Tacansina Ranch…

or what we call 'the ranch.' Co-designed by DESIGNhaus. It is a beautifully designed ranch house with an equally stunning view of the mountains of Banff National Park. Set on 480 acres of foothills between Calgary and Banff/Canmore, the ranch sleeps up to 12 people. This is our hiking, skiing and adventure basecamp. It is also a unique venue for corporate retreats, yoga retreats, and artist retreats.

THE RANCH HISTORY:
According to the Cochrane Historical Society, Tacansina Ranch was first created in 1889 and was known back then as 'The Ripley.' The first family that owned it raised Galloway and Hereford Cattle in the valley and had built a house, a stable and lime kiln by what they called 'Ripley Creek', now known as Baymar Creek, which empties into Ghost River. Old First Nations trails cross Tacansina Ranch as well as old and current wildlife trails. When the Palliser expedition came from the north in 1858 to go through the Banff area, they crossed Deadman's Hill, which essentially is the hill or ridge that our house and our cabin are situated. It was called Deadman's Hill because of a First Nation story of a major battle along the Ghost River (Formerly Deadman's River). Axel and Joanne Steinmann purchased the ranch in the mid 1980's, spending weekends in the teepee that they erected before Axel built a beautiful handcrafted log cabin. The modern chalet was started in 2005, and finished by 2013. 

The space: 
You will not find another ranch house designed like this. It has massive log beams holding up the roof and floor to ceiling windows on the south and west sides. The ranch house itself is actually two buildings (main house and the guest house) connected with a large outdoor covered patio space that we call the breezeway.

The main house is a fully open space with logs arranged to form 2 adjacent hexagons, 12 inch thick cement walls that encase floor-to-ceiling windows across the south and west sides of the structure. It has a large wood-burning fireplace in addition to the in-floor heating to create a cozy space when you relax on the couches or the murphy bed. The kitchen is fully functional, with the centre piece of it being a 15 foot long island. The main house bathroom is stunning with a huge bathtub and shower area and tile throughout.

The guest house contains 4 bedrooms with a total of 2 king-size beds (that can be separated to be 2 single beds each), 1 queen-sized bed and 4 single beds. It has warm cork flooring, its own 1/2 bath and high ceilings.

Around the house you will find a rundlestone patio on the southwest side with a firepit and seating around it. Between the two buildings is the 800 square foot breezeway, with a 16 foot long handcrafted wood table with benches (created using timber from the property), and patio heaters. On the south and southwest side is our 4500 square foot grass lawn that is very kid-friendly.