The Wardens

The Wardens are a Rocky Mountain-based band whose stories and songs rise from the very land they've protected as Canadian national park wardens. Ray Schmidt founded The Wardens in 2009 with Scott Ward during the national park warden centennial, and the band consists of Scott Ward, Bradley Bischoff and Ray Schmidt. Scott Ward is a national park warden for over 30 years in Banff National Park, and Scott's music stems from a life lived in the deep wilderness of the Canadian Rockies as a horseman, search-and-rescue dog handler and technical alpine specialist. Ray Schmidt is currently posted in Rogers Pass, British Columbia, and works with grizzly bears in the interior rainforest of Glacier National Park. With haunting three-part harmonies and chilling tales, the band's mountain music - blending folk, roots and western styles – reflects Canada's protected wilderness areas. Celebrating the return of wild buffalo, wrangling grizzly bears, lonely nights on the packtrail and reflecting on an environment in crisis, a performance by The Wardens has been dubbed the quintessential mountain-culture concert experience. Following the 2021 release of their third full-length album Sold Out at the Ironwood, band member Ray Schmidt was nominated Traditional Singer of the Year by the Canadian Folk Music Awards. The band has also received numerous regional nominations including 2022 Touring Artist of the Year by the BC Touring Council and Album of the Year by Country Music Alberta.

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