Morley is a community in the middle of the Stoney Nakoda Indian Reserve, west of Calgary. It straddles both sides of the Trans-Canada and extends north to highway 1A and Ghost Lake and west to the Kananaskis River and to the slopes right below Mount Yamnuska on the north.
Signs along the Trans-Canada Highway now show “Mini Thni“, the Stoney name for the community.
Morely Attractions
Bow Valley Provincial Park – Kananaskis Country
North of Highway #1, toward Mount Yamnuska
Visitor Information Centre is at Barrier Lake on Highway 40, south of #1
Bow Valley Provincial Park is a provincial park located in Alberta, Canada. Established in 1959 in the arch of Bow River, at the confluence with Kananaskis River, the park is one park of many within the Kananaskis Country park system
Chiniki Cultural Centre
Highway 1 (Exit 131)
Morley, Alberta
403-881-2056
The Chiniki Cultural Centre features a series of Cultural Exhibits, a Gallery Shop and a Tipi Encampment for outdoor experiences. The exhibits showcase artifacts donated by Nation members, while in the Gallery Shop, visitors can purchase locally crafted art, jewelry and handiwork items. During the spring and summer months, guests are invited to participate in experiential guided tours, workshops and interpretive programs outside in the Tipi Encampment.
Stoney Indian Park
on Highway 1A, 64 km west of Calgary
(403) 881-3939
Teepees, interpretive hiking trails, fishing and camping facilities. Learn about the 1882 fur trading post, teepee rings, and medicine circles. You can sometimes see buffalo from a park viewpoint.
Morley Church
on Highway 1A, 48 km west of Calgary
This 1875 structure stands on an open plain overlooking the Bow River, on First Nations land. It was built by the Methodist preacher Rev. George McDougall and his son Rev. John McDougall. It is now an historic & tourist site, not an operating congregation.
Nakoda Lodge
Highway 1A, just W of Morley
(403)-881-3949
Full conference centre in this lodge building complete with accommodation. You can canoe and fish on Hector Lake. Sunday brunch is offered year round.
Stoney Nakoda Resort Casino
888 Nakoda Way, Morley T0L 1N0
Hwy #1 & Hwy #40,
403-881-2830, 1-888-862-5632
This 4000 square foot casino, opened in 2008, has 300 slot machines, 4 poker tables, 1 roulette table, 8 blackjack tables and baccarrat. The resort has casual dining in the Peaks Cafe, buffet dining at The Ridge Buffet and the Sidelines Lounge sports cafe. It also has an RV campground with 35 sites and full sani-dump and water fill stations, with camping in June, July and August.
Scott Lake Hill
Scott Lake Hill is about 37 km west of Calgary city limits (and 70km east of Banff), and is the high point before the highway descends westbound into the Bow River valley lands of the Stoney First Nation. This hill rises 1240 (or 1244 m by some) above sea level. There is a rest stop on the westbound side, where you can stop and take a picture of the sign, take a short hike to Scott Lake (head northeast through the forest), and take in the view east and west from this point. Scott Lake Hill is correctly the highest point east of the Rockies, not the highest point on the Trans-Canada.