Brooks Aqueduct
History in the Canadian Badlands
The Brooks Aqueduct is a now defunct aqueduct built by the
irrigation division of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company during
the 1910s. The aqueduct stands approximately 8 kilometres south of
the town of Brooks, Alberta. The main section of the aqueduct spans
a 3.2 km valley at an average elevation of 20 metres. The intention
of the aqueduct was to irrigate a section of south-eastern Alberta
and proved to do so for about 30 years. In 1969, the Alberta and
Canadian governments assumed the responsibility of maintaining the
structure under the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration.
Although it was thought at first that the governments would rebuild
the aqueduct, which had been deteriorating for years, it was
ultimately shut down and was left as it was. Today it still stands
although the structure itself is no longer structurally sound and
has been fenced off since the 1970s. The aqueduct and the immediate
area surrounding it is now a Canadian National Historic Site.The
aqueduct was one of the largest irrigation projects of its time in
southern Alberta and even today, continues to serve the area with
the Bassano Dam, which was a key component of the project.
This cache is part of the Legacy Trail produced by the Canadian
Badlands Geocaching Association for the Best of the Bad Mega
Event.
The Legacy Trail
The Legacy Trail is a collection of geocaches that circles its
way over 100 miles on country roads traversing some of the most
scenic and spectacular landscape in this part of the Canadian
Badlands. A large number of caches in a variety of types, sizes and
difficulty are placed on the Trail. Every town, village and hamlet
in the Canadian Badlands has its own cache. Some caches were named
after local historic events and people, as well as celebrities who
grew up in this area. Some caches were sponsored by geocachers who
attended the Best of the Bad Mega Event. The Legacy Trail was
produced by the Canadian Badlands Geocaching Association for the
Best of the Bad Mega Event.
The Canadian Badlands
The Canadian Badlands in Alberta are like no other place on
earth, home to the world's most extensive dinosaur bonebeds,
badlands and hoodoos, and a world-class museum that shelters a 75
million-year-old legacy. The region is rich in culturally and
historically significant sites that tell the story of the First
Nations people and early settlers, and of a complex and diverse
modern society that is still deeply rooted in the spirit of the
frontier.
