Sacred Trees of Alberta, Part 2

Last month, I began a list of “sacred” or iconic trees of Alberta, gleaned from Alberta Trees of Renown: An Honour Roll of Alberta Trees. (I just noticed this book came from my mentor, Kate’s collection.)   I’ve also been using Google Earth to locate some of the trees on Calgary’s "heritage" list, though many are just distinguished neighbourhood trees.  There may be an eventual Part 3, but for now, here’s Part 2:

 

8.     Lord’s Willow, a bay-leaf willow, planted about 1906 at the home of W.E. Lord, a Red Deer merchant.  The house has been replaced with the Willow Estates apartments (52°16'26.52"N, 113°48'18.89"W), but the tree is reportedly well-loved by locals.

9.     Spirit Island Trees:  Spirit Island on Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park http://ow.ly/hJyb30a3Axb is iconically Canadian, and the Engelmann Spruce and Lodgepole Pine trees on it seem to act as a focal point for the mountain vista beyond them. Additionally, a large lodgepole at the head of the island seems to be a “survival” tree, with the original trunk pushed over, and a newer, thicker tree arising from one of the branches.

10. Son-of-Tree-In-The-Road:  In 1947, back when National Parks meant something, the builders of the then-TransCanada Highway (now Bow Valley Parkway to Johnson’s Canyon) split the road to go around a large White Spruce.  The original tree was felled by a storm in 1984, but descendants of this tree carry on the role.  51°13'7.36"N, 115°46'25.44"W.

11.  Survival Tree, Cypress Hills:  A point of interest in Cypress Hills Provincial Park, this Lodgepole Pine fell over years ago, and the upper branches served as separate trunks off the former main stem. 49°36'48.61"N, 110° 4'44.71"W.

12.  Medicine Tree, Spruce Grove:  Another sprawling Manitoba Maple, Forestry indicated this was 29 meters long and 9.2 meters high in 1986.  Location is unclear; geocaching.ca mentions a “Medicine Tree” cache at 53° 38.936 N, 113° 51.660 W, but this may be a Diamond Willow.

13. The Sun Tree:  This 19-metre Balsam Poplar was the centre of the Indian Village at the Calgary Stampede between 1908 and 1975, just outside what is now the entrance of BMO Centre. When the site of the Indian Village was moved in 1975, the Samaritan Club of Calgary constructed Suntree Park as a Centennial project, adjacent to the now-Coca Cola Stage. Sadly, the tree is now gone, its site now a planter for other trees.

14.  High River Medicine Tree:  This iconic Black Cottonwood, featured on the town logo, was originally two trees located on a ranch just west of High River.  A branch of one tree merged with the trunk of an adjacent one about 10 feet above ground, forming an “H”.  Sacred to the Blackfoot, it fell during a windstorm in 1958. Residents salvaged part of the tree and housed it at George Lane Memorial Park, where they also built a statue commemorating the tree. 50°34'42.78"N, 113°52'35.52"W. Part of the tree is reportedly in the Museum of the Highwood.

May Events:

Note these events are listed for information purposes only. Dates and locations may be subject to change; see the source for details. If I’ve missed anyone and you’d like to add to this listing, please contact me. All times MDT.

May 1:  Beltane.

May 1, 11:00 am: First Annual Lethbridge Pagan Cultural Festival, at Galt Gardens (Stafford Drive Exit on Hwy 3).  https://www.facebook.com/LethPaganCulturalFest/

May 3, 10:33 am:  Mercury Retrograde ends.

May 4th:  Talk-Like-A-Jedi Day.

May 4:  Cinco de Cuatro, for fans of  “Arrested Development”.

May 5:  Cinco de Mayo.

May 5-7: CRLC Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Show at Vivo Centre, 11950 Country Village Link NE.  Info: http://www.crlc.ca

May 5-7:  Body, Soul, and Spirit Expo at Grey Eagle Event Centre. http://bodysoulspiritexpo.com

May 5-7, 12-14:  Servants Anonymous/Calgary Herald Book Sale at Crossroads Market.

May 6, 7:30 pm:  COGCOA Coffee Cauldron. http://www.cogcoa.ab.ca

May 7, 7:00 pm: Paranormal Pub Night at Kensington Pub, hosted by Ghost Hunt Alberta. Tickets through Eventbrite.

May 10, 3:42 pm:  Full (Flower) Moon.

May 12-14:  CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale at Calgary Curling Club.

May 13:  Uath/Hawthorn Tree Month begins, according to Robert Graves.

May 13: World Fair Trade Day. “Human Chains for Fair Trade and the Planet”. http://wfto.com
May 13, 10:00 am:  Calgary New Age Craft Market at Hillhurst-Sunnyside Community Hall.

May 14:  Mother’s Day.

May 19-22:  Gaia Gathering, the Canadian National Pagan Conference, at Clarion Hotel and Conference Centre.  http://www.gaiagathering.com

May 20-21:  Paranormal Investigation at Twin Cities Hotel, Longview, hosted by Ghost Hunt Alberta.  Tickets through Eventbrite.

May 21, 2:00 pm:  Dances with Witches. Info: Calgary Pagan Network on Facebook.

May 22: Victoria Day.

May 25, 1:44 pm:  New Moon. Uath/Hawthorn Lunar Month begins.

May 27, 7:00 pm:  Heathen Meet and Greet. Info: Calgary Heathens on Facebook.

May 27, 7:00 pm:  Paranormal Investigation at East Coulee School Museum, hosted by Ghost Hunt Alberta. Tickets through Eventbrite.