The best family-friendly hikes and walks in Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park

Waverley Ranch House ruins are historically known as the Waverley Chimney, as the chimney is most of what remains. The ruins sit fenced off on a corner of the Bowbend Trail. The ruins are from a ranch from 1896 where immigrants from England settled here. When building their homestead, the Cockbaines mistakenly constructed the ranch house and outbuildings on the wrong parcel of land, so the government overlooked the error and officially granted them the title to the property. Today, what remains is the chimney of the original 1896 homestead, and to prevent vandalism or destruction from roaming cows, the area is completely fenced off, but easy to see from the paved path.

This small wetland pond has a short wooden pier with a bench to relax on. There are also informational plaques here about the habitat of the surrounding grasslands, the movement of water and the pond.

This spur trail takes hikers 300 meters off the main McPherson-Trail to a dead end at a viewpoint on one of the hilltops of Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park's rolling fields, overlooking grassland and close by neighbourhoods.

Named in honour of Cochrane's famed mountaineer and artist Glen Boles, this scenic pathway traces along the banks of the Bow River. This is a multi-use, family friendly trail that can be taken as an out and back hike or combined with other trails for loops, or longer excursions around Cochrane.

The River Avenue Bridge is a truss bridge that spans about 200 meters over the Bow River, carrying pedestrians over the waterway with scenic views below.

There are parking lots on both ends of this long paved section of the Trans Canada Trail where dogs can run off-leash. There is access to the river but not a lot of shade, so come prepared.

The Riverfront Park trail follows the banks of the Bow River through Riverfront Park in Cochrane. This easy paved pathway runs beside the fast-moving river and offers frequent views of the water as it winds through the valley. Benches and small viewpoints along the route make it a pleasant place to pause and watch the river, while the path connects with Cochrane’s wider trail network for longer walks along the Bow River corridor.

This section of the riverside path along the Bow River offers a quiet place to pause beside the water. A bench here looks out over the broad river as it flows past Cochrane, making it a pleasant spot to sit and take in the view. The Bow River is known for its clear, glacier-fed water flowing from the Rocky Mountains. While people sometimes wade along the shoreline in summer, the current can be strong and the water stays very cold year-round, so entering the river should be done with caution.