Six Star Magazine Six Star Magazine Fall 2018 | Page 29

So, this past September, while road-tripping across
North America on a few different assignments, I decide to
swing by southern Saskatchewan and spend time camping
and hiking in this special place. Nestled on the border
of Montana, Grasslands National Park is split into two
sections, the West block and the East block. I hone in on
the West block, arriving in the town of Val Marie late on
a wet afternoon.
I stop by the visitor centre and receive some tips from
the wonderful staff. They advise me to seek out a gravel
road that runs north of the park before leading to the
park entrance itself. It had been raining in the area for
a day and a half. A staff member, concerned for this
stranger’s health and safety, asked if I was in a four-wheel
drive vehicle—apparently, the gravel road can become
impassable when wet.
I drive a Subaru Impreza, so rainy conditions are not
really a concern. True enough, my trusty car handles the
slippery access road, slick with mud, with no trouble at
all. I arrive at a mapped out camping spot, pitch my tent
and hunker down for the evening. As the rain drizzles
on, I think about what I want to do and see. Visions of
bison, prairie dogs, blowing grass and rolling coulees float
behind my eyelids as I drift off to sleep.
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