Drumheller rewards a slow trip. Most visitors come for a single day from Calgary, which is enough to see the Royal Tyrrell Museum and a viewpoint or two, but three days lets you see the valley properly, cover the places that day-trippers skip and still have time to sit on a bench and watch the light change on the rock. This plan divides the area into three natural pieces: the town and the museum, the loop along the river to the northwest, and the old coal road to the southeast. You will need a car, because the sights are spread along the valley, but the drives are short and scenic.
Day one: the museum and the town
Start at the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, about six kilometres northwest of town on Highway 838. Arrive when it opens, because the galleries are quietest in the first hour, and allow at least two hours, or three if you have children or a taste for fossils. Walk the Badlands Interpretive Trail afterwards if the weather is dry. Come back to town for lunch and spend the afternoon on foot. Climb the 106 stairs inside the World's Largest Dinosaur, which takes under an hour, then wander to the Badlands Historical Centre, which gives the human story behind the fossils. If there is time before dinner, walk the river pathways. Dinner is best kept simple and close to your hotel, since the next morning starts early.
Day two: the Dinosaur Trail loop
The North Dinosaur Trail is a scenic loop that follows the Red Deer River northwest of town. Begin at the Homestead Antique Museum, a large collection of Victorian and Edwardian antiques on the way out, if it is open in the season. Continue to the Bleriot Ferry, a small cable ferry that has crossed the river for more than a century and runs only in the warmer months. On the far side, stop at Horsethief Canyon, which you view from the rim, and at the Orkney Viewpoint, a bench and a long valley view. If the ferry is not running, you can reach the viewpoints by road and return the way you came. Add Horseshoe Canyon on the way back toward the Calgary side of town if you want a proper walk down to the canyon floor, and finish with a sunset at whichever viewpoint you like best.
Day three: the coal road
Spend the last day on the southeast side of the valley, where the story is about the miners rather than the dinosaurs. Stop at the Hoodoos first, because the light is good in the morning and the paths are short. Continue to East Coulee and choose between the Atlas Coal Mine, which is a seasonal National Historic Site with train rides and tours, and the East Coulee School Museum, which fills in the community side. Both are worth it if you have the time. On the way back, cross the Rosedale Suspension Bridge and drive the winding road across eleven bridges to Wayne for lunch at the Last Chance Saloon. Check opening hours before you drive out, because this is a small business in a very small place. The Little Church, which seats only a handful of people, is a good last photograph on the way into town.
Adjusting the plan
The best plan depends on the season. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday through the cooler months and has longer hours in summer, so check its calendar before choosing which day to spend there. Some sights are seasonal, notably the Atlas Coal Mine, the Bleriot Ferry, the Homestead Antique Museum and the Orkney Viewpoint, and in winter you should treat them as stops to confirm before you go. In July, the Badlands Passion Play adds an evening option on weekends, and you may want to swap a day to fit it. If it rains, move the museum and the indoor stops forward, and leave the viewpoints and the coulee walks for a dry spell, as the clay turns slippery.
Where to base yourself
For a three-day stay, a downtown hotel lets you walk to dinner and to Tyra, which saves driving on the evenings when you are tired. Families who want a pool will prefer the hotels on 2nd Street, and anyone driving a trailer or travelling with a dog should look at the motels along North Dinosaur Trail or Highway 9. All of them are within a short drive of the main sights. Book early for July weekends and school holidays, when the valley fills up.
Practical reminders
Fill the tank before you leave town, carry water and layers, and give yourself margins on winter days, when daylight is short and the road to Wayne can be icy. Respect the fragile hoodoos and canyon slopes by staying on the paths, and treat private property in the small hamlets with care. Three days is enough to see the headlines and the quiet places in between, and it leaves the sense that you have seen the valley rather than just passed through it.
