hanna alberta

A bizarre roadside attraction in Alberta

hanna alberta

This roadside scene northeast of Calgary shows a macabre touch of prairie life. (Julia Pelish/Vacay.ca)

Photo by Julia Pelish
Vacay.ca Visuals Editor

The sun-bleached cattle skull on a fencepost is an iconic symbol of life in the west — as much so as the tumbleweed, the wagon wheel and the cowboy hat. Driving from Calgary to Hanna, Alberta, the road is straddled with wide-open landscapes cordoned off into meandering ranches neatly encased in miles of fencing made of wood and wire.

On one of our pull overs en route to the Calgary Stampede Ranch I took a photo of this lonely looking fence “decoration” while horses grazed in contentment in the distance. For a few windswept moments I felt as if I had the whole world open to me and this photo is a reminder of that day out on the road in the seemingly endless expanse of Alberta.

The province is known for its quirky roadside attractions, as this previous Vacay.ca article shows. This skull is just another one of those unique finds your eye will latch onto when you take a drive through the prairies, heading for a destination sure to evoke thoughts of centuries past.

Next time you have “a moment” that moves you, capture it on pixels and then send your image in to share with us — you just may win a travel prize if your shot is chosen as the Vacay.ca Photo of the Week.

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A photographer who has worked in the largest media markets in Canada and the U.S., Julia’s travel photos and videos have been featured prominently in the Toronto Star and been exhibited in galleries in Toronto, New York and Vancouver. Her new line of photo jewelry was inspired by her travels. Even though she is an American, one of her favourite travel experiences was spending Canada Day 2000 on Parliament Hill, joining in a parade with then-Prime Minister Jean Chretien and others. Julia is Vacay.ca’s Visuals Editor. See her work at www.juliapelish.com/blog.

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