It's 11 p.m. in Harvey Widmer's mini donut trailer at the Rocky Mountain House Rodeo and carnival.

 The donuts are moving faster than a barrel-racing cowgirl in skin-tight Wrangler jeans. The local rowdies are buying ginger ale and cola - probably so they can spike it with a generous splash of rye whiskey from a hidden mickey.

A wide angle view of Harvey Widmer's Mini Donut Trailer. See more photos

 There are tarted up teenaged girls pushing baby carriages. The ride operators are mopping vomit off of a steel platform.

 Yes, this is the carnival. This is rural Alberta. The annual ritual brings out the best and worst of every town. And, they all bring cash.

 There is also a plenty of humour, plenty of good fun, even after hours of serving endless lines of hungry and harried fair goers.

 A rotund native lady with one tooth approached the counter after dusk and asked if we sell corn on the cob. "Sorry ma'am. That's down the midway."

 While townsfolk line up for rides, eat candy apples and try their hands at the many games of chance, there is a serious side to this spectacle, just inside the gates of a clapboard grandstand.

 "Some of the best professional cowboys and cowgirls in North America, including a number of local competitors, take on the bulls, broncs and barrels in the professional circuit," explains the West Country's Visitors Guide. "The fun starts with chariot racing followed by the rodeo with all the main events of saddle bronc, bareback, bull riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, barrel racing as well as novice events and new team roping."

 This is a business, not just a pastime. This is a place where cowboys, cowgirls, horses and cattle are revered. This is a place where real women drive diesel, 4x4 pickup trucks. This is a place where snapshots of prize-winning steers are proudly displayed over the meat counter at the IGA.

IF YOU GO: Rocky Mountain House is 220 kms northwest of Calgary or 225 kms southwest of Edmonton. It's 85 kms west of Red Deer on Hwy. 11, the David Thompson Highway. For more information you can visit www.rockymtnhouse.com Remember, there are only 100 frost free days in this area, so take a whole range of outdoor clothing. If you're from Ontario, don't tell anyone. Just say you're "passin' through."

 Conservative values are also a common thread. They don't care for gambling in Rocky, and one of the drug stores halted the sale of lottery tickets and cigarettes. Subsequently, we have a better class of clientele," a clerk declared.

 One of the nice things about Rocky Mountain House is that it's big enough to offer a variety of good retailing, including an ever-present saddle and tack shop. In Rocky's case, that's Henry's Western Wear.

 Shoppers are overcome by the pungent but sweet smell of leather as they cross the threshold. Like the oxygen pumped into Las Vegas casinos, it makes you want to hang out and spend everything you've got.

 Rocky, situated in the Municipal District of Clearwater, comes by its retailing skill honestly. The town was established in 1799 when the North West Company and the Hudson Bay Company established two trading posts here. The famous explorer, David Thompson, used the settlement as a base for his mapping and bushwacking.

 Highway 11 West, which leads into the heart of the Rocky Mountains, bears his namesake. Along the way, it offers dozens of outstanding camping and fishing opportunities, and passes by the town of Nordegg, which was built on coal mining and briquette manufacturing for steam engines. There are tours of the minesite, which has been in mothballs for decades.

There's nothing like a western saloon to help wash away the thirst of a good old boy. See more photos

 Although Nordegg is one of the ugliest places on the map of Alberta, it has a very cool liquor store: The Beer Cabin, which is operated by Elizabeth and Reg Banks. This is a popular stop for campers, who don't mind paying a small premium for the convenience of cold beverages in a fairly remote village.

 A short jaunt west of Nordegg is a gravel road that leads to Crescent Falls, an eye-popping waterfall and campground on the Bighorn River. Be warned: there's a creek crossing on the final stretch of this rocky and uneven path. But the rewards are worth the extra effort.

 Deer wander freely through this quiet little hideaway, where it costs just $14 a night, firewood included, for a full-sized recreational vehicle. However, seclusion at this elevation means wild fluctuations in temperature. It can be 20 degrees by day and 0 at night.

 But that doesn't even fizz on the locals. These are a tough breed of folks, where the women drive pickup trucks and the men wrestle with cattle.