Check out the Kananaskis Outfitters Winter Gear Sell Off for great deals on winter gear. Kananaskis Outfitters is your source for guided tours, rentals and outdoor retail in Kananaskis. Their Winter Gear Sell Off includes lightly used x-rental cross country skis, boots, poles and snowshoes for sale. This year Kananaskis Outfitters has created a brand new Webstore for easy shopping anytime and anywhere. The website features size charts in the descriptions to help you ensure that you’ll be getting the right size. Gear will be available for pick-up at 10am on April 10th.

Although the last Experience the Cowboy Trail Photo Contest ended in December, there’s still time to enter the annual Experience the Mountain Parks Photo Contest on our sister website! The 2014-2015 EMP contest closes at 11:59 pm on Tuesday, March 31. Submit your photos that you’ve taken in the Canadian Mountain Parks for the chance to win some amazing prizes.

“Mountain Morning Glow” – contest entry by Beverly Jay

This year, the sponsors  for the EMP Photo Contest are Revelstoke Mountain Resort, The Camera Store, Athabasca Glacier Icewalks and Brewster Travel Canada. Thanks to them, the EMP Photo Contest winners will receive an amazing 2-night Dream Getaway to Revelstoke, a Glacier Icewalk, and much more.

The contest entry is simple. Just upload your photos, tell us where they were taken, what titles and descriptions you’ve given your photos, and provide your name and email address.

“Trophy Mountain” – contest entry by Claude Robidoux

Winners will fall under two categories: the Judges Award (First and Second Place) and the Voting Category Award. Even if you enter your photo too late to receive a lot of votes from our readers, you still have a chance at winning in the Judges Award category! There is no limit to how many photos you can enter.

Be sure to vote for your favorite photo, too!

Click here to enter.

“Mount Rundle” –contest entry by Hamish Mitchell

Want to see Canada’s best collegiate athletes give all they’ve got? Then don’t miss the Canadian College Finals Rodeo! You’ll learn who’s “Head of the Kicking Class” in this adrenaline-filled event. It’s a weekend full of excitement, stunts, and bravery as some of Canada’s top cowboys and cowgirls battle for the national title. The rodeo will include all six major rodeo events, plus Team Roping, Goat Tying, Breakaway Roping and Pole Bending.

Choose from one of the three following ticket options for the deal that’s best for you.

Single Day Tickets: 
Start at $11.75 per person

3-Day Performance Package:
Starts at $30.00 per person (Over 10% off Single Day)

To purchase Single Day Tickets or 3-Day Packages go to Ticketmaster.ca or call 1.855.780.3000.

Group Tickets (20+ tickets):
Start at $9.00 per person (Over 20% off Single Day)

To purchase Group Tickets call 1.888.800.7275, email grouptickets@northlands.com or download the order form.

Visit farmandranchshow.com/CCFR/tickets to purchase your tickets today!

Your CCFR ticket also includes free admission to the Northlands Farm & Ranch Show happening March 26-28, 2015 at the Edmonton EXPO Centre. Purchasing CCFR tickets supports the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association—a fully student run organization that promotes rodeo as an extracurricular activity. Members of the Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association are future industry leaders, especially in agriculture.

The Vintage With Flair Spring Sale is a gathering of fun loving entrepreneurs, artists/designers, collectors and re purposers who love to combine their vintage inspired, hand designed, recreated, rusty, torn and tattered, antiques and vintage finds into fabulous boutique styled booths. Vendors are selected based on their wares, displays, creativity, and friendliness (people persons). No previous experience in events is required and the venue strives in vintage inspired uniqueness, looking for vendors who are passionate and innovative in their presentation and who incorporate Vintage With Flair’s mission of reusing, recreating, re-imagining and re-purposing into their displays. This sale is made up of approximately 30 individual booths, unlike the Christmas Market that uses vignettes as their display technique. The friendly, talented vendors not only bring their very best and eye catching displays to this sale, but they have and do create a unique venue known here in southern Alberta.

1) GARDEN / YARD DECOR: Hand designed, repurposed,

2) CONSUMABLES: ( Must follow Alberta Health Regulations for selling )

3) JEWELERY: Hand designed, vintage

4) FABRIC ITEMS: Hand designed, vintage

5) AUTHENTIC ANTIQUE/VINTAGE FINDS;COLLECTIBLES:

6) FURNITURE, Handmade, or re imagined

7) HOME DÉCOR: Hand designed, reimagined

8) ART: Hand Designed, vintage

The LOCATION of the Sale is at the PRIDDIS COMMUNITY HALL, 178031, Priddis Valley Road, W., PRIDDIS, Alberta, approximately 25 min. southwest of Calgary off of Hwy 22x.

DATES: Friday June 19th, 2015 4 pm – 8 pm Saturday June 20th, 2015 9 am – 4 pm

If you’re interested, consider attending the “Booth Boutique 101” workshop on Saturday, April 18, from 1 pm – 4 pm. It will include  funny skits, handouts, visual examples, and Q&A to help you have a successful show as a vendor. Read the details on the Vintage With Flair blog.

We’re into production for the 2015 edition of Experience the Cowboy Trail and Kananaskis Country, and we’d like you to partner with us on the decision of the next cover image. The images all do a great job of capturing the spirit of the West and the beauty of the area, but we need to choose just one. Look at the three images below and email hannah@cmipublishing.ca with your favourite.

Image 1

Image 2

Image 3

Congratulations to the winner of our January Brand ID Contest: Neil MacLaine. He correctly identified the brand below as 3 Walking Sticks. We offered these clues during January to help our contestants:

Clue One: This historic brand was first issued in May of 1885 to a famous large black cowhand

Clue Two: When it was first issued, it was recorded as Four Walking Sticks, but the owner soon realized that four made this brand too large for the left rib position on most cattle, so he requested it be changed to Three Walking Sticks.

For a prize, Neil won a copy of the book Smoke from the Branding Fire by Hank Pallister, the late husband of Joyce Pallister-Bronsch. Thank you to Joyce for generously donating copies of Smoke from the Branding Fire for our monthly Brand ID Contest prize!

Since we’re now busy producing the 2015 edition of all of our magazines, our final Brand ID Contest was held in January. Thank you to everyone who entered over the months! Other contests will be announced in the days ahead but in the meantime, remember to enter our Experience the Mountain Parks Photo Contest, which is open til the end of March. Also, be sure to vote for your favourite photos in the EMP Photo Contest.

Looking for some mid-winter fun? You only have to wait a couple weeks until the Canmore Winter Carnival begins! This festival will run from February 13 – March 1. Come admire the Ice Carvings around downtown – which is a favourite tradition – or bring the kids to play in the new family-focused snow playground (located in the Canmore Civic Centre Plaza on 7 Ave). Your family is sure to enjoy watching – or participating – in the Kid n’ Mutt Races and Human Curling on the pond. And when you need a break from the cold, you can come visit the warm up station.

If you have a business that will be featuring special events or winter packages during the Winter Carnival, be sure to contact Tourism Canmore Kananaskis so they promote it.

Also, plans are underway for the second annual Canmore Uncorked event April 7 -19. Tourism Canmore Kananaskis reports that “Dinner, Craft Beer and Wine Festivals are coming back with some new unique additions.” Contact Tourism Canmore Kananaskis today (January 30) if your business has events, packages and partnerships that you’d like marketed in conjunction with Canmore Uncorked. Tourism Canmore Kananaskis will incorporate them into the website and schedule.

Our January Brand ID Contest ends on Saturday, January 31. It’s your last chance to win a copy of the book Smoke from the Branding Fire, courtesy of Joyce Pallister-Bronsch, as a prize for our monthly trivia contest.  If you correctly identify the brand below, you’ll be entered into a draw for a copy of the book. As a bonus, we’re also offering a couple of clues below. Click here to enter.

Clue One: This historic brand was first issued in May of 1885 to a famous large black cowhand

Clue Two: When it was first issued, it was recorded as Four Walking Sticks, but the owner soon realized that four made this brand too large for the left rib position on most cattle, so he requested it be changed to Three Walking Sticks.

You can learn more about the Western lifestyle by reading Smoke from the Branding Fire. It’s written by Hank Pallister, who served as Coordinator of Brand Inspection for Alberta. Through his position, he came to know many of the personalities that gave so much to the aura of cowboy life in the Canadian west. His experiences and knowledge of Alberta’s cattle brand registrations and ranching history, its lore and memorable characters are recorded in this book in rich detail.

Rafter Six is starting an Adopt a Horse initiative to help cover the costs of their horses. It was a sad day when the Cowley family had to close the Rafter Six Guest Ranch, but we were very happy when the Cowley family opened Horseback Riding and Camping in the land adjacent to the original location in May 2014. The Cowley’s are still working to get back on their feet. The historic “Rafter Six” branded Horse Herd went from 85 horses in 2012 to 38 horses in 2014.

Rafter Six Wedding October 2014

You can help the Cowleys re-open their Horseback Riding in May 2015 and stay in the business of horses and people by adopting a horse. The Cowley’s explain that “Every dollar contributed goes directly to maintaining the “Rafter Six” horse herd with hay, feed, mineral supplements, veterinary care, farrier care, grazing pasture and transportation costs to and from Winter and Summer pastures.”

Horses are expensive to maintain, but the joy of riding horseback in the Canadian Rocky Mountains is well worth the investment! Click here to learn more about the Adopt a Horse program and to meet the unique blend of horses in the Rafter Six herd.

Captain, a Mountie baby and dapple grey horse