Grasslands National Park, SK
Photo: Greg Huszar/Saskatchewan Tourism
Explore Saskatchewan's native grasslands with the nature conservancy of Canada.
As we leave the seemingly endless expanse of cultivated croplands west of Regina, the landscape transforms into a sea of grass blanketing gently rolling hills. But this isn't your garden variety lawn grass; it's a rich mix of native prairie species that have thrived here for millennia.
Grass isn't the only thing to thrive in these parts.
At Old Man on His Back Prairie and Heritage Conservation Area (OMB), about an hour east of the Alberta-Saskatchewan border, wildlife flourishes. A pair of mule deer bound across the road in front of us; pronghorn rest in a hollow; and a horned lark lands on a fence post.
Driving over the next ridge, we spot the park's most prized specimen: Primeval-looking bison grazing on a tract of green that stretches to the horizon. Looking beyond the road and fence line, it's easy to imagine this pristine landscape long before settlers ventured to Western Canada.