Big Rock
The "Big Rock" is located 7 km west of Okotoks, Alberta. Okotoks means "big rock", in the Blackfoot language. Weighing in at 18,000 tons, and measuring 40 metres by 18 metres by 9 metres high, it is the largest glacial erratic in North America.

Erratics are boulders and rocks left after the retreat of glaciers. Big Rock, originating in the Jasper area, was carried along by glacial ice and deposited near Okotoks during the retreat of the last ice age, approximately 10,000 years ago.

Big Rock has First Nations pictographs near its top. Around its bottom are depressions, created by Plains Bison, who used Big Rock as a rubbing stone.

In 1978, the province of Alberta declared Big Rock as a Provincial Historic Site, the first natural feature to receive the designation.

The Wild Rose of Alberta
The beautiful wild rose, which is used throughout our site, is the floral emblem of the province of Alberta. It is found in abundance throughout Alberta's forests, grasslands, and mountains. It is reddish-pink in colour, open-faced, sweet scented, and has a prickly stem.

First Nations peoples would eat the rose's hips, flowers, and leaves when other food was scarce. The hips in particular, are an important food source, high in vitamins A and C. They remain on the stem throughout the winter, providing food for local wildlife.