Visiting Grasslands National Park
While visiting family in Montana, I found myself right across the border from Grasslands National Park in Canada. While not the most ideal for light (I would not be there for either sunrise or sunset), I decided to take a day trip and check it out.
The border was lightly closed, so I was able to walk through the United States gate into the in-between-the-fences area. There I found, in the most glorious light I would see all day, the official boundary monuments. The light degraded quickly while I waited for the border to open, and I ended up with a smokier sky from the fires in Alberta.
In Canada, what I know as a cattle guard is called a Texas gate. Alas, I did not see any “stock at large.”
Beautiful mossy rocks were scattered around the Top Dogtown Trail.
I came across a number of prairie dog colonies. This portion of Canada is the upper end of their natural range in North America.
This chunk of pink granite (a glacial erratic) has been used by many generations of bison for scratching their backs. It is itself about the size of a bison.
While at the next stop over from the Timbergulch Trail, I saw two hikers with their dog. I only spoke with one person inside of the park, and saw very few others.
After following a short, but increasingly sketchy trail, I came to this bend in the Frenchman River.
As I was returning from the river, I came across an old corral that belonged to the 76 Ranch (1876–1921).
This is the view of the Frenchman River Valley from the Belza rest area.
Larson Trail takes you down to the Frenchman River. I believe the homesteader here, Walt Larson, used this as a crossing point.
Birds were abundant along the one-mile loop of Larson Trail. I was able to get close enough to a few of them for photos.
There are a few remaining private residences within park boundaries, currently classified as “land in transition.” This horse seemed to belong to the ranch near Otter Creek.
After driving about as deep into the park as I could, I came to Borderlands Lookout. It did not disappoint.
Trust me, your eyes do not need to see these chairs and my shoes together in color.
To top off the day, a bald eagle was watching as I returned to the States.
And as a final note, I will say that I spent a grand total (both directions) of maybe two minutes talking to the border agents. My crossings were as simple as I could have possibly hoped.
