/trailer parks just outside of town, but those apparently too fill up quite quickly for the July period.

So, as I said, hopefully you have friends here you can stay with... or you might have to make friends quick with someone ;-)

Calgary itself is fairly easy to get around in the main downtown core, although there are a number of one-way streets. It's also on a grid system (avenues go east-west, streets go north-south) so once you get into that area it's not so bad. Once you get out of downtown and its immediate suburbs, it's not so gridded, but it's not too bad either. So go ahead and rent a car - Hertz Canada and Avis are two car rental agencies that I've used and like - and explore the city!

If you'd rather use public transportation, you can use the C-train or the buses. C-train is short for "Calgary Train". The C-train is my personal favourite. If you are staying somewhere near the line, then use it. There are two lines - one which runs from downtown up to the northeast and one which runs from the northwest to the south east. Both run through downtown, and you can easily switch from one to another as need be, as they use the same platforms. The northeast line is the that the Calgary Zoo is on... and yes, they do things up for Stampede as well. You should definitely check it out if you're here for the all or part of the 10 days. The northwest-southeast line is the one which has the Stampede stops on it.

And of course, we have taxis... although during Stampede, sometimes they can be in short supply!