A bucket list trip
Canada’s most renowned sand dunes are located in Athabasca Sand Dunes Provincial Park in Saskatchewan’s northwest corner. These are the world’s most northern sand dunes and it’s an adventure in itself just to reach them. They cover about 2,000 square kilometres along a 100-kilometre stretch of shoreline on the southern edge of Lake Athabasca.
Ashlyn George is an award-winning travel writer, photographer and content creator behind her blog The Lost Girl’s Guide to Finding the World. Having travelled solo through more than 60 countries on all 7 continents, she’s a passionate storyteller in pursuit of adventure, learning and discovery. In this blog she’ll tell us all about her bucket list trip to Saskatchewan’s Athabasca Sand Dunes Provincial Park.
On her 10-days trip in summer 2022, Ashlyn experienced the most spectacular views of windswept dunes. They were comparable to far-flung destinations like the Sahara or Namib Desert. But this unique ecosystem is not a desert! Tucked between the Lakeland region of Alberta and the northern boreal forest, there is no lack of rainfall or water here.
Most dramatic of all are the dunes in the William Dune Field. They rise upwards of 33 metres in elevation and extend as far as 1.5 kilometres in length. Each one is part of a series of 40 dunes that stretches 10 kilometres from the lake’s edge to the southern horizon. Their formation began wehen glacier receded 10,000 years ago. The low-lying plains of the Athabasca formation were exposed to prevailing winds. These winds created the ridges of parabolic, rolling, linear, beach and underwater dunes seen today.
But it’s not just about the dunes out here. A rare and delicate pebbly veneer called gravel pavement covers swaths of the area. It’s home to unique sandblasted and polished rock structures called ventifacts.
Protruding from the sand in the Thompson Dune Field are the jagged remains of ancient trees – part of an exhumed forest. Years ago, the forest was engulfed by the moving sand and, over time, it’s been uncovered again by the relentless wind. There are nearly a dozen endemic plant species not found anywhere else on earth. They are specifically adapted to survive in this harsh sandy environment.
The blue jewel next to the golden dunes is Lake Athabasca. With 2,140 kilometres of shoreline and a depth of 124 metres, it’s considered an inland sea. It’s notorious for its high winds and waves and famous for its monster lake trout und northern pike. Most spectacular is the William River Delta (one of three rivers) that spills 3,000 tonnes of sand into the lake. It forms an intricate braided pattern of strips of dark river channels juxtaposed against swirls of caramel-coloured sandbars – an incredible sight best seen from the windows of a floatplane.
There are no amenities and no cell service in the area. Options to get here include boating in or landing a floatplane along the southern shore of Lake Athabasca. Access communities include Fort McMurray, Stony Rapids, Fond du Lac and Uranium City. The park can also be reached from the William River and the MacFarlane River by paddlers with whitewater canoeing experience. A trip to Athabasca Sand Dunes Provincial Park is a genuine wilderness destination for the truly adventurous.
Further information can be found at www.tourismsaskatchewan.com.
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