Grasslands Park - East Block
Grasslands National Park is located in the south west part of Saskatchewan along the US border. It showcases the big skies and distant horizons of the prairies, and is physically split into 2 blocks (the East Block and the West Block). The East Block highlights impressive badlands, while the West Block contains the bison herd and prairie dogs in a more typical grasslands environment. This post focuses on a visit to the East Block, which is easily accessible using secondary roads but has very limited road access within the park (one 11km scenic parkway). Despite the easy access, the park and especially the East Block is not well known and is not overrun with visitors which is awesome!
Grasslands National Park location
The East Block provides unlimited hiking opportunties in a dramatic badlands environment, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, and spectacular stargazing in some of the darkest skies in accessible North America. Designated trails are easy to follow, but the most interesting hiking is off trail through the badlands. In these areas you need to pay attention to your navigation (and there is limited or no cell coverage in much of the park). There is also almost no shade, so bring sun protection and lots of water!
Grasslands, big spaces and big skies
A Richardson's ground squirrel deciding whether to bolt
A few trees maintain a toehold along Rock Creek
A mule deer in the badlands
Badland hoodoos and mesas in the Rock Creek Valley
Badlands sunset
Late afternoon light on the badlands
Evening light over the Rock Creek Valley
Milky way above Grasslands National Park
Sun sets behind a badlands hoodoo
A sage grouse in the grasslands
I spent 4 days in the park, hiking the Valley of 1000 Devils and Red Buttes marked trails on 2 days and exploring the badlands in the Rock Creek Valley off of the Badlands Parkway on the other two days. My preference was definitely the off trail exploration of the badlands; the scenic viewpoints on the Badlands Parkway provide many access points for hiking in the valley, and you can hike for as short or long as you want there. However, if you are looking for a marked trail I preferred the 1000 Devils one. I also went out to the valley on 3 evenings to enjoy the night skies during the new moon. Enjoying the night sky from down among the hoodoos is amazing, but the valley is a maze of ridges and ravines with no trails. If you plan to hike out after dark you will need a very good light and a GPS track to follow.
The prairies are a unique and captivating part of Canada. With most of the prairie being privately owned and farmed, Grasslands is one of the best spots to experience backcountry in this region! The following link provides more detailed information about the park.