Billed as an oasis in the prairie, Medicine Hat, "The Gas City", emerges from the vast landscape stretching across the southeast corner of Alberta. Environmental reports show Medicine Hat to be Canada's sunniest city, a bright stop on the Trans-Canada Highway between Calgary and Regina, Saskatchewan. Edged by the Cypress Hills, the city was once founded as a police post in 1882 but got its name from Native American legend. Parks follow the South Saskatchewan River as it cuts through town, so if you're booked in for the night and fancy a stroll before the sun goes down, take a walk along the interpretive trails at Police Point Park.
Wander the historic downtown, lit with gas lamps when evening comes on, after catching up on Medicine Hat history at the Medicine Hat Museum & Art Gallery.
Red Rock Coulee, an easy drive from Medicine Hat, is a sprawling site dotted with red sandstone formations and panoramic views of the prairie. If you don't have your little house here on the prairie then get in the mood with a trip to Echo Dale Farm, on the South Saskatchewan River. Period costumes and old farm equipment here provide a glimpse of early prairie life, far removed from the comforts of modernity. Put it all in perspective with the world's tallest tepee, just outside of Medicine Hat at the Saamis Tepee & Archaeological Site.
Medicine Hat is 164 miles southeast of Calgary and 105 miles east of Lethbridge.
