Two stops, not one
Horseshoe Canyon and the hoodoos get lumped together constantly in trip write-ups, as if they were a single attraction with one parking lot and one short walk. They aren’t. They’re two separate roadside stops on opposite sides of Drumheller, each with its own pull-off, its own short trail, and its own character, and you drive between them. This page treats them as the pair of stops they actually are, and leaves the town of Drumheller and the Royal Tyrrell Museum to their own pages — they’re worth a visit, but they’re a different kind of stop entirely, with air conditioning, washrooms and a gift shop, none of which describes either site covered here.
Both sites sit well outside the Rocky Mountain national park system this whole guide otherwise revolves around. There is no Parks Canada pass, no entrance gate, and no relationship at all to the fee structure covering Banff National Park or its neighbours — see our Parks Canada pass guide for how that system works everywhere it actually applies, because it’s worth knowing what doesn’t apply here just as much as what does.
Horseshoe Canyon: the rim and the descent
Horseshoe Canyon is a wide, curved gash in the prairie, several hundred metres across and maybe 30 to 40 metres deep, with banded layers of grey, brown and rust-coloured rock exposed along its walls. From the parking area off the highway on the west side of Drumheller, a short path leads to a rim viewpoint that most visitors treat as the whole stop: a few minutes out, a look into the canyon, a few photos, back to the car.
That undersells it. Unmarked but well-worn trails drop from the rim down into the canyon floor, where you can walk among the eroded formations and look back up at the layered walls from below rather than only from above. There’s no single official route and no facilities down there — this is a walk on packed clay and loose scree, not a maintained park trail with signage at every junction. Footing gets slick and genuinely hazardous after rain, when the clay turns to something closer to grease, so treat wet weather as a reason to stick to the rim rather than push on down. In dry conditions, expect 45 minutes to an hour if you descend into the canyon and walk around, or closer to 15 minutes if you only visit the rim viewpoint.
There’s no shade anywhere in the canyon and no water available on site. In July and August, the exposed rock and pale clay reflect heat back at you in a way that makes the canyon floor feel considerably hotter than the air temperature would suggest, and there’s no realistic escape from the sun until you’re back at the car. Bring more water than feels necessary and treat this as a stop for cooler parts of the day rather than a midday plan.
The hoodoos: don’t climb them
A short drive further along the valley, on the opposite side of Drumheller from Horseshoe Canyon, a cluster of hoodoos rises from the badlands floor. These are the classic mushroom-shaped pillars the region is known for — narrow stalks of soft sandstone and mudstone topped by a harder cap rock that has protected the column beneath it from the same erosion wearing away everything around it. Given enough time, every hoodoo eventually loses its cap and collapses; the ones standing today are a snapshot of an ongoing, one-way process, not a permanent installation.
A boardwalk with interpretive signage runs along the base of the formations, and this is the only place you’re meant to be. Climbing on the hoodoos themselves is explicitly against the rules on site, and for a reason that matters beyond etiquette: foot traffic accelerates the exact erosion that is already ending these formations’ lifespan, and it has toppled other hoodoos and rock features across the badlands over the years. Stay on the boardwalk, keep to the marked viewing areas, and photograph the formations from below rather than from on top of them. Twenty to thirty minutes covers the boardwalk at an unhurried pace; there isn’t a longer version of this stop the way there is at Horseshoe Canyon.
Like the canyon, the hoodoos site has essentially no shade and no water for sale. It’s a short visit by design, which helps — there’s less reason to linger in full sun than at a site with a longer trail.
| Horseshoe Canyon | The hoodoos | |
|---|---|---|
| Location relative to Drumheller | West side, toward Calgary | East side, along the valley road |
| What it is | Wide canyon with rim and descent trails | Boardwalk past a cluster of pillar formations |
| Time needed | 15 min (rim only) to about 1 hour (with descent) | 20 to 30 minutes |
| Shade | None | None |
| Water for sale | No | No |
| Washrooms | Limited or seasonal | Limited or none |
| Can you climb it | Trails into the canyon, yes | No — stay on the boardwalk |
| Parks Canada pass | Not required | Not required |
Getting there from Banff — and why this isn’t really a Banff day trip
Both sites sit near Drumheller, on the eastern side of Alberta well away from the mountains. From Banff, that’s roughly 300 kilometres and about 3 hours of driving each way, almost entirely via Calgary and the Trans-Canada and Highway 9 corridor east of the city. That makes a there-and-back visit from Banff a 6-hour driving day before you’ve spent any time at either site — long enough that our guide to what actually is and isn’t a realistic day trip from Banff lists this pairing among the outings that get oversold as an easy add-on.
If you’re staying in Banff for your whole trip, this works far better as a stop on the way out of the mountains — timed around your drive back to Calgary and the airport — than as a dedicated round trip squeezed into one day. If you’re basing part of your trip in Calgary itself, the drive to Drumheller is more reasonable, at roughly 1 hour 45 minutes each way, and the whole outing including both roadside stops and the Royal Tyrrell Museum fits comfortably into a single day. Our Drumheller and Royal Tyrrell day trip guide covers that fuller itinerary in detail.
There is no public transit connection to either site, no shuttle, and no tour operator running trips out of Banff that we can point you to — this is self-drive territory, full stop. If a rental car isn’t part of your plan, this is one of the destinations on this site you should probably skip rather than try to reach some other way; see getting around without a car for what’s realistic and what isn’t.
No park pass, different rules entirely
It’s worth being direct about this because the mistake is common and the consequence of getting it wrong is just wasted worry, not a fine: neither Horseshoe Canyon nor the hoodoos requires a Parks Canada pass, a Kananaskis Conservation Pass, or any other permit. Both are provincial or municipal roadside attractions with free parking and free access, entirely separate from the fee systems covering Banff and the other Rocky Mountain national parks. If you’ve budgeted for a park pass on this leg of your trip, you can cross it off your list — the only cost here is fuel, and possibly museum admission if you add the Royal Tyrrell.
Heat, sun and what to bring
The single biggest practical issue at both sites is the complete absence of shade combined with limited or no facilities. There’s no tree cover at either stop, minimal shelter from wind or sun, and no guarantee of a working water fountain or an open washroom, particularly outside peak summer staffing hours. In July and August, midday temperatures on exposed rock and gravel routinely feel hotter than the air temperature reported for the region, and there’s no shaded rest point to retreat to partway through either walk.
Pack accordingly:
- More water than feels necessary — at least a litre per person for the pair of stops, more in peak summer heat
- Sun protection: hat, sunscreen, sunglasses; there is nowhere to hide from direct sun at either site
- Sturdy footwear with real grip, especially if you’re descending into Horseshoe Canyon, where the surface is loose scree and slick clay after rain
- A full tank of fuel before you leave Drumheller — services thin out quickly once you’re on the connecting roads between the two stops
- Snacks and any food you’ll want; don’t assume either site has a concession stand
Morning and early evening are meaningfully more comfortable than midday, and also better for photography — low-angle light picks out the striped layers in the canyon walls and the texture of the hoodoo formations far better than flat overhead sun does. See photographing lakes: phone versus camera for photography basics that apply just as well to badlands rock as to mountain lakes, even though the subject here is drier and considerably hotter to stand around in.
What this trip costs you back in Banff
Because this pairing sits so far from Banff, the honest way to think about it is opportunity cost: a full day spent driving to and from the badlands is a full day not spent on anything closer to home. If a 6-hour round trip from Banff doesn’t appeal once you’ve done the math, there’s no shortage of alternatives that use a comparable amount of time without leaving the mountains. Consider a guided day trip covering Lake Louise and Banff’s classic viewpoints covers a similar chunk of a day without the long highway drive east.
Travellers who haven’t yet done the parkway might get more out of a guided Icefields Parkway tour from Calgary, which at least spends its driving time inside the mountains rather than crossing prairie to reach them. And if the Columbia Icefield is still on your list, a discounted Columbia Icefield outing is a comparable use of a full day that stays inside Banff and Jasper national parks the entire time.
None of that is a knock against Horseshoe Canyon and the hoodoos — they’re a genuinely different landscape from anything in the Rockies, and worth seeing if badlands scenery interests you. It’s just a different kind of day than most of what fills a Banff-based itinerary, and worth weighing against the budget and time you’d otherwise spend closer to the mountains. Waterton Lakes and Edmonton get overestimated the same way — see what actually is and isn’t realistic for a single day out of Banff before you plan around any of them.
Combining the two stops with Drumheller
Most visitors treat Horseshoe Canyon and the hoodoos as bookends around a visit to Drumheller itself — the Royal Tyrrell Museum in particular, which houses one of the world’s larger dinosaur fossil collections and deserves two to three hours on its own. Logistically, that looks like: one roadside stop on the way into town, time in Drumheller and the museum, the second roadside stop on the way back out, in whichever order matches your direction of travel.
Neither Horseshoe Canyon nor the hoodoos needs to anchor the day — they’re short, worthwhile detours bookending a longer stop in town, not the main event themselves. For the fuller version of that itinerary, including museum hours and what else is worth stopping for around Drumheller, see our dedicated Drumheller and Royal Tyrrell day trip guide.
Horseshoe Canyon and the hoodoos: frequently asked questions
Do I need a Parks Canada pass to visit Horseshoe Canyon or the hoodoos?
No. Both sites are provincial or municipal roadside stops near Drumheller, entirely outside the Banff, Jasper, Yoho and Kootenay national park system, so no Parks Canada pass applies here at all. Don’t confuse this with the Kananaskis Conservation Pass either — that’s a separate Alberta provincial fee that also has nothing to do with the badlands.
Are Horseshoe Canyon and the hoodoos the same place?
No, they’re two distinct stops on opposite sides of Drumheller, several kilometres apart, and you drive between them. Horseshoe Canyon is a wide, layered canyon you look into and can walk down; the hoodoos are a cluster of mushroom-shaped rock pillars you view from a boardwalk. Treat them as two separate short visits, not one combined site.
Can I climb on the hoodoos?
No, and signs on site make this explicit. Climbing on the hoodoos accelerates the erosion that is slowly destroying them and has toppled other formations in the badlands over the decades. Stay on the boardwalk and marked paths, and photograph them from the viewing areas instead.
Is there shade, water or washrooms at either site?
Very little. Horseshoe Canyon has a small parking area with limited or seasonal facilities and almost no shade once you’re on the canyon trails; the hoodoos site is a boardwalk with essentially no shade and no water for sale. Bring more water than you think you’ll need, especially between June and August, and don’t count on either site for a proper washroom stop.
How long do I need for both stops?
Budget 45 minutes to an hour at Horseshoe Canyon if you’re doing more than the rim viewpoint, and 20 to 30 minutes at the hoodoos boardwalk. With driving between them and into Drumheller, 2 to 3 hours covers both comfortably without rushing.
Is this a realistic day trip from Banff?
It’s a long one. Banff to Drumheller is roughly 300 km and about 3 hours each way, mostly via Calgary, so a there-and-back day from Banff means 6 hours of driving before you’ve spent any time at either site. Most visitors do better basing this trip out of Calgary, or accepting a very long day if starting from Banff.
What’s the best time of day to visit in summer?
Early morning or the last couple of hours before sunset. Both sites face full sun with no real shade, and July and August afternoons on exposed rock and gravel routinely feel hotter than the air temperature suggests. Morning and evening light also does more for photos of the layered canyon walls and hoodoo formations than flat midday sun.
Can I combine this with the Royal Tyrrell Museum?
Yes, and most people do — the museum is in Drumheller itself, a short drive from both sites. Treat Horseshoe Canyon and the hoodoos as roadside stops on the way in or out, and give the museum its own block of time rather than trying to rush all three into an hour or two.
