🌾 Your Kneehill County Farm Circle
An extraordinary agritourism adventure
Seven stops. One rich agricultural county. Alpacas, bison, berries, gardens and coffee that tells a story, all within an easy weekend loop between Calgary and Edmonton.
Summer is the perfect season for agritourism, and Kneehill County, with its deep agricultural roots, offers no shortage of farm experiences. Farm visits, animals to meet, local markets to shop, hidden gems to uncover: this pocket of central Alberta has a lot to offer.
Nestled between the Canadian Badlands and the QEII corridor linking Calgary and Edmonton, Kneehill County is a wonderful home base for an agritourism escape. Pick a weekend, go on your own or bring friends and family, and make some unforgettable memories.
Here are seven places to build your farm circle around.
Seven stops worth the drive
Hours and offerings shift through the season, so always check before you go. A quick call or a look at their social media saves a long drive.
6West Coffee
📍 Farm roastery outside Three Hills
Coffee lovers, this one is for you. Jamie and Jill moved back to his hometown of Three Hills to take over the family farm, and built a roastery in the farm shop. What started with beans in a popcorn popper is now small-batch, hand-roasted, ethically sourced coffee, with each origin carrying its own flavour and story. It is a farm business through and through, which is exactly why farmers being paid properly matters so much to them.
Good to know: 6West is a working farm roastery rather than a drop-in café, so order online, or ask for their beans at local shops. Worth packing a bag for the drive home.
DNA Gardens
📍 35344 Range Road 230, Elnora, just over the county line
If you want the full farm experience in one place, this is it. Dave and Arden's 25-acre orchard grows 19 varieties of saskatoons plus ten other fruits, and what does not get picked becomes award-winning fruit wine and spirits. Add wine tours through the orchard, the Bootlegger Café, a plant nursery, nature trails, camping in the orchard, high tea, long-table dinners and field trips. There is genuinely something here for everyone. DNA Gardens is a proud Agritourism Alberta member, and it shows in how well they welcome visitors.
Good to know: open May through September. Wine tours, high tea and camping book up, so check the summer schedule and reserve online before you drive out.
Farm Basket
📍 408 Main Street, Three Hills
A hidden gem on Main Street: a farmers' market with the everyday accessibility of a corner store. Fresh produce, locally sourced meats, home-cooked ready meals, and shelves full of products from local makers: honey, pyrogies, sausage, ice cream, seasonal fruit. This is where you taste Kneehill County, and where you find the gift you did not know you needed.
Good to know: a great last stop of the day. Bring a cooler and take the county home with you.
High Seas Coffee
📍 107 Central Avenue E, Linden
A small-town coffee shop doing genuinely lovely work: freshly roasted coffee, house pastries, breakfast and lunch paninis, and soft serve when the day is hot. It is a perfect mid-route pause, and a very easy way to taste what Kneehill County does well.
Good to know: there is a walk-up window as well as indoor pickup, handy if you have a carload of people and a dog.
Kirk's Alpaca Farm
📍 Torrington, just outside Three Hills
A herd of nearly 100 alpacas, and a farm family who opens the gate and lets you meet them. Feed the alpacas, walk the pasture, and let the kids loose on the playground, where there is a basketball court, plasma cars, swings and slides. The farm store is stocked with alpaca socks, hats and mitts, handmade pottery, farm eggs and garden vegetables. If you only book one thing on this list, make it this one.
Good to know: book your visit online in advance. Walk-in admission costs more, and advance bookings help this small farm plan the day well. No booking needed for the farm store.
Trochu Arboretum & Gardens
📍 622 North Road, Trochu
Eight acres of living sanctuary. The Arboretum is dedicated to giving visitors a serene, educational place to connect with nature, learn about diverse plant species and simply enjoy how much beauty a prairie garden can hold. Different in feel from a farm visit, this one is an unhurried, historical, restorative kind of stop. Their own motto says it best: come for an hour, stay for the day.
Good to know: open daily, dawn to dusk, with gardens in bloom May through October. Admission is by suggested donation. Check their events calendar for flower shows, markets, Open Farm Days and December's Forest of Lights.
Tumbleweed Bison Ranch
📍 Range Road 250, Buoyant (near Acme)
Perry and Bernice Eitzen have been raising buffalo since 1996 on 145 acres of native pasture and coulee. The animals are raised stress-free, without antibiotics or added growth hormones, with quality held to a high standard from animal health right through to processing. Their Tours & Tales pasture tour gets you close to the herd: cows, calves, and J.D., the herd sire. Bring a camera.
Good to know: tours run May through September, $15 per person. Phone ahead to arrange a time. They are often out working the farm, so leave a message if there is no answer.
Planning your itinerary in advance makes the adventure far more enjoyable, but leave room for the magic. Let yourself be surprised by what you find.
What a wonderful agritourism day looks like
One easy shape for the day, if you would rather not build it from scratch.
Start on the farm
Begin at Kirk's Alpaca Farm or DNA Gardens. You are fresh, curious and full of energy, exactly what a farm visit deserves. Walk the pasture, pick the fruit, ask questions.
Slow down and recharge
Pull in at High Seas Coffee in Linden. Eat something good, savour the coffee, and let the morning settle before the next stop.
Shop the county home
Close the day at Farm Basket in Three Hills. Discover local food, pick up gifts and souvenirs, and fill the cooler for the drive back.
Before you go
Three practical things that turn a good farm day into an exceptional one.
Check before you go
Confirm activities, open days and hours with each farm a few days before your trip. Call them, or check their website and social media. Farm schedules move with the weather and the harvest.
Document everything
No two agritourism trips are the same. Live every one like you want to remember it later. Phone or real camera, capture what you experience so you can look back with awe and gratitude.
Actually be there
Slow down. Watch the farmers work. Talk to the producers. Smell the fresh fruit, look up at what is still on the trees, taste it if you can. Notice the abundance, and the rhythm of rural life.
Why choose agritourism?
Every agritourism adventure you take creates a ripple effect. Beyond the joy, satisfaction and curiosity it brings you, agritourism plays a vital role in supporting farmers and local producers. It backs sustainable agriculture, strengthens rural communities, and rebuilds the connection between the people who eat the food and the land it comes from.
“You are not just visiting a farm.
You are keeping one going.”
What Agritourism Alberta is here to do
Our mission is to promote agritourism across the province, to inspire Albertans and visitors to seek out farm experiences, get curious about the process and the people behind their food, and actually go. We also work alongside farmers, helping them build extraordinary visitor experiences through programs, training and resources.
Agritourism Alberta · albertafarmfresh.com
