Alberta Road Trips: Millarville, Marv’s and a Really Big Rock

On a fine fall day, my friend Keoma and I headed out of Calgary for a bit of market shopping, soda sipping and rock climbing.

Millarville Farmers’ Market
Our first stop of the day was the well-known farmers’ market in Millarville. The outdoor market has a good combination of artisans and farmers/producers. My purchases included llama sausage (it was so unusual I just had to try it) and some gourmet soup from the Route 40 Soup Company.


Marv’s Classic Soda Shop
Keoma and I were both looking forward to tasting authentic sodas. I expected my soda to be similar to an ice cream float but it was pleasantly different - lighter and less sweet but still oh soooo good.

The restaurant is decorated in classic 50s diner style with lots of chrome, neon and pink vinyl. Each booth has a tabletop jukebox stocked with classic 50s music. We popped 25 cents into our jukebox and bopped as we were eating our burgers and fries. The highlight was when Marv pulled out his guitar and serenaded the customers.



The Okotoks Erratic
For the longest time I’ve wanted to visit the Okotoks Erratic, known as Big Rock. The idea that a gigantic rock is just sitting in the middle of the prairie with no other sizable rocks near it intrigued me. Although the rock wasn’t in the middle of nowhere (it’s right beside a farm), it was bigger and more impressive than I thought it would be.



The Scenery
An important part of any road trip is the scenery. And on this trip, the scenery did not disappoint. This was the perfect time of year to see the beautiful fall colours. Yellows and golds juxtaposed against the dark green of the evergreens and everything back-dropped by the mountains.



Road trips don’t get any better than this!