Drumheller hoodoos, Rock formations in Drumheller, Canada.

The Drumheller hoodoos are towering sandstone pillars that rise prominently from the landscape, each one distinctly shaped by natural forces over time. These formations feature a layered structure with harder rock caps at the top that protect the softer stone beneath from weathering and erosion.

These rock formations were created millions of years ago when sediment accumulated and solidified into layered stone, then sculpted by water and wind erosion over vast spans of time. The area gained attention in the 1800s as settlers arrived and now stands protected as a Provincial Historic Resource.

Early Europeans in the Drumheller valley regarded the pillars with unease, calling them "hoodoos" after the word for voodoo. First Nations people who lived here long believed the columns were petrified giants that came to life at night. Visitors still hear both stories told about the formations.

The hoodoos stand about 16 km east of Drumheller on Highway 10, roughly 15 minutes by car, near the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology. The badlands terrain is uneven and steep, not flat: stay on the marked paths, watch from the steel viewing platforms and do not touch the pillars, which erode about 1 cm a year. Fines for damaging the formations reach $50,000 or up to a year in prison.

The hoodoos erode at about one centimetre a year, faster than almost any other rock formation. Early European settlers, uneasy at their shapes, called them "hoodoos" after voodoo, while First Nations peoples told of petrified giants that came alive at night.