Landowner Rights & Trail User Responsibilities

The Waskahegan Trail is a unique resource that exists only because of the generosity of landowners. Before you set foot on the trail:

  1. Know the landowner rights and the trail user responsibilities.
  2. Check the trail conditions

Clearing Saunders Lake Trail

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We used the predator & mower to clear some horrible nettle, thistle and other attacking growth and usual brush; chained, signed, clipped and cleared from A29 to A30, the wooded part of Saunders’ trail.
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At A29 we replaced the rotting sunken bridge with a longer one bank to bank. 004002

It seems the road allowance at A30 is still being abused. Another new fence on either side cut, as well as lots of garbage by the fire which also was filled with broken glass. We cleared up what we could.

We had hoped to get from A30 to A33 as well to check the signing and stiles and deadfall. It has not been looked at for a few years as it is usually well kept by the cows grazing and being open has little to no deadfall.

After a mornings work and lunch by the lake in the breeze, we went to Nisku for coffee at Tim’s.
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Hike to Horseshoe Lake via Ministik Bird Sanctuary

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The levelness of this hike was a contrast to last week’s up-and-down scramble where we had dizzying, but impressive views over the Bigstone Creek.

This time our destination was Horseshoe Lake, via the Ministik Bird Sanctuary. Gladys, our hike leader, gave us a short background history.

The eleven of us arrived at the lunch spot early. Our efficiency could only be due to the meticulous and thorough maintenance on the trail carried out by crews in the previous week.

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Some of the hikers tried to carry on past the lunch spot. But they returned soon after when they ran up against the luxuriant undergrowth—starting exactly where trail maintenance had stopped.

This hike will go down in memory for the number and variety of mushrooms and fungi. (But where—Oh! where did the dickie birds go?) One mushroom we saw is a “wood apple,” aptly named because it looked for all the world like a brightly coloured gala apple crouched on the ground.

Rose apple and other fungi

 

Ministik Bird Sanctuary

Ministik Bird Sanctuary

Rose apple fungus

 

 

Another rare feature we came across was a peat bog inhabited with plant species that were quite different from the surrounding forest.

Altogether it was an excellent hike with ease of travel, plenty of cooling shade, remarkable botanical features and, of course, congenial company.

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Visit our Flickr album to see the rest of the pictures.