Horsethief Canyon is found northwest of the town of

Drumheller Drumheller is a town on the Red Deer River in the badlands of Central Alberta, east-central Alberta, Canada. It is northeast of Calgary and south of Stettler, Alberta, Stettler. The Drumheller portion of the Red Deer River valley, often ref ...

, in

Starland County Starland County is a municipal district located in southern Alberta, Canada. History The municipality was incorporated in 1912, and established in the current boundaries in 1943, under the name ''Municipal District of Morrin No. 277''. The na ...

in the province of

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada. It is on the east bank of the

Red Deer River The Red Deer River is a river in Alberta and a small portion of Saskatchewan, Canada. It is a major tributary of the South Saskatchewan River and is part of the larger Saskatchewan-Nelson system that empties into Hudson Bay. Red Deer River ...

, along Highway 838 (known locally as North

Dinosaur Trail The Dinosaur Trail is a circular tourist route in the province of Alberta, Canada, located in the Canadian badlands paralleling the Red Deer River on both sides, from Drumheller to the Bleriot Ferry. It is divided in two segments, with the So ...

). Both Horsethief Canyon and Horseshoe Canyon are distinctive features of the surrounding

badlands Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, m ...

of central Alberta. Although the two canyons look similar, they are separated by several kilometres and were created by different tributaries of the Red Deer River. The name "Horsethief" was given to this area because of an illegal horse trade network used in the last century. Horses being smuggled illegally between the United States and Alberta were supposedly hidden in this canyon, but the true origin of the name is not clear. Horsethief-canyon-Alberta-Canada

References

Geography of Alberta Starland County {{SouthernAlberta-geo-stub

See also

References