Shaun Newman Podcast - #1093 - Jason Thornhill

Episode Date: July 15, 2026

Jason Thornhill is the owner and founder of Aspen Crossing, a unique train-themed tourist destination in Mossleigh, Alberta. He transformed a family tree farm and nursery into a heritage railway attraction by restoring 14 miles of former rail line, acquiring historic railcars (including a former Prime Minister's dining car), and developing amenities like an RV park, tavern, and gardens. Cornerstone Forum 26’https://shaunnewmanpodcast.substack.com/Silver Gold Bull Links:Website: https://silvergoldbull.ca/Email: [e-mail] Grahame: [phone]Bow Valley Credit UnionBitcoin: www.bowvalleycu.com/en/personal/investing-wealth/bitcoin-gatewayEmail: [e-mail] Get your voice heard: Text Shaun 587-217-8500

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This is James Lindsay. This is Vance Crow and you're listening to the Sean Newman podcast. Welcome to the podcast, folks. Happy Wednesday. Happy Hump Day. How's everybody doing today? I am sitting at Jim Sinclair's host as I record this. Now, I realize that I'm just pulling out of Tuffnell today,

which is going to get really. confusing for me as we move along and we hammer a couple days in quick unison, I guess. Is that what it is? I don't know. We're heading to Eltona, Manitoba today. We're on our way down to Mel's parents' cabin. For those of you keeping track, we're going to be down there for the next week. So that's where we're heading.

But as we record this, just at Jim Sinclair's, and I just want to say thanks again to them for all the hospitality, treating my kids as if they're his own. and if you're ever in the Regina Beach area, you make sure to stop in the Regina Beach campground and say hello to Jim Sinclair. He is one of the best, and once again, as we sit here, yeah, he's been very hospitable and it's been super cool.

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That's what I got for you today. Let's get on to that tail of the tape. Today's guest is the owner of the Aspen Crossing Campground. I'm talking about Jason Thornhill. So buckle up. Here we go. Welcome to the Sean Newman podcast. I'm joined by Jason Thornhill.

First off, sir, thanks for doing this. Nice to meet you, Sean. Well, hey, you got such a wonderful spot. For people who are watching or listening, we're sitting here at Aspen Crossing, this was our first true stop along the trip where we were actually set up to camp and i'd reached out shout out to tanya because i was like who owns this place like this is a pretty neat little spot not to mention the train and everything else going through it and she's like well actually i i know and so you know i'm glad she could help set it up now for the audience they probably go who the

heck are you sitting across from uh so i guess just start jason with a little bit about yourself a little bit about Aspen Crossing, if you wouldn't mind. Thanks, well, yeah. My name is Jason Thornhill, and, you know, never thought we'd have, like, this prairie oasis happening out here. Like, I was a landscaper before opening Aspen Crossing, and, you know, it seemed like after about May 15th, all the good trees were sold at all the nurseries. So I'm like, you know, Dad, can I steal 20 acres and plant some trees?

Like, I need trees for my jobs. So at the time, the farmer that was raised. renting dad's land was retiring. So it's like, hey, this is perfect. There's a nice 30 acre piece. You know, let's plant some trees. So just one thing kind of led to another. You go from planting trees.

This is, I mean, I'm going to try and do my best to describe this. This has got, what, 300 and some plus campsites. You have a railway track that goes right through. You got a man-made swim pond. You've got the pickleball courts. You've got tours on the train that comes through and lean. the kids have been having an absolute blast as my wife would say it's very kid oriented kid friendly like everything's clean the staff is ridiculously friendly like we've just we've

actually had a really really good time here and I say that parroting my wife who would probably you know being around the kids and everything would probably come up with well this wasn't right and you know and it's just been like really enjoyable to find this spot and I credit my wife with that too but you know you go this was a tree nursery how on earth did it grow from a tree nursery to like well maybe i should have some people camping well maybe you know like i'd read you spent six years dealing with the railway to get the railway track and a whole bunch of different things like that like this is obviously you had a vision at some point of like i think this is where i should take it and it's taken a long time and you're probably still building things that i don't have any clue about

but what you've got here is like it's really cool well thank you so much you know it's very funny you know When we first opened Aspen Crossing, you know, people are like, well, you know, where in the heck is Mosley, Alberta? You know, and it's like, like probably 80% of plant sales are impulse sales. We're like, you know, we just got to get people out here. And when you say, how do we get a campground out of a tree nursery? Well, what had happened? This 30 acre piece, well, I ran out of money after 20 acres of planting trees. And every tree I could purchase that year that seemed like it was good for this zone.

well, we purchased it. So we planted 13,000 trees in one year. And of course, was out of money at that point. And then it was like, well, how are you going to maintain these things? Well, you can't. So, of course, we got irrigation going on the trees and then went back to landscaping to try to make some money again. And then we were getting like a weed notice from the county on the other 10 acres

that had nothing on it. And it's like, uh-oh, what are we going to do with this 10 acres? So it's funny, uh, Tanya's husband, Al now. So him and his brother actually farmed it, like, so that they keep the weeds under control for me. So it's like, here, just use this 10 acres, rent free. And then as they were getting new equipment, they're like, you know what? By the time we unfold, we could be to the next field. So, like, sorry, but we're out.

And it's like, okay, I had a staff meeting. And I'm like, okay, guys, anybody have any idea we can do with a lot of healthy but unsellable trees and 10 acres that we don't need another weed notice on? And somebody said, oh, hey, how about a campground? and we just did a bit of research and it's like great idea let's build a campground and i thought 85 sites was pushing it but we were booked all the time once we got the thing finally built and fully running so it's like oh let's add 35 more and then those were always booked so next you know plan dammit came around and it's like let's add more so we just kind of added as much as we thought we could get away with and you know here we're now we have over 350 rentable sites

Yeah, it's pretty cool how, like, you start with this small idea, not that, you know, a tree nursery is a small idea by any stretch of the imagination. But, like, you just keep, kept adding to it. It's cool that, you know, you ask your staff. Like, what could we do? You do build a campground. You know, that could work. And now it's ballooned into the, you know, Aspen Crossing, which, you know, when you look online,

you're like, oh, this is a cool little spot. And then you actually get here, like, this is really cool. I can't believe how many things. are going on here. I guess it's really cool that a little idea, a little seed, you know, grew into such a

large operation, right? I mean, like, it's pretty crazy in my mind to hear how somebody started with just a piece of land that was weeds and the farmers are like, the machinery's too big now. So we've got to figure something out to keep the government off our back.

Yeah, and you should always listen to your parents. You know, it's funny. My dad was like, hey, you know, since you have this train theme place, what if you get that track from CPR and you ran trains out here? It's like, oh my God, dad, is it time to put you in a home? Like, that is the dumbest idea you've ever had. We've got no lake.

We've got no rivers. We got no mountains. We hardly have any trees. Like, we got bald ass prairie. Who's going to come out here and see bald ass prairie? That is dumb. And then five years later here, a group comes looking for a track. within an hour of Calgary and it's like, yeah, let's do this.

And now we're running a train and first on the never, never debt plan instead of probably could have got the track for a dollar had I listened to my dad back then. Well, I think we both share that where you, you know, you get given a good idea. You go, dad, oh yeah, just go do that. Yeah, because it's so easy. And then in hindsight, after it's done, you're like, I should have just said yes and not fought it so hard. Absolutely.

Now, I have to know. You know, like I pull in and there's Alberta flags all down the one side. And I go, this is probably my type of place. Regardless, maybe it's just Alberta flags. Your thoughts on independence and everything going on with Alberta? Well, you know, the last, like I don't even know how many years it is, it feels like an eternity. But, you know, ever since Trudeau Jr. got into power, it just seemed like our country, It was just like crashing and crashing.

And then, you know, when we had this trucker's convoy in Ottawa, when we went down there as a group, you know, nine of us went down there. It was actually like the most Canadian. You were in Ottawa. Yeah. I was in Ottawa. It was the most Canadian thing I'd ever seen in my life. Didn't admit, like on the road, it made you proud to see the Canadian flag.

Like, it's probably the first time of my life other than Sidney Crosby scoring the the golden goal or one of those moments in hockey where you're like actually proud to wear this thing like this is so impressive oh and even more than that like when people see my pictures of you know because of course when when going there we think oh ottawa's in turmoil and there's swastika's here and there and there's you know it's like people were getting like attacked in the streets you know like my mom would phone me every day oh my god are you arrested are you okay and it's like no mom this is the most peaceful thing you ever seen like There's tens of thousands of Canadian flags and people.

And there's not even homeless people around. Like everybody's, anybody that wants a meal is getting a meal. Like everybody's saying hi to everybody. Like, it was remarkable. People going around, hundred dollar bills. Thanks for making the trip. Here's to help with fuel. It was just, and you saw kids with Quebec flags,

playing with kids with Saskatchewan, Alberta flags. And it was like, hey, this is what Canada is supposed to be. And it was funny, our driver that took us there, you know, he sends his daughter a video and it's like, sweetie, you got to see this. And while she phones back a few months later, no dad, that's not what's happening there. Well, no, sweetie, I don't think you understand. I took that video. That is what's happening here.

No, dad, you're wrong. That's not what's happening there. It was the most Canadian thing I'd ever seen in my life. And the day of that election in April where I was just like, how are all Canadians not seen the direction we're going. So my Canadian flags came down and up went the Alberta flags. Curious, as a campground, have you had any flack good or bad? Like, has anyone said, mentioned, or nobody really cares?

We really haven't heard much. Like, we've got about two emails where it's somebody that, I don't know if they're trying to be vindictive or whatever, but saw the Alberta flags. And I kind of was expecting maybe when doing it, we'd hear more. But, you know, really hadn't heard a whole bunch. normally we have Aspen Crossing flags between the Alberta flags but somehow an order kind of fell through the cracks and we're about five days away from having new Aspen Crossing flags again

With the referendum coming up this fall October 19th Your thoughts on that because I mean like you go you go back to Freedom Convoy to Carney being elected I think every Albertan I don't care if you're pro or against Canada, your pro-independence, you're against independence. I think everybody in the West went, really?

We're going to elect Mark Carney? Huh. And then, of course, the Alberta Spirit does what the Alberta Spirit does, goes out and collects 300,000 plus signatures in the dead winter and is like, no, we're going to change the direction of this.

Now you've got a date, albeit it's a referendum on a referendum, but regardless, there's a question about it coming up on a referendum. Your thoughts? Well, and it's, I agree. I feel like Canada's tried, or Alberta has tried with Canada for so many years to just, you know, have a voice. But really, from Manitoba West, except for the greater Vancouver area, there's no, there's no voice in Western Canada at all. And so I thought, you know, my dad had told me he was part of a movement many years ago of the Western Canada concept.

and he was telling me, you know, Alberta had made some pretty good headway, but once all four provinces were together, then it kind of just fizzled out right away. So I was thinking, like, hey, let's, you know, we have to do something to try to get a voice. And so when I decided to put up Alberta flags, I was thinking of, you know, my family, my coworkers, our business, you know, it wasn't just me. I was thinking of the future of all Albertans and all Western Canadians. and I think it has to start with Alberta.

And, you know, I sat next to a lady on the plane. I just got back from visiting my parents in Las Vegas. And I sat next to a lady on a plane where she was ex-military and was telling me about, you know, go to South Dakota and see Mount Rushmore and, you know, read about these forefathers. And it was like, and I thought, you know, when I get home, I got to have some courage because, you know, a person is scared about, you know,

is there going to be flock and whatever. But this is our future. And so I promised myself just three days ago, it's like when I get home, yeah, we're going to grow a pair and step it up a little bit. Well, I appreciate that because, I mean, what do we need more of? Backbone just to be like, no, it's,

we're not okay with the direction things are going. We're just not. And it's okay to be upset or just, you know, like, I just don't like the way this is going. You know, you think of Aspen Crossing as maybe a bit of an analogy, when things aren't going right here, I'm sure you change direction. You know, you're like, wait a second, that isn't where we want to go. Let's change that.

And what you've built is something that I'm like, well, we have a camping group. I'll tell you where it sits right now in Mel's, my wife's head. She was sitting with me last night, and she's just like, you know, we camp once a year with a friend group that comes in from basically all over Alberta. she goes, this would be a good spot for that. To me, that's about as high a recommendation as you're ever going to get from, you know, a camper that's going to recommend it to all of her friends. And now here I sit on the podcast saying, you know,

if you want a cool spot to bring young kids specifically, because I think it's, to me, what you've built just feels geared towards young kids. You know, with the train and the, and I don't even know, it's just a pond or a watering hole where they can go swimming, all the different little things, even the arcade. kids came in as a younger kid when my brothers were in university they used to play crazy taxi and so we went and played it and when I walked in I'm like you you gotta be kidding me and my kids are like what I'm like move over I got to I gotta play this just once right so it's been a really cool experience and I guess I you know when you look at Canada or Alberta when things are going wrong I think most words are like you know we can change course like we just don't need to keep plowing it into the Tullies we can pull it in the Tully's we can pull it Pull it out, put it back on the road and get going again. And yet, you know, like it just feels like that doesn't seem to be the case.

We're just going to keep plowing it into the Tuleys, hoping that we're going to pop out into some utopia. When everyone and their dog knows, that's not the case. Well, it's funny. Like, I want to know where the, like, where's the money trail on this media thing? Like, and what we saw firsthand in Ottawa was a great example. Like, what you saw on the news and what, like, my mom's, saw to think I was getting arrested each day, like, was the furthest thing from the truth. And it's just like, how can our media be so complicit?

Like, yeah, they're just like, it's not even close. You know, Chris Sims from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, we've had lots of conversations about this. If your giant source of your income is coming from the government, it'd be pretty hard to bite the hand that feeds. And like, I remember reading in 2021, 2021, 2020. sorry, the ratings of the CBC. And then I was riding in the Freedom Convoy,

doing an interview with one of the truck drivers, looking out at all the Canadian flags and people. And I'm like, this is what documentaries are made at it. Like, this is just like, this is so beautiful. CBC could sit and 24-7 broadcast it. And their ratings would have went from in the toilet to the number one watched news program in Canada. and it were restored faith in instead.

I mean, I think it's obvious right now, right? There is an agenda. And by not even remotely going and covering that, I think it pretty much summed up what's happening to media in our country, knowing they're getting government funding and not just a little bit, but billions of dollars, it seems self-explanatory to me, right? Like when you follow the money trail, it's like, well, who's paying them?

And I mean, and then you listen to all the old journalists. They're short staff. they cut and copy from other news agencies, all the stories, right? And it just goes on and on. You know, like, it seems like it just kind of makes sense to me. I mean, it took what, I don't even know, just everyday Canadians sitting there on the street going, like, this is amazing to give the public an actual eye into the Freedom Convoy,

which is a wild thought when you're in the middle of Ottawa. All they had to do is pull off their cameras and go sit and just film it. And they just see how much joy and happiness. and you talk about the food. I think I gained weight there. All I did was walk around. But every 10 feet, there was something new, and it was delicious.

Absolutely. And it was funny when we, like, it's kind of crazy when people think about Aspen Crossing. Like, I never did have a vision of the total thing. Like, it just opened as a tree nursery and garden center with a bit of landscaping on the side. And, like, I never dreamt for a second. It would be what it is today.

But, you know, you just like, hey, this would be good. And then, oh, you see this in another city and like, hey, let's incorporate that into Aspen Crossing. And I'm very good at winging it, you know. And so when it's time to go to Ottawa, like we just, you know, hop in the bus. Of course, it was going to be about 16 of us. But, you know, that morning, whatever, seven of them backed out. And it's like, okay, well, I guess there's nine of us. What the heck, let's go.

And, like, we didn't know where we were going or what was happening. But we thought, well, if Ottawa was basically like burning down almost, like they show the media well we're going to see where to go well we saw nothing so it's like we pull into a truck stop and we like ask like hey do you have any idea like how do you be a part of this where do you where do you go and then they directed us like northeast of the city from what i remember and there was like a i called it a truckers truckers camp almost and it was amazing to see you know one side of the tent was all like personal items you know anything from first aid to aspirin and adjutant and underwear, socks, anything.

And then on the other side was any kind of food that you could want, anything from cookies, crackers, water, pop. And then the conversations that were there, it's like, wow, this is Canada. Look at how people could come together. And then they're talking about eight, nine trailer loads of food that they could survive six months on the donated food. And there's more donations coming every day. It was like, wow, this is impressive.

I was sitting in downtown Ottawa in the first days of the, convoy and there'd be problems so like garbage was a problem and then garbage was no longer a problem because somebody took it on and went and just put garbage bags everywhere and started collecting all the garbage at nights i talked to one of the cops in um on parliament hell and he said it's just another protest and then he goes but you know it's the first protest i've ever seen clean up after themselves that's something and we're thinking hmm and There was people going around the streets just like picking up like the tiniest of garbage because they wanted to leave it. Everybody was under the same impression.

There's no way we win the media war if we allow simple things to come in. So everybody was on beyond their best behavior. There was a day I remember when there was snow on the sidewalk and then all of a sudden shovels started piling up everywhere. And anytime there's snow, everybody just started shoveling. It was almost like a right of passage to shovel part of the street. I'm like, when you talk about there being. nothing more Canadian than that. I mean, just the camaraderie, the unity, all the things that we want,

and yet find hard to find in society today. 100%. Like it really was the most Canadian thing I'd ever seen in my life. And, you know, it's already been, whatever, almost five years. And it was, I'm so glad I went, you know. And as we were leaving, I knew something was going down because, you know, we'd see every five miles, we'd pass another police car heading. east. I'm like, you know what, something's going down, you know. And sure enough,

here they had this horse trampling and all the BS of a bicycle being thrown and everything. It was just like, it was like, oh, darn, I wonder if we could have still been there if, if us and 3,000 others had stayed. Could we have made a difference or anything? But it just showed how corrupt our government really was. Now, one of my favorite questions I've been asking people, because we're leaving for a year on the road. So we're taking the podcast and we're going right across Canada. So you being the first campsite stop, maybe in a year's time we come back and you can ask me how the rest of them compare. But regardless, I've been asking people their favorite, whether it's

road trip story or maybe something from when they're a kid or a parent or, you know, just life on the road because one of the things that's very Canadian is to go out in the summer and go camping or fishing or whatever your outdoor pleasure is. And I'm curious, Jason, your thoughts on a memory you have that stands out to you. Now when you say a camping story, because what's funny when Kate, we decided, hey, let's build a campground at Aspen Crossing. Well, I'd basically never camped in my life at that time besides a few tents here and there on a, like my parents took a friend and I on a four-day rafting trip on the Colorado River.

where we tented for four nights. And that's kind of the extent of my camping experience as a youngster, you know, maybe once or twice with my grandparents and kind of liked it. And I thought, boy, if I'm going to open a campground, I need to know about camping. You know, so of course, I can't remember if it was the bargain finder, what it was then. But it's like, okay, I've got to find a camper, you know. So, of course, bought a used camper and a friend was going down to Idaho. And he's like, well, you know, come join us.

You know, and it's called Farragut State Park. And of course, it was a great experience. Like, I had no idea there's a U.S. naval base in Idaho. Like, I thought naval bases are only, like, out at the ocean. And so it was neat learning all the history of this and then talking to other campers and looking around at what they had and how they did it. And it was just like, yeah, we could do this, you know.

Yeah, we'll incorporate this into our campground. And Windham Provincial Park just down the road, had like trees between every site where you couldn't even see the camper next to you so that was our goal here was to have it where you know within 10 to 20 years you wouldn't be able to see that you had a neighbor right next to you.

Well I can safely say like I mean we've enjoyed our time here it'll be sad to push on you know to any Albertan or maybe just Canadian, American that travels a lot what would you say to those folks if you're, you know, maybe come explore a little bit of Aspen Crossing.

What would you leave your final thought on? Well, we, I love people. I love visitors. I love hearing the stories. I love hearing how we can always improve Aspen Crossing. You know, I sometimes get called like mini Walt Disney. And when I watch his documentaries, you know, he was always to his staff. Like, no matter how good it was, hey, we could always do better.

And so I, you know, I want more people. people to come and give us more ideas and you know I once went to a seminar where it's like hey if you're not expanding you're declining so pushing the limit to see what the banker will support us on so what are you what are you going to do next in aspen crossing or what like what is it what is your next idea that you're like I'd like to see this happen here well we have um believe or not we have over 300 people on a waiting list for a seasonal site really yeah How many seasonal sites are here? So right now we only have 35.

Like we could rent the whole place seasonally, but because of the trains and the stores and stuff, I kind of felt like we would maybe lose the turnover enough to support the other businesses we have. So I didn't really want to become all seasonal, but, you know, we can add some sites. And then at least we have the seasonal to give us income right off the bat. And, you know, something that could really fit in well here, but I haven't found the right. partner to do it with us yet, you know. But, you know, everybody has friends that love hearing the camping stories and want to be a part of it, but they only hotel it. And so, like, I know that it doesn't fit the normal hotel chain's normal thing because it's got to be in a

populated area, but I know that we could fill a hotel, you know, nine months of the year with all the different events and trains we do out here. And we'll find that somebody to partner with us and we'll build something good out here and just kind of complete some things. Well, best of luck on that. One final one that I just remembered. Birds out here. Morning doves, I believe. Correct? I can hear them right now. I'm like, I'm sitting here. I had to text dad.

So show it to dad for telling me what it was because I sent him a picture. I'm like, I couldn't figure out what it was. I'm like, what is that? And everywhere I walked, they're like, and people probably can't hear it in off in the background. Have they always been like that or since the trees have come in you've started to attract new types of birds? Definitely since planting the nursery saw a huge influx of birds. Like the amount of birds that we have here is incredible. No, it's insane. This morning I'm like, what is going on? It's like seven in the morning. I'm like, like, what is happening outside right

now as about seven different types of birds are all calling all over the place? Like it's been pretty cool. Well, one camper had told me, that he has identified over 70 types of birds in this campground. To me, honestly, walk around, it makes sense. But the morning dove, that feels unique. I mean, maybe in a year's time, I'll tell you it isn't that unique, but I've camped enough. I've never had morning doves sitting in my trees, cooing all day long.

Well, it's definitely new. When I grew up on this property as a kid, I definitely did not see morning doves. You didn't have morning doves. No. You know, I remember Robbins, you know, tickety's and, you know, you might hear the odd metal lark. So when did they start arriving? Then just, I would say maybe four years after we planted the nursery, you know, it just.

All of a sudden, morning doves, just started rolling in. Morning doves and then finches and, you know, it just kept growing. And then all of a sudden somebody said, oh, they saw an orio here. And it's like, really an oriel in Mosley, Alberta? this is great. Well, I was back home right now. I grew up loving the Toronto Blue Jays, and I assume that's why my grandmother, who was a painter,

painted me a Blue Jay. But, like, truth be told, I remember seeing bluebirds, but never Blue Jays. This year in Lloyd, every morning walk I had, I saw a Blue Jays, and I'm like, this is wild. Where are the Blue Jays coming from? And so that's a pretty cool story,

because I just assumed the morning doves were always here. Like, it was just part of this area, and oh, yeah, it's been here. But not quite the case. Like they started to come in after you'd started to build things, which is pretty wild. Yeah, like one camper told me that one of the best birdwatching spots in Canada is the Windham Provincial Park, just 10 miles north of us. That it's just like a migration path. And they're so well-treated along the Bow River there that they get a ton of different birds.

And I think we're just right in line in that migration path. And just people go like, oh, hey, this is a pretty cozy home. Let's roll in here. Yeah, well, isn't that cool? Well, Jason, I appreciate you doing this, sitting down and giving me some time. If you wanted to direct people for Aspen Crossing, where would you send them? Well, they can go to our website at aspencrossing.com or, you know, just give us a call. 403-534-2129.

Well, thanks again for doing this, and nice to meet you. Thanks so much. And, yeah, this is great. Thanks for, I'm really looking forward to hearing what all these Canadians, and Albertans that you're going to talk to, and hopefully we have a brighter future ahead? Well, I think we will. I mean, no matter what happens in the days, weeks ahead,

I believe in a brighter future ahead. And, you know, Canadians just got to believe that, right? We just got to believe that we can change the course of where we're ahead, which I know we can do. We just need people to understand that they can do it. So it's people like you that are doing that. So appreciate you having us here. And I look forward to coming back to Aspen Crossing in the years to come and see maybe what new things you've come up with.

Right on. Thanks so much.