Canmore Winter Carnival

The Winter Carnival takes place from the 26th . The Carnival is to celebrate the best parts of our unique winter lifestyle. With two weeks of indoor and outdoor events and experiences, the Canmore Winter Carnival is a favourite for locals and visitors alike. Enjoy ice carving competitions, kids’ ice carving , skating parties, street hockey, log sawing competitions, the always entertaining pooch parade, art crawls and the popular Snowy Owl Kid N’ Mutt races. Many of the events centre around the Canmore Civic Centre Plaza on 7th Avenue.  A real “must see” is the Canmore ice sculptures. These are placed in front of the Civic building and remain there for some time. Their delicate and stunning designs leave you wondering just how do the artists get such fine detail into the sculptures. You can also cast your vote for the winning design.

Kid ‘N’ Mutt Races Canmore. This event is sponsored by Snowy Owl dog sled tours and is a fun family event held at the Nordic Centre in Canmore. This is a very popular event and you can cheer on your favourite kid and mutt combo. There are two categories, the “one dog and one kid” race. These races are split up into four age groups. Then it’s time for the parents to man or woman up and take on the “one parent and one child” challenge. Naturally you will need a bit more than one dog for this event so four dogs are permitted on the track. You can spectate for free, but if you wish to take part there is an entrance fee and you can get more details from Snowy Owl Dog sledding tours either by going into the office on 10th street Canmore or by emailing: [email protected].

There is also a Log Sawing Competition. Maybe this doesn’t sound that exciting, but once these teams get going you can see what a physical challenge it really is. No electric saws here! just muscle power and technique. As always the Canmore pond has a part to play in the festivities so don’t forget to bring your skates so you don’t miss out on all the fun. Once you have depleted your energy you can take part in less strenuous exercise and enjoy some of the great food on offer, throughout the town. Whether you want fine dining or a quick snack there is something for everyone. Later in the month of February there is Canmore’s Food & Beverage Week. Participating restaurants will be serving up their special dish of the day featuring a common ingredient.