If Canmore wasn't so expensive, I think it would be a great place to live. I'm more comfortable at higher altitudes than at lower ones, and as you say, the views are unbelievable.
But if I ever win the lottery some day and the border regulations between our countries become sane again... who knows?
One of the views out that way is Lake Minnewanka. I've never been there in the summer, but on Mother's Day weekend in May 2004 a friend brought me up there for some sightseeing. The lake was still over 95% frozen (open and slushy on the shore; not safe to walk on the ice), the air was chilly, but warm enough that my fall jacket was good enough, and the silence amid all that ice and snow and trees was just so incredibly relaxing.
Lake Minnewanka was famous for awhile thanks to the Lake Minnewanka Squirrel. Yes, that photo is genuine; nothing was photoshopped.
I'd have had to look it up as well. Actually, I hadn't realized there were so many arts events there. That would make it even more of the kind of place I'd like to live.That "Big Head" thing is creepy... I was going to ask you who or what it was supposed to represent until I just read the article to find out it was a reference to the name of the townthat would've been embarrassing.
Canmore is right next door to a national park, which is why it has a low population (along with a huge problem with affordable housing). It's an environmentally sensitive area, so there's been a kind of push-pull issue with how many people can live there. They need people to work during the tourist season, but like Banff and Jasper, there's not enough affordable housing to put them. Some people commute from Calgary, but a lot can't do that. And because of the environmental restrictions, there's a limit to how much more expansion will be allowed.
