🥾 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀? 𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗴𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗻-𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴!

Living with celiac disease doesn’t mean limiting your adventures, but when you’re heading into the mountains, 𝗮 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲.

Our VP and Education Committee member, 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗦𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀, was diagnosed with celiac disease at just 14. As an avid hiker, cyclist and lover of the outdoors, she’s learned through experience how to stay fueled, prepared and confident while away from home.

In her 𝗚𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗻-𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝗙𝘂𝗲𝗹 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲, Bethany shares some of her go-to tips, including:

🥚 Starting with a protein-rich breakfast
🥪 Packing easy gluten-free meals like wraps, sandwiches or a homemade “adult Lunchable”
🍿 Trail snacks such as popcorn, nuts & dates, cheese, rice cakes, hard-boiled eggs and dark chocolate
💧 Bringing more water than you think you’ll need, along with gluten-free electrolytes
🎒 Always packing 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗿𝗮 𝘀𝗻𝗮𝗰𝗸, especially for longer hikes, colder weather or higher elevations
🧻 Keeping a few cross-contamination essentials on hand, including wipes, foil and zip-top bags

Bethany also keeps a dedicated 𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶-𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀-𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗸𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿 for unexpected situations or overnight stays, something that can be incredibly useful when you’re travelling with celiac disease.

Her message is a simple one we love:

“𝙇𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙘𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙘 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙩 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚; 𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣.” 🏔️

Want Bethany’s full food list, hydration tips and complete cross-contamination kit?

👉 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗚𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗻-𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝗙𝘂𝗲𝗹 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲:
www.calgaryceliac.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Bethanys-Gluten-Free-Mountain-guide.pdf

And we’d love to hear from our community - 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗴𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗻-𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘀𝗻𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗔𝗟𝗪𝗔𝗬𝗦 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗴?

#celiac #celiacdisease #celiacawareness #calgaryceliac #glutenfree #glutenfreelife #glutenfreeliving #guthealth #feelbetter #nogluten #celiacfriendly #celiacsafe #glutenfreefood #shinealightonceliac

𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝟭𝟯𝟵 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝟭,𝟬𝟬𝟬... 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗚𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗻-𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗲 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁. 💚

Twenty-six years ago, just 𝟭𝟯𝟵 people gathered on the patio outside the Calgary Celiac Association's tiny office for our very first 𝗚𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗻-𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 Stampede Breakfast.

It was simple.

Volunteers cooked.
The food was donated.
Everyone was welcome.
And everything was free.

None of us could have imagined what it would become.

Then, in 𝟮𝟬𝟬𝟱, everything changed.

Alberta Health Services introduced the 𝘁𝗧𝗚 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁, making it much easier for people to be screened for celiac disease. As awareness grew and more people received a diagnosis, our community grew too.

Every year, more families joined us. What started as a small gathering became one of the highlights of Stampede for Calgary's gluten-free community.

By 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟵, we were serving around 𝟳𝟬𝟬 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀.

Then came COVID.

When the breakfast returned, demand was greater than ever. Unfortunately, more people attended than we could safely feed, and many left disappointed without breakfast.

So in 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯, we made a difficult decision.

We introduced 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 and a $𝟱 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗲𝗲.

Not to make money.
Not to exclude anyone.

But to make sure everyone who registered received a breakfast, to reduce food waste, to better support our incredible volunteers, and to help ensure our generous sponsors could continue making this event possible for years to come.

Fast forward to 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲, and we welcomed 𝟭,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲, while keeping tickets at just $5 for adults (children 12 and under remain free).

Thanks to our amazing sponsors and volunteers, guests enjoyed premium gluten-free pancakes, meat and meat-free breakfast options, dairy and dairy-free choices where possible, fresh fruit, beverages, product sampling and the introduction of GF Beer.

From 𝟭𝟯𝟵 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝟭,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀 at the biggest venue to date...

This breakfast has never been just about pancakes.

It's about community.
It's about belonging.
It's about ensuring people living with celiac disease can experience one of Calgary's favourite Stampede traditions safely and confidently.

To every volunteer, sponsor, donor and attendee who has been part of this incredible journey...

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝟮𝟲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀. 💚

#livingceliac #harvestmeats #cutcooking #greyfoxbrewing #spolumbos #amaranth #lokal #righteousgelato #glutenfreeliving #stampedebreakfast #calgaryfood