Okotoks is just 23 kilometres south of Calgary and is a thriving bedroom community for Calgary. Okotoks is named for the Blackfoot word “okatok,” which means rock. The town’s major tourist attraction is an 18,000-ton rock that was carried over ten thousand years ago by the Ice Age glaciers from Jasper area to its its current spot. It sits in an open field about 10 minutes west of town, on the northside of Highway 7 (Lat=50.7060, Long=114.0762 ).
The pretty Sheep River runs through town, which has a visitor information centre in the renovated CPR train station. Okotoks’ 9,000 residents are Alberta’s fastest growing community and also the youngest community in Canada with 85 per cent of the residents being under the age of 44. Okotoks also has three golf courses: D’Arcy Ranch, Heritage Pointe, and Cottonwood.
Okotoks Events
Annual events include the Antique & Art Flea Market (late May), Annual Youth Festival (mid June), Okotoks Sports Days (mid-June), Okotoks Pro Rodeo (late August)
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Okotoks Attractions
The Station
53 North Railway St (PO Box 20), Okotoks, Alberta T1S 1K1.
The town’s visitor centre is located in a renovated Canadian Pacific Railway train station. It is open summertime: Tuesday to Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. in May, and 8:30 am to 5 pm.