The Waskahegan Trail is a walking/hiking trail that runs through and around

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

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. It is and runs through a mix of public and private land. Landowners are paid nothing. Their permission is given on the understanding that it can be withdrawn at any time for any reason. The trail is managed by a volunteer board, the Waskahegan Trail Association (WTA).

History

The beginnings of the trail started in 1967 with Fred Dorward, the trail's founder, pitching the idea to the Oil Capital

Kiwanis Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. Since 1987, the organizati ...

group who provided funding and support. Other people and organizations involved at this time were the Edmonton Regional Planning Commission, Edmonton Parks and Recreation, the Alberta Department of Youth, Alberta Public Works, the Canadian Hostelling Association, the Scouts Association, Alberta Travel, Elk Island National Park and

Grant MacEwan John Walter Grant MacEwan (August 12, 1902 – June 15, 2000) was a Canadian farmer, professor at the University of Saskatchewan, Dean of Agriculture at the University of Manitoba, the 28th Mayor of Calgary and both a Member of the Legislat ...

. The trail was named in a contest in 1967 by D.B. Remington. is Plains Cree for "house", in reference to the nearby Fort Edmonton trading post. At the same time in 1967, the Regional Trails Committee was formed to promote the trail in the '' Edmonton Journal'' and set up the group's bylaws. WTA was 'born' at 7:40 pm, March 20, 1969, at a meetings of the Regional Trails Committee. Work in earnest began in 1973 with of trail being built and the first guide book published.

Route

The trail is more or less circular in shape. Within the city of

, the trail takes advantage of the extensive set of trails and walkways within the

North Saskatchewan River valley parks system The North Saskatchewan River valley parks system, also known as the Ribbon of Green or the River Valley Parks, is a continuous collection of urban parks around the North Saskatchewan River valley in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of Alberta, ...

. Taking this as an arbitrary starting point (for this article), the Waskahegan Trail starts in northeast Edmonton's Bannerman neighbourhood, where the city's North Hermitage Park trail starts near the intersection of the

North Saskatchewan River The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows from the Canadian Rockies continental divide east to central Saskatchewan, where it joins with the South Saskatchewan River to make up the Saskatchewan River. Its water flows event ...

and 144 Avenue. From this point it runs southwest through the North Saskatchewan River valley parks system, diverting from this system at the Whitemud Creek, progressing in a more southerly direction along the Whitemud until it intersects

Blackmud Creek Blackmud Creek is a Stream, creek in Edmonton that flows into Whitemud Creek. The creek starts at Saunders Lake (Alberta), Saunders Lake East of Nisku, Alberta, Nisku and runs northwest into the City, joining Whitemud Creek in the neighbourhood of ...

, continuing south until exiting to street level at

Ellerslie Road The following is a list of the east–west arterial thoroughfares in the city of Edmonton, Alberta. Numbered avenues run east-west with avenues numbers increasing to the north. In 1982 a quadrant system was adopted. Quadrant Avenue (1 Avenue; only ...

, the first gap in the trail. The trail picks up at Saunders Lake, directly east of

Edmonton International Airport Edmonton International Airport, as of August 29, 2022, officially branded YEG Edmonton International Airport is the primary air passenger and air cargo facility in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of the Canadian province of Alberta. Designat ...

. From there, it continues south to Coal Lake, which feeds into the Battle River in the

Wetaskiwin Wetaskiwin ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. The city is located south of the provincial capital of Edmonton. The city name comes from the Cree word ''wītaskiwinihk'', meaning "the hills where peace was made". Wetaskiwin is ...

area. From here, the trail turns east along the Battle River from Gwynne towards Driedmeat Lake, but before reaching the lake, it turns north to Camrose. North of Camrose is the second gap, with the trail picking up again at

Miquelon Lake Provincial Park Miquelon Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park in Alberta, Canada, about 65 kilometres southeast of the city of Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatch ...

, continuing north through the Ministik Lake Bird Sanctuary, the Hastings Lake area, and the Cooking Lake–Blackfoot Recreation Area to Elk Island National Park. From Elk Island, the trail turns west along Ross Creek to

Fort Saskatchewan Fort Saskatchewan is a city along the North Saskatchewan River in Alberta, Canada. It is northeast of Edmonton, the provincial capital. It is part of the Edmonton census metropolitan area and one of 24 municipalities that constitute the Edmo ...

. The third and final gap is between Fort Saskatchewan and the starting point in Edmonton.

Trees and tall shrubs in the Waskahegan area

Mammals of the Waskahegan area

References

WTA website
* ''The Waskahegan Trail Guide Book'', 2009 ed. {{coord missing, Alberta Hiking trails in Alberta Trans Canada Trail