Elk Island National Park

This park is not in the Rockies but is known for it’s big wildlife, moose and bison. They actually have two different types of bison, the large Plains Bison and the smaller Wood Bison. These are not in a pen like a zoo but roaming the park (which is fenced in) so you can come across any of these large animals during your hike.

Wood Bison Trail

The Wood Bison Trail gives you a good chance to see large wildlife, which is exiting but always a little nerve racking, not knowing what’s around the next corner. During my hike I was walking in a heavily wooded area, with bushes about a meter high on both sides and I stumped over a tree root and apparently made a loud noise. This startled a female moose that had been lying just off the trail and it quickly got up and ran deeper into the brush. For such large animals in thick brush they do move quickly, she didn’t even hang around long enough for a picture. 🙁
The only bison I saw from the trail were at a far distance but, uhhmm, let’s just say there were plenty of indications that they had also been using the trail, and some very fresh “souvenirs”.
The trail was wet and muddy on the day I did it. Many times I had to bush wack to get around flooded sections of the trail. A few nice views of the lake but this is mostly a forest hike which was very enjoyable, as long as you remember to bring your bug spray.

There are a few more trails I wanted to explore the day I was at the park but they were closed due to bear activity. It is always interesting to see how each park treats the presence of bears differently. Some close down the area, other parks just post a notice that bears have been seen in the area, and other parks are “did you get some nice pictures?”. I always have bear spray with me in any area that might even remotely have bears – no reason not to carry it.