Coaldale is known as 'The Gem of the West!" Just 12 km from Lethbridge, Coaldale has a great reputation for their recreation facilities, and organized sporting activities. In Coaldale, Agriculture is the town's backbone. In their early years, cattle companies established large ranching operations in the area taking advantage of the nutritional native grasses. What began as a cattle-shipping point soon attracted homesteaders, and Coaldale became a major farming community. With this rapid expansion, businesses began popping up in Coaldale to serve the needs of the new agricultural industry. Coaldale remains a thriving community.Settlers began arriving in the late 1800's, being lured by the close access to rail lines for cattle shipping and ideal weather and soil conditions for agricultural products. In the early years, cattle companies located large ranching operations in the area to take advantage of the tall, nutritional, native grasses that grow on the fertile loam soils. The rail lines brought more settlers to the area and the community became the major service centre for farmers and settlers. Homesteaders found the soil was welcoming for wheat, flax, oats, rye and barley crops. As Coaldale grew, it became a modern thriving community and a centre for the shipment of cattle and agricultural products. With this growth came the central development of ancillary services. Some of Coaldale's attractions include camping, ice rinks, curling rinks, a swimming pool, as well as a beautiful sandy beach just minutes away. One of the nations' highly recognized wildlife preservation centres is The Birds of Prey Centre. The Centre is a major tourist attraction in Western Canada and is dedicated to preserving the province's wildlife heritage. The Centre's emphasis is on birds of prey and visitors can gain hands-on knowledge about owls, eagles, hawks and falcons through wildlife exhibits and active participation. The highlight of the tour is the "hawk-walk" or flying fields where free-flying demonstrations of specially trained falcons, hawks, and eagles are conducted. Today, Coaldale has a population of 6,000 people and it's land mass covers about 8 square kilometers. |