“Pic of the Week”, September 6, 2019: Grenfell, Saskatchewan

04 Grenfell, Saskatchewan (1)

I spotted this interesting Tourist Information building while driving across the prairies on the TransCanada Highway.  Grenfell is a small town in Saskatchewan that cleverly made its TI look like a prairie grain elevator.  As we’ve previously pointed out, the real counterparts of this structure are disappearing prairie icons.  I enjoyed the row of smaller grain elevators behind the TI, which you can see better in the photos below.

As I’d pulled off the highway, I though I’d drive around the town to see what’s there.  Nothing much, really.  A nice historic mural on one of the buildings.  A small museum featuring pioneer artifacts (open only during summer months).  And it being the prairies, no town would be complete without a …

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Karl on Sep 5, 2019 | Comments Off on “Pic of the Week”, September 6, 2019: Grenfell, Saskatchewan

“Pic of the Week”. May 2, 2014: Prairie crocuses, Calgary

Crocuses 03

Nothing says “spring has arrived” on the prairies more than the appearance of robins or the blooming of the prairie crocus.  Crocuses are the first flowers to blossom on the plains each year after the snow’s gone.  They’re the provincial flower of Manitoba and the floral emblem of South Dakota.

These photos were taken close to my home in Calgary (in Fish Creek Provincial Park) just a few days ago and are the first prairie crocuses I’d seen bloom for years.  Prairie crocuses once were very prevalent across the central plains of North America but with the disruption of natural grassland (and its conversion to housing tracts and farmland), you’ll only see them occasionally.   They’re beautiful and short-lived, so enjoy them …

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Karl on Apr 30, 2014 | Comments Off on “Pic of the Week”. May 2, 2014: Prairie crocuses, Calgary

“Pic of the Week”. February 22, 2013. Hayfield, Okotoks, Alberta

2013-008-February 22

When most people think of Alberta they visualize its thick green forests and ruggedly beautiful Rocky Mountains (I’m guilty of this as well).  Alberta is one of Canada’s three prairie provinces (can you name the other two?), so mostly it’s fairly flat land.  It’s on these prairies that much of Alberta’s treasures lie, from rich crops of canola to the world’s best beef, from dinosaur fossils to its oilfields.

One afternoon when my wife and I were driving to see the fall colors in the Rocky Mountains we drove past this hay field near the small city of Okotoks, not far from my home.  Something about the golden color of the grass, the neat orderly hay rolls and rolling land appealed to me …

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Karl on Feb 21, 2013 | Comments Off on “Pic of the Week”. February 22, 2013. Hayfield, Okotoks, Alberta