Alberta covers a massive area with diversity that may surprise anyone unfamiliar with the province’s unique geography.
From mountains in the west to prairies in the east, badlands in the south, and boreal forests in the north, Alberta covers more land than many countries. Even if you think you know all the quirky geographic facts about this place, there are probably a few that will still surprise you.
Here are some Alberta geographic facts that’ll have you checking a map twice.
The sheer size of it
Alberta may not be the biggest province in Canada, but in the world’s second-largest country, that’s still pretty massive. As the fourth-largest province, Alberta spans 661,000 square kilometres, which is comparable to the size of Texas and more than twice that of Italy.
Its forested public lands alone cover over half the province, roughly 35 million hectares—about the size of Germany.
There are more cows than people here
Yes, Alberta literally has more cows than people; make of that what you will. According to the latest estimates from Statistics Canada, the province is home to 5.1 million cows and 4.9 million people. It’s safe to say that we won’t be beating the cowboy allegations anytime soon.
Most of us live nowhere near the US border
While nearly 90% of Canadians reportedly live within 150 miles (241 kilometres) of the US border, most Albertans do not. Calgary is over 300 kilometres away, and Edmonton sits a whopping 600 kilometres north of the border. In contrast, other major Canadian cities like Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal are packed much closer to the border.
We have more than one mountain range
Everyone’s familiar with the stunning Rocky Mountains in Alberta, but not as many know that the province actually has two mountain ranges. The Caribou Mountains are a large round plateau in a remote part of northern Alberta about 700 metres above the surrounding lowlands, with the highest point reaching 1,030 metres.
A park that’s bigger than Switzerland
The magnificent Wood Buffalo National Park is a wonder of geography in its own right. At 44,807 square kilometres, it’s the largest national park in the world and even bigger than Switzerland. Everything in this enormous park is supersized — it’s also home to one of the world’s largest freshwater deltas and the largest beaver dam on the planet.
We’re home to Canada’s highest-altitude settlement
Most Canadians live at much lower altitudes, but one Alberta spot sits high above the rest. At 1,650 metres above sea level, the hamlet of Lake Louise is Canada’s highest-altitude settlement.
Alberta is home to six UNESCO heritage sites
Alberta’s diverse landscape and rich history stretching back tens of thousands of years have paved the way for six UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the province. These include Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, Dinosaur Provincial Park, the Canadian Rocky Mountain National Parks, Wood Buffalo National Park, Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, and Writing-on-Stone/Áísínai´pi.