Crowsnest Pass is situated in the Canadian Rockies, between Alberta and British Columbia. While the jagged peaks are cinematic in themselves, the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass has a history straight out of the movies. In fact, it’s served as a movie set for unnamed frontier towns in the past. Coal miners, prohibition-era bootleggers, train robbers, and gold prospectors make up the stories of Crowsnest Pass – stories that bring the “Wild West” vividly to life.

Today, the mountain area's population is distributed among the four main communities that banded together to form the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass. The Town of Blairmore is one of the largest communities in Crowsnest Pass, and acts as a hub for the surrounding communities of Bellevue, Frank and Coleman.

Residents of Crowsnest Pass enjoy the best of mountain living, with all essential modern amenities. The municipality is connected by a public transit system, as well as a multi-use, non-motorized trail network that runs through Crowsnest Pass. It’s a peaceful area and one that’s much less well known to tourists than popular sites like Jasper and Banff.

Individuals and families have access to several sports fields, parks and playgrounds throughout the municipality, as well as a local arena for hockey and skating lessons, a six-sheet curling rink, an indoor climbing wall, outdoor pool, and skate park. Golfers can tee off at the local 18-hole golf and country club. The local gym keeps a regular schedule of open gym time, as well as group classes that include adult education, yoga, stretch-and-tone, and Zumba, with the option of childcare provided on-site.

Nestled in the mountains, residents of Crowsnest Pass have the perfect home base for outdoor activities year-round. There’s an active mountain biking club, who maintain a mountain bike skills park with obstacles for riders of various skill levels, as well as a number of trails. There are also nearby trails for other activities, including horseback riding, quadding, or dirt biking, with snowmobiling and cross-country skiing popular in the winter.

The Pass Powderkeg ski hill is the local destination for downhill skiing and snowboarding; this family-friendly facility offers affordable hill access for families, children and youth. Skiers and snowboarders that want to tackle other slopes are just 55 kilometres to Castle Mountain Resort and 70 kilometres away from Fernie Alpine Resort.

Learn more about living and working in Crowsnest Pass on the municipality’s website, Facebook or X pages.

Video courtesy of the Rural Health Professions Action Plan (RhPAP)