Grasslands National Park - the only national park on the Canadian prairies - came into existence in 2001, Parks Canada received a donation from the old Walt Larsen ranch. Since then, many more parcels oif land have been added, so that the expanding park consists of two large blocks of land, which will be joined as more land is added to the park. The hilly land formation which constitutes the park runs along the edges of the Frenchman River valley. The river meanders through the countryside, its flow determined by the rising hills and buttes that mark the landscape.
The Frenchman River Valley is the canvas upon which the park's West Block is painted. This glacial meltwater channel features deeply dissected plateaux, coulees, and the conspicuous 70 mile Butte which rewards the adventurous with an impressive view.
The park's East Block features the Killdeer "Badlands" of the Rock Creek area and is representative of the Wood Mountain Uplands. The landscape is characterised by the exposed layers of Bearpaw, Eastend, Whitemud, Frenchman and Ravenscrag formations. The Killdeer badlands untouched by glaciation, reveal the multicoloured hues representing 60,000 years of eroded strata.
This striking geological landscape with hundreds of metres of exposed sedimentary rock has opened a window to the brief interval of geological time representing the extinction of dinosaurs. Indeed, the revealing landscape of the Killdeer Badlands led to the first recorded find of dinosaur remains in Western Canada in 1874, by Sir George Mercer Dawson, a geologist and naturalist to Her Majesty's North American Boundary Commission.
Native habitation dates back to 10,000 years ago. By the 1600's, the Gros Ventre followed the bison herds in this area. More recently, the Assiniboine, Cree, Sioux, and Blackfoot also inhabited this grassland area on a seasonal basis. Campsites, tipi rings, vision quest sites, medicine wheels, and bison drive lanes are some of the cultural heritage.
By the 1880's, Euro-Canadian settlement had pushed farther west, bison herds were declining and so were other native species. Cattle herds replaced bison on the open range. Large ranches, like the 76 Ranch, held lease to thousands of acres of grazing lands. The cowboys who worked these ranches were the cowboys of the old west, their lifestyles romanticized on the silver screen.
The park contains a herd of over 300 bison, which roam freely over the grasslands on the prairie, and on the hills and saddles above. there are two large prairie dog "towns," horned lizards, rattlesnakes, prong horned antelope, badgers, and black footed ferrets throughout the park. The rising land provides a number of easy to challenging hikes upward to the tops of buttes and extensive saddles of high land, where ancient tipi rings over 1000 years old.
Hiking trails are reasonably well marked…most of the time…and can be quite challenging. There are steep sections, edged by small cacti and wild roses, as well as a kind of juniper bush that is common to the area. Fine shale covers parts of the rising land, which can slide when dry, or stick, when wet (as it is today). Up you look up, you can see hawks hunting the hills above, and at least one place, the nest of a family of golden eagles can be seen. The eagles themselves are much harder to spot.
Walking up the hills is, in spots, a pleasant and slightly upward stroll. Then, quite suddenly, you are leaning into a steep stretch, and the walk becomes a climb, up and around hidden corners leading onto breathtaking views of the whole valley in all directions. The hikes, while challenging to amateurs, are not "difficult" in terms of terrain. They tax the energy, however, in terms of their length. Fiftenn to twenty kilometrre hikes require some training, preparation, and a willingness to sweat!
Parks Canada is still developing hiking trails in the park, so that it will become more interesting and challenging as time goes by. An exciting educatioinal program has also been developed, which sees school children from all over southern Saskatchewan spending whole days learning about their cultural and geographic heritage in the park.
Because of the extensive opoen prairie in the area, Grasslamnds is deemed one of the primary "dark sky" preserves in the world. As well, in daytime, it is a mecca for birders, who can kind many rare - for them - species of birds in the park.
So far, we have hiked six trails, with more to come as the weather clears. We have plans to spend a day in the East Block, where the terrain is different from the West Block land. So far, this has been a satisfying and relaxing vacation. The townsfolk we have met in Val Marie have been typical prairie folk: friendly and welcoming. We have shared "Asian Food Night" at the Harvest Moon Cafe, "Friday Roast Beef Dinner" night at the hotel, and Movie Night at the local theatre.
Today, it's pouring, so we are off to Ponteix and perhaps Swift Current, to hike in a different clime!
The Frenchman River Valley is the canvas upon which the park's West Block is painted. This glacial meltwater channel features deeply dissected plateaux, coulees, and the conspicuous 70 mile Butte which rewards the adventurous with an impressive view.
The park's East Block features the Killdeer "Badlands" of the Rock Creek area and is representative of the Wood Mountain Uplands. The landscape is characterised by the exposed layers of Bearpaw, Eastend, Whitemud, Frenchman and Ravenscrag formations. The Killdeer badlands untouched by glaciation, reveal the multicoloured hues representing 60,000 years of eroded strata.
This striking geological landscape with hundreds of metres of exposed sedimentary rock has opened a window to the brief interval of geological time representing the extinction of dinosaurs. Indeed, the revealing landscape of the Killdeer Badlands led to the first recorded find of dinosaur remains in Western Canada in 1874, by Sir George Mercer Dawson, a geologist and naturalist to Her Majesty's North American Boundary Commission.
Native habitation dates back to 10,000 years ago. By the 1600's, the Gros Ventre followed the bison herds in this area. More recently, the Assiniboine, Cree, Sioux, and Blackfoot also inhabited this grassland area on a seasonal basis. Campsites, tipi rings, vision quest sites, medicine wheels, and bison drive lanes are some of the cultural heritage.
By the 1880's, Euro-Canadian settlement had pushed farther west, bison herds were declining and so were other native species. Cattle herds replaced bison on the open range. Large ranches, like the 76 Ranch, held lease to thousands of acres of grazing lands. The cowboys who worked these ranches were the cowboys of the old west, their lifestyles romanticized on the silver screen.
The park contains a herd of over 300 bison, which roam freely over the grasslands on the prairie, and on the hills and saddles above. there are two large prairie dog "towns," horned lizards, rattlesnakes, prong horned antelope, badgers, and black footed ferrets throughout the park. The rising land provides a number of easy to challenging hikes upward to the tops of buttes and extensive saddles of high land, where ancient tipi rings over 1000 years old.
Hiking trails are reasonably well marked…most of the time…and can be quite challenging. There are steep sections, edged by small cacti and wild roses, as well as a kind of juniper bush that is common to the area. Fine shale covers parts of the rising land, which can slide when dry, or stick, when wet (as it is today). Up you look up, you can see hawks hunting the hills above, and at least one place, the nest of a family of golden eagles can be seen. The eagles themselves are much harder to spot.
Walking up the hills is, in spots, a pleasant and slightly upward stroll. Then, quite suddenly, you are leaning into a steep stretch, and the walk becomes a climb, up and around hidden corners leading onto breathtaking views of the whole valley in all directions. The hikes, while challenging to amateurs, are not "difficult" in terms of terrain. They tax the energy, however, in terms of their length. Fiftenn to twenty kilometrre hikes require some training, preparation, and a willingness to sweat!
Parks Canada is still developing hiking trails in the park, so that it will become more interesting and challenging as time goes by. An exciting educatioinal program has also been developed, which sees school children from all over southern Saskatchewan spending whole days learning about their cultural and geographic heritage in the park.
Because of the extensive opoen prairie in the area, Grasslamnds is deemed one of the primary "dark sky" preserves in the world. As well, in daytime, it is a mecca for birders, who can kind many rare - for them - species of birds in the park.
So far, we have hiked six trails, with more to come as the weather clears. We have plans to spend a day in the East Block, where the terrain is different from the West Block land. So far, this has been a satisfying and relaxing vacation. The townsfolk we have met in Val Marie have been typical prairie folk: friendly and welcoming. We have shared "Asian Food Night" at the Harvest Moon Cafe, "Friday Roast Beef Dinner" night at the hotel, and Movie Night at the local theatre.
Today, it's pouring, so we are off to Ponteix and perhaps Swift Current, to hike in a different clime!
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