Spruce Woods Provincial Park is located in south-central

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

where the

Assiniboine River The Assiniboine River (''; french: Rivière Assiniboine'') is a river that runs through the prairies of Western Canada in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It is a tributary of the Red River of the North, Red River. The Assiniboine is a typical meand ...

passes through the

delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta") * Delta Air Lines, US * Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19 Delta may also re ...

of sediment left by the last

glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...

. An area of open and stabilized sand dunes within the park provides habitat to species of plants and animals not found elsewhere in Manitoba. In descending order of land area contained, the park lies within the Rural Municipalities of South Cypress,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, and North Cypress. The Government of Manitoba designated the area a provincial park in 1964. The park is in size. The park is considered to be a Class II protected area under the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

protected area management categories. In 2020 it was designated a Canadian

Dark-Sky Preserve A dark-sky preserve (DSP) is an area, usually surrounding a park or observatory, that restricts artificial light pollution. The purpose of the dark-sky movement is generally to promote astronomy. However, astronomy is certainly not the only obje ...

by the

Royal Astronomical Society of Canada Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ci ...

History

Several Manitoba Historical Plaques have been placed within the park: * to commemorate

Assiniboine The Assiniboine or Assiniboin people ( when singular, Assiniboines / Assiniboins when plural; Ojibwe: ''Asiniibwaan'', "stone Sioux"; also in plural Assiniboine or Assiniboin), also known as the Hohe and known by the endonym Nakota (or Nakoda ...

(Nakota) First Nation's role in Manitoba's heritage. * to commemorate Norman Criddle's role in Manitoba's heritage. * to commemorate Fort des Épinettes - Pine Fort's role in Manitoba's heritage.

Amenities

The Carberry Sandhills, or Spirit Sands is one of a very few areas of sand dunes in Canada. This region is not a true desert, but the remnant of a sandy

of the

, from a time when it ran into glacial

Lake Agassiz Lake Agassiz was a large glacial lake in central North America. Fed by glacial meltwater at the end of the last glacial period, its area was larger than all of the modern Great Lakes combined. First postulated in 1823 by William H. Keating, it ...

. The sandhills are home to many unique plants and animals; including some

cacti A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...

and

hognose snakes Hognose snake is a common name for several unrelated species of snake with upturned snouts, classified in 2 colubrid snake genera and 1 pseudoxyrhophiid snake genus. They include the following genera: *''Heterodon'', which occur mainly in th ...

. There are several hiking trails in the park open to day hikers, and backpackers can take the Newfoundland Trail for an overnight trip into the park. The

Trans Canada Trail The Trans Canada Trail, officially named The Great Trail between September 2016 and June 2021, is a cross-Canada system of greenways, waterways, and roadways that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, Pacific to the A ...

also passes through the Park. Newfoundland Trail is a part of the Épinette Creek Trail System located within the park. Beginning at a parking lot off PTH 5, the trail twists (38 km) through the hills to Jackfish Lake near the

. The trail is available year-round and is groomed during the Winter for cross-country skiers. Three enclosed shelters are available along the trail, each with bathroom, waterpump, indoor stove, axe and firewood. Alongside each shelter are picnic tables and space for several tents. A smaller hut at the trailhead is available but has no water pump. The trail is clearly marked at junctions and service road crossings to guide hikers. Many cyclists enjoy riding on the

Epinette Trail System Epinette can refer to: * Chardonnay, a wine grape that is also known as Epinette * Saint-Pierre Doré, another wine grape that is also known as Epinette * Epinette des Vosges, a diatonic fretted zither from the Vosges region of France * Spinet, smal ...

each year. There are a series of loops that carve their way through unique terrain.

References

External links

Find Your Favorite Park: Spruce Woods Provincial ParkCarberry Desert and Spirit Sands: A Guide to Manitoba’s Unique Sand Dunes
{{Authority control Provincial parks of Manitoba Hiking trails in Manitoba Protected areas established in 1961 1961 establishments in Manitoba Dark-sky preserves in Canada Protected areas of Manitoba

History

Amenities

See also

References

External links