House of the Week – Kananaskis Cabin

Wait, you can own a rural cabin in the Alberta Rockies?

Price: $749,000Details: 1,019 sq/ft. 3 Beds, 1 BathNeighbourhood: Kananaskis Country (1 hour west of Calgary)The Skinny: One of the cruel ironies of the West is that our good friends in the Federal Government selected a solid chunk of the prime land for themselves before letting people settle out here, and no place is this more evident that the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains. Other than Canmore and a few other scattered communities, you can head from Banff to Jasper and be hard-pressed to find much public land available for purchase. This is one of those pockets—a very rustic A-Frame that (almost) justifies its price tag be virtue of overlooking both Lower Kananaskis Lake and the awesomely named Mt. Indefatigble.The Pros: You’re in the middle of the Rockies, near some of the most amazing views, hiking and all the other outdoor activities you can find—yet you’re only and hour and a bit to Calgary. You’re close to Nakiska and KPOW cat skiing and when the famed Kananaskis Golf Courses are back up and running in 2016, you’ll be close to them as well. You just can’t find Rockies locations like this in Alberta.The Cons: The “house” is a bit of a write-off—very rustic and not necessarily chic rustic. And the land is leasehold, which might scare off people from putting too much money into the property (though a fully tricked-out neighbouring property is on the market for a cool $1.5 million). The road access is no treat in the winter. And for $749,000 you can get a pretty decent place in Canmore.Listing Here