The Bendix Company, founded in the 1920s and absorbed by a competitor in the early 1980s, was a well known producer of automotive parts, avionics equipment and the like. At one time they also manufactured retail electronics, TVs, Radios and so on. Interesting, during the recreational vehicle boom of the...
When playing the Boler spotting game, the rules dictate that a player shout out “Boler!”, as loudly as possible I might add, upon seeing one. Them’s the simple rules – well, there’s points for rarity and difficulty, but we won’t go into them here. When travelling with friends, all who...
The CPR’s short Pecten Subdivision runs from the Crowsnest Subdivision mainline, at the town of Brocket Alberta just east of the Crowsnest Pass, south towards a large gas plant, Shell’s Waterton Complex at Pecten. Very near the end of this line, south of Pincher Creek, is train bridge crossing over...
The Mountain Mill United Church is located in a gorgeous pastoral setting, a secluded wooded river valley near the foothills of southwest Alberta, close to the communities of Pincher Creek and the Crowsnest Pass. At just over a century old (built in 1906) the building is still used from time...
We actually don’t capture that many Bolers in motion, so finding one on the road is extra special. Most we see are parked, at campgrounds or between outings, stashed away in alleys, back yards and the like. This example, a seventeen foot model, with a rather unique crocheted spare tire...
This post has been updated and can be found here: Chinook Motel Crowsnest Pass ~50 Years Apart. More Then & Nows… Shaunavon Saskatchewan ~70 years apart. Downtown Trout Lake British Columbia. Grain Elevators at Carbon Alberta. If you wish more information on what you’ve seen here, by all means contact...
For some strange reason we’re crazy about bridges. Older spans, of course, are the ones we search out the most, but we even find modern examples fascinating. Not everyone shares this strange obsession it seems. Of all the varied subjects covered on the BIGDoer.com website, articles on bridges are the...
Calgary has an extensive pathway system, covering all corners of the city. It’s one heck of a great resource which we use a lot, especially so in winter, when we can’t always make it to the mountains. These paved lanes head here, there and everywhere, most of them passing through...
This odd looking and brightly coloured rail mounted contraption is a Herzog Railroad Services “MPM” or Multi-Purpose Machine. It’s a specialized piece of equipment hired out under contract to rail carriers across the continent for maintenance of way work, travelling about as the need dictates. Highly adaptable it’s able to...
When one thinks of structures associated with Canadian railways, things like stations or perhaps roundhouses probably come to mind first. They both pretty iconic. There are lots of other types of buildings connected to then however. One that was once very common, yet little known or understood, was the lowly...
The Greenhill Hotel can be found in Blairmore (well…West Blairmore) Alberta, in the historic Crowsnest Pass, in the southwest corner of the province. The barn-shaped structure has been around for well on ninety plus years. Once a busy watering hole for local coal miners and also accommodation for those visiting...
We used to do something called the "pointless challenge" 🤪 and miss those days. It was so much silly fun and often frustrating as heck. In these we'd invite people to send in random photos of obscure locations, but not give any information, and then we'd track where it was and shoot something similar.
Most of these came from old family collections, as was the case here. Anyone up to resurrecting the series?
In hindsight, why didn't we pose someone in our shot?
Pointless: “Devoid of meaning (or) senseless” Merriam-Webster.
If you like what we do and want to support this ongoing project (12 years now), go here: https://www.BIGDoer.com/help-the-society/ Thanks to Connie for making this post possible.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: ca1970 and 2014. Posted by Connie.
Captured on a cold, cold day many years ago. We've been passing this old house for decades and it's little changed in that time. At some point we expect to drive by and it'll be gone.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2017. Posted by Connie.
When retired old railway cars usually get cut up for scrap. Sometimes, however, they find their way into the hands of the general public or whomever. Flat cars make good bridges, and boxcars can be transformed into storage buildings and the like. Case in point here. We see them used like this often enough and in this case, it's part of a corral.
Incidentally, this boxcar dates from 1950 and this was found by tracing the old road number, which is still visible.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2017. Posted by Connie.
This central Alberta racetrack was never a commercial operation but instead just a fun place for car enthusiasts in the area to get together. Early '70s or thereabouts and it only lasted a few years. Even thought it's been abandoned for that long, there is no doubt what was here.
You know we like the the obscure stuff and this one fits the bill perfectly. Found by accident while backroad cruising and the history comes thanks to local car guy Mike.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2022. Posted by Connie.
On top of little Myrtle Mountain in the Kimberley (BC) Nature Park.
There's some good wilderness fun to be had here and nice views as you can see, but the real reason we came is mining history. The whole area near the ski hill was extensively worked over a century ago and we were looking for evidence of this. We didn't find much in the area searched, but it's a big chunk of property and we hope to return to cover more ground again soon. Of all the subjects we cover, mining related is a favourite.
Still, it was a good hike and that can't be bad. Look to the comments for more info 👇.
Exploring nature and history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2022. Posted by Connie.
It's a strange curiosity in south Kananaskis, there on a hillside and we have no idea who created it. We asked around and no one's completely sure about its history. In the past it showed the Canada 100 logo from 1967 but in 2017 someone changed it to reflect the country's 150th.
That's our friend Emily from DanOCan.com having a look.
Exploring history with Off the Beaten Path with Chris & Connie. Photo: 2017. Posted by Connie.
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