Elk Island Buffalo
The abundance of wildlife means an incredible number of photo opportunities along the 80 km of trails. Unlike other wildlife refuges where you might only catch the occasional glimpse of an animal in the underbrush; here you’ll thrill at the site of herds of elk, moose and white-tailed deer. And the bison. So many bison (roughly 11,000) that in order to maintain their grazing habitat they are periodically shipped to other parts of Canada and internationally, including Alaska, Montana and Russia.By Perry Mack
The herd thunders across the open field as flocks of birds soar into the air calling to each other to the sound of hundreds of wings beating. You stare in awe as the second largest population of hoofed wildlife in the world (next to the Serengeti in Africa) spread out across the landscape. The Serengeti is thousands of miles, and thousands of dollars away, but here you stand after having hooked up you RV or turned the ignition on your motor home.
It’s a real life scene from the Canadian version of the Lion King. The lion-like roaring of the bull bison echo across the fields and forests in summer and the whistling of rutting elk pierce the air in fall. This is Elk Island National Park, one of Canada’s proudest world-class creations; all less than an hours drive from Edmonton.
The abundance of wildlife means an incredible number of photo opportunities along the 80 km of trails. Unlike other wildlife refuges where you might only catch the occasional glimpse of an animal in the underbrush; here you’ll thrill at the site of herds of elk, moose and white-tailed deer. And the bison. So many bison (roughly 11,000) that in order to maintain their grazing habitat they are periodically shipped to other parts of Canada and internationally, including Alaska, Montana and Russia.
Your hiking can take you through meadows, marshland, lakes and even quicksand. Aspen parkland is one of the most endangered habitats, but it is here, protected inside the park. Keep your eyes on a sharp lookout and you’ll see beavers building dams and coyotes peering back at you from across the fields. But don’t spend all your time looking down; there are over 200 species of birds to observe.
In addition to protecting wildlife and their habitats, the park also protects over 200 aboriginal sites and heritage buildings like the superintendent’s house, the horse barn, and the thatched roof Ukrainian Pioneer home.
But these are all your daytime adventures. In conjunction with Cooking Lake-Blackfoot Provincial Recreation Area, Elk Island National Park is also part of the Beaver Hills Dark Sky Preserve. One of only seven in Canada.
A dark sky preserve is an area that focuses on reducing the amount of artificial light. This protects the activities of nocturnal wildlife who count on darkness to allow them to feed and plant life that use the amount of light they sense to know what season is coming – and prepare for it.
For those of us living in urban areas awash with the light from buildings, street lamps and vehicles 24 hours a day; a dark sky preserve means we can look to the heavens and really see the stars. Millions of stars, just with the naked eye.
From the coyote peaking out of the underbrush, to the thousands of herd animals roaming across the plains, to the seeing a night sky like it’s the very first time; it’s time stock up the RV, turn on the ignition and prepare to be awed.
Where to Stay
Sandy Beach Campground on Astotin Lake is the only place you can camp overnight in the park. There are only 71 sites so I recommend you book in advance with Parks Canada. You can make site reservations from May 11 to September 2.