We have a standing item in our calendar to ensure we hike Stoney Creek every mid-July. That’s when the prickly pear cactus is in bloom. This species is normally confined to southern Alberta, but it finds a perfect home on the slopes of the hoodoos in the McGhee Basin.

This year, we were provided with an extra amount of rain which created a showy abundance of many other kinds of wildflowers, some rarely seen. Nineteen people came out to step around the puddles, explore the field and hillsides, and enjoy great conversation and camaraderie.