Lac du Bois - Recreation Area

Where sagebrush meets pine
and just minutes above my 
house - all year delight

~carliewired

I slept until after 8, made my pot of coffee and waited for my daughter so we could brunch together. It's been a lovely, lazy Sunday. 

About 11:30 we drove up the Batchelor Hills Road and onto the Lac du Bois Road. We were going to have a look at the Lac du Bois Grasslands Protected Area, a place for wildlife and recreation, just minutes northwest of my house. 

I haven't been up this road since I retired in 2009. My last venture here was taking my class to the McQueen Lake Environmental Centre for several days. 

I needed my pickup today as the route is all gravel and often in need of grading. Today, there were stretches of washboard that rattled my truck and us. 

The views are beautiful. It is almost 16,000 hectares. There are many lakes and ponds. There is open range for cattle and we found some. There are hiking trails and routes for mountain bikes and dirt bikes. The area is home to much wildlife, although today the only wildlife I encountered was a dirt bike rider who passed on a corner at breakneck speed. We saw kayakers on Lac du Bois. Ducks were everywhere. The birch trees are a stunning yellow. The grasslands have been baked in our hot spell in summer. Some of the ponds have dried up entirely. 

I drove as far as the turnoff for McQueen Lake, then turned around to take the same route home. I caught the tops of my mountains across the sagebrush as I drove down into my neighbourhood. 

I'm in for the rest of the day. It will be a quiet one. 

We have a mix of sun and cloud today with a high of 11 C. We can expect rain this evening and into tomorrow.