Traversing The Cowboy Trail (Part two)

Hello again! If you missed the first part of my journey across Alberta’s Cowboy Trail I highly recommend checking it out, otherwise this will make just about zero sense…

I woke up on day 3, September 22^nd, 2021, at home in my own bed, knowing I made the right choice. I had slept for about twelve hours and before I got too too comfortable, I headed back to Priddis to pick up right where I left off. I arrived about noon.

From my journal:

“All the romanticizing about traveling The Cowboy Trail and I didn’t think about the toll it would take on my body. I have just under 48 hours to complete my journey.”

At this point I had shot two rolls of 120 and 2 of 35mm, and about 100 digitals. Pretty even on all fronts. The plan from here was to make it to Priddis by day’s end and with a travel time of two hours and a time-budget of eight I could be fairly leisure about it.

I was in Millarville by 1PM, a very rich hamlet with mountain views. I don’t think there was a home there worth less than five million dollars. Of course, the best images were captured facing away from it.

I found Turner Valley to be a cute little town and enjoyed my walk though it.

Next up was Black Diamond. I had been through here a bunch before but never stopped in, so I was really looking forward to my experience here. I spent a good amount of time walking around and it was in the top three places I took the most photos. I was concerned about developing the last roll of Tri-X exposed at 200 ISO properly, so I needed to label it. I walked into a gas station and asked for a Sharpee and let me tell you, when he saw me pull out a roll of film and start writing on it, he had questions. He seemed old enough to remember film so he knew what I was doing but a little surprised to see it in 2021.

It was around this time I realized I was down to just two 35mm rolls. Why I didn’t bring more film I am not sure, but I had to conserve how often I used the Nikon F100 from this point on and lean into the Fujifilm X-E2S more, as well as the Pentax 6×7.

By about 5:30PM I had made it to Chain Lakes Provincial Park after an unfruitful stint in Longview. When I left Longview one of the first things I saw was a sign which read “No Services for 133 KM” and I knew I was in the thick of it. I saw my first bear, dashing up a hill. Too far away to take a photo and nowhere safe to pull over.

Chain Lakes was also a bust. My photos are just awful, possibly the worst from my trip. Partially lighting, mostly the camera operator.

By 8PM I had made it to my hotel in Pincher Creek, but not before stopping in at Lundbrek Falls, which was where I got some of the best photos of my trip, making up for the duds I shot for the last 150KM.

From my journal:

“The lookout point had a grate for a floor and you could see right through…..man….I hate heights, but I did it. I was a little shaky, but I got it done.”

On day 4, at sunrise, I headed to The Burmis Tree, which has been dead since the 1970s and is estimated to be between 600 and 750 years old. There’s a metal pole holding up one of the main branches. It had been years since I was here and wanted to get a good sunrise shot of it.

The sun rose behind me and in the sky was a line of low hanging cloud cover so the golden light only shined on it for a couple of minutes, but I got my shot.

I backtracked to Lundbrek, but didn’t capture the magic I had the previous day. Pincher Creek was also largely uninspiring.

Waterton Park however, was a slice of heaven. Until now, I had no idea that something so beautiful existed in Alberta. I don’t say this lightly, or for the sake of being dramatic, but I shed a tear as I drove in. As great as my photos turned out, I don’t think they did the park justice. It was a beauty you felt in your chest. If this had been my last stop it would have been a perfect ending to an imperfect trip.

Arriving in Cardston, my last stop, was a sour end to an otherwise successful journey. With a population of just over 3000, it was apparent from the start this town had a disproportionate homeless population. I also arrived during rush hour and was tired of seeing mandatory masking signs in small towns only to walk in and see no one, including the staff, wearing one. Perhaps I was exhausted, and my body knew this was the last stop but I was more than ready to return to my life.

This entire experience gave me a lot of confidence as a photographer, and helped me greatly in future road trips. Here are a few lessons I learned from my four days on the road.

1. Use gear you trust, now is not the time to experiment with new films, lenses or camera bodies.
2. The less types of film the better. If you can, stick to one film. This will significantly reduce your time in the darkroom when you get back, with batch developing.
3. Distance does not equal time. Sometimes I drove a hundred kilometers before I saw anything, other times I spent two or three hours in one spot.
4. Don’t book hotels in advance. Because of number three, I never booked a hotel until I was ready to pack it in. While this meant I had to head home halfway through, it also meant I didn’t have to rush to my destination, not did I arrive too early. Booking.com was my best friend during this, and subsequent trips.
5. Download your maps and bring a backup, and dedicated GPS. It’s the 20s, but cell phone coverage is still spotty. I still find myself in areas with zero service.

I hope you enjoyed this journey.  It was interesting looking back at my journal, and the photos two years later. I almost went out this week and covered the south leg of the trail again, but I think I’m done for the year. I would love to hear your road tip tips in the comments!

Stay Classic!

Behind the Scenes

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