Due to the global pandemic, it has been hard getting together my family, so the trip to Alix was twofold; we would get to see my family and also shoot a town we had on our list of towns. It was a relatively calm but overcast day, with good shooting light and almost no wind so a fantastic day to fly.
Alix is situated in central Alberta just a short forty-minute drive northeast of Red Deer. It is a relatively quiet town situated on the shores of Alix Lake. Where, if local legend is to be believed, there lives a large alligator. There are conflicting stories about what lurks at the bottom of the lake, some believe it is a prehistoric creature, some believe it is a large fish like a sturgeon while others believe it was just a log that finally floated free. Either way, the town has adopted a mascot named ‘Alix-gator’ to honour what a lot of people consider to be a figment of overactive imaginations.
As of 2016, there are 734 people living in Alix down 11% from 2011. The community still boasts a PBR event with a prize purse of $1500. Of course, due to the pandemic, it was cancelled in 2020 and “postponed” for 2021.
On the local arena and home to the Alix figure skating club, there is a sign boasting about two figure skaters, Kristy and Lisa Sargeant who went on to win several medals. The town was also home to one of the Famous Five, Dr. Irene Parlby.
While this is all nice the town has not escaped tragedy. The Meadow Creamery burned to the ground in 1976. It had been founded in 1916 by Mr. Niels A. Larson and at the time of the fire employed 16 people and was producing 8.5 million pounds of butter a year. The building had just been renovated to the tune of $300,000 and was valued at $1 million dollars.
Another terrible fire struck the community, this time the local grocery store. This one was actually before the Creamery fire it happened in the fall of 1972. The fire was believed to have started by the newly installed gas furnace. It was a complete loss and a huge blow to the local economy as the store had stood for almost 70 years at the time of the blaze.
Alix is a friendly small community to explore on a lazy summer day. There is a 6 km walking trail along the lakeshore, Haunted Lakes Golf course is just 2 km outside the village. For the sweet tooth, there are Sweet Crumbs Cakery and YaYa’s Treats and Eats. Stop by for a visit and enjoy the pleasant small town Alberta atmosphere of Alix.