TRAVEL

Horned Lark

Rough-legged Hawk

Tom Feasby

Since birding was to be a big part of our trip, we scanned the roadsides and the sky for birds, all the while being careful to drive safely. Prairie sloughs, although somewhat dry this year, yielded the most birds: avocets, stilts, and many ducks. We were headed to Grasslands National Park, the younger of Saskatchewan’ s two national parks. While Prince Albert National Park in the north features forests, lakes, and wetlands, Grasslands, as the name implies, preserves two large tracts of prairie grassland in the valley and hills surrounding the rather lazy Frenchman River.

Our journey to the park included many stops, beautiful landscapes, some unfortunate spring weather, and the sighting of forty-two unique species of birds. Approaching from the west, the village of Val Marie was our destination as it is the staging ground for anyone hoping to explore the park without camping. While our B & B was well positioned, we were slightly dismayed at the lack of

an ensuite and the steep flight of stairs down to the communal bathroom. We were also surprised to find the restaurant at the Val Marie Hotel, the only restaurant in town, had closed for the night without notice. A quick trip to the minimalist grocery story allowed us to create a humble meal of cheese and pickle sandwiches!

The best way to quickly see all the features of the east block of the park is to drive along what Parks Canada calls“ the Ecotour.” This road( which was very wet, muddy, and slippery at the time) winds through the park’ s west block, passing two black-tail prairie dog colonies, bison herds( if you’ re lucky), and excellent sightlines of the park, along with many more bird sightings( white pelicans, upland sandpipers, and hawks, both Swainson’ s and ferruginous). We ate our“ gourmet” dinner at a picnic table overlooking the Frenchman River valley and ended the day with a tally of seventy-five species sighted so far on the trip.

Bison

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