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Travel Alberta, All Rights Reserved Written by: Travel Alberta
It's been a gruelling day of spa-ing at the Heartwood Manor in the central Alberta Badlands northeast of Calgary, where dinosaurs once roamed and travellers now throng for a taste of prehistory.
First, I spent 90 minutes with Inn and Heartwood Spa esthetician Katie Fisher as she turned my calloused and bunion-plagued feet into sleek paws worthy of strappy shoes and jewel-toned nail polish.
Then, massage therapist Mike Begg twisted me into a happy human pretzel on the floor of my antique-furnished suite on the second storey of the lavishly restored Victorian inn. Who needs yoga? With Thai massage (dare I admit this?), Mike does the stretching for you. Who knew a weekend spa vacation could be so conducive to health and fitness?
Soon after came my Indian Head Massage with therapist Rita Cumming, followed by 45 minutes of polarotherapy a uniquely sedating spa treatment I'd never heard of, but highly recommend. (This should come with its own warning: even the energizer bunny can't withstand the relaxing powers of this ancient East Indian form of bodywork).
And now, with a full afternoon of primping behind me and a tasty plate of pub fish and chips in my belly, I am ready for sleep. After a hot soak in my private jetted hot tub, I climb the steps to bed, wondering what pleasures tomorrow might bring on my spa vacation.
Enjoy One-of-a-Kind Beds
Did I mention I'm climbing the stairs to BED? Not my bedroom, but my BED. Like everything in this central Alberta town, my sleep machine is larger than life a wood-hewn, quilt-laden creature that requires its own portable set of stairs to clamber atop.
These one-of-a-kind beds the monolithic cousin, if you will, to the ordinary mattress and boxspring are just one of the unique touches to be found among the hoodoos and coulees of the Alberta badlands.
You can spot the Heartwood, with its sky-blue clapboard exterior and gingerbread trim, as you head into town on Highway 9 east. As you wind your way into the Red Deer River valley, the spa resort looms invitingly to your right on Railway Avenue. (Several secondary highways converge in the town, so you have a variety of travel options when traveling from Calgary or Edmonton.)
You might not even make it into the foyer before owners Zeke and Patrice Wolf open the front door to welcome you to the Heartwood. The pair, who took over operations at the historic 10-suite hotel and health spa in June, are eager to show off the inn's many features.
Zeke, a semi-retired gas well consultant, asks if I'll be having his famous flaming French toast for breakfast. Hold on now I haven't even had lunch yet! But there's no time for eating: my spa caregivers are waiting to show me their wares. (In all fairness, Zeke offers me a snack, but I decline because I'm eager for my treatments to begin.)
The Heartwood is a member of the Charming Inns of Alberta, an association of intimate, smaller hotels and bed-and-breakfasts that provide a comforting alternative to the motels and hotels that road warriors so often rely on. The inn is also home to the organization's only destination spa allowing you to run straight for bed should the pampering be so intense that a nap is just a woozy blink away.
Discover Antique Furnishings
The furnishings are mostly antique, from the double-sided clock in the stylish breakfast room to the ornately carved guest check-in desk and the furnishings in each suite. Patrice, who for seven owned the town's only antique shop, is continually scouting for new finds for the heritage inn. Aside from the sprawling main house is a self-catered miner's cabin (perfect for girlfriend or family getaways) as well as a one-room honeymoon cottage tucked beside the manicured gardens.
While the Heartwood - like all of Drumheller's accommodations is fully booked over the summer months, the shoulder season offers a slower pace and a welcome chance to explore the former coal-mining region's offbeat attractions and historic sites.
The world-famous Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology, which teems with tourists during high season, is much easier to explore when the crowds have thinned. The museum, which blankets more than 11,200 square metres (120,000 square feet) and boasts more than 4,400 square metres of displays, is open year-round but on reduced hours during winter months (closed Mondays).
Kids love the Shell Discovery Centre, which features giant flowers than can be 'fed' by foam balls. Or, hike the trails around the museum and learn how flood waters from melting glaciers carved out the lunar-like landscape. (The 1.2-kilometre self-guided interpretive loop takes about 50 minutes to complete, weather permitting.) The museum itself is loaded with exhibits that pay homage to the town's prehistoric heritage, include multimedia exhibits (build your own dinosaur and see if it could have survived), life-sized replica dinosaur skeletons, authentic fossils and other artifacts.
Travellers who spend time strolling the streets of downtown Drumheller are often tempted to take some time out on one of the town's many benches most come complete with your own personal dinosaur statue to make your photo op complete.
Explore the World's Largest Dinosaur
If you're feeling energetic, fork out $3 (family and group rates available) to explore the town's newest and most talked-about tourist attraction the world's largest dinosaur. Situated at the Drumheller visitor centre, this five-year-old attraction has one several tourism awards for innovation and originality.
Clamber the 106 steps through the innards of a Tyrannosaurus Rex the infamous T-Rex passing by artifacts and prehistoric paintings as the roars and squawks of dinosaurs are piped through the 26-metre (86 feet) structure for effect. Your reward at the top is a panoramic view of the river valley, the town and the badlands all from a glass-encased balcony that peeks out from massive dinosaur teeth. (Hint: do this BEFORE your spa treatment. It's not terribly taxing, but you will feel it in your legs when you make your descent.)
Also worthy of your time is Horseshoe Canyon a few kilometres west of the town; helicopter tours are available in the summer months, but you can still get a great look from the signed canyon viewpoint. And the Atlas Coal Mine site, while closed from mid-October to spring, allows visitors time travel to the days when coal was king and the area's mines provided valuable fossil fuels to people across Canada.
Another key area attraction (stay-and-play packages are available through the Heartwood Inn) is the Rosebud Dinner Theatre. Situated about 22 kilometres south of Drumheller, Rosebud is a tiny artisan community with a theatre arts school, the historic Rosebud Opera House (performances are offered year-round) and several shops, galleries and cafes.
And when you've all that, remember there's aways the spa to recuperate.
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