There are a lot of nice places to hike around Grande Prairie, which is where I’ve been living for the past 4.5 years. A good place to access hiking trails is the “Evergreen Ridge Recreation Area,” which is just south of town. The recreation area itself has a network of trails, but there are many more trails beyond the recreation area on crown land.
The big problem with the trails is that they are unmarked and it’s easy to get lost. I’ve run into a few lost hikers out there myself. However, there are a couple of apps that have trail maps that can be followed in real time on a phone. The one I use is AllTrails, but Trailforks is good too. On AllTrails, the “Lost Lake Loop,” “Wapiti Dunes,” and “Evergreen Dunes Loop” trails can be accessed via the trail system at the “Evergreen Ridge Recreation Area.” I also have a Garmin Inreach device that I load the trail maps on to. I hike these trails year round, even in the winter. My Norwegian Elkhound, Rosa, likes to accompany me.
I decided to head out today to Lost Lake with my husband and Rosa, and I took some pictures from above with a drone. Here they are:
This wetland makes great breeding habitat for Sandhill Cranes. Indeed, I saw five of them out there today. I didn’t bring my good camera with me, and I didn’t want to fly the drone anywhere near them (I keep it away from people and wildlife), but I did get a picture of them with my cell phone camera:
I put some automated recorders out in the dunes area last year to determine what types of owls use the area. I have some out there this year. Last year, I recorded a lot of Northern Saw-whet Owls, Barred Owls, and Great Horned Owls. Today, I heard a Barred Owl making it’s classic “Who Cooks for You” call at 6:30 PM. That species apparently will sometimes call during the evening.
Peace Country Naturalist 