Elk Island Park: or, when you not see any elk on your daytrip

How did I get out to a park that is an hour drive away? (Yes that counts as a daytrip.) These are the questions that should keep you awake at night. Well, my dad's colleague, who lives in this city, was kind enough to drive me to the Elk Island park!

Along the way, I heard many fascinating stories about Alberta's history. For one, Edmonton started out as a fort with 40 people and over a human life time grew into a city with 150,000 people. One thing that impresses me about Canada is how relative city size can be compared to population density. Much of the drive did not feature much other than straight roads. Fortunately, as the snow is partially melting, the roads stayed clear. But we also got the benefits of Elk Island retaining much of the fresh snowfall from the previous day!

You *would* see a picture of the Elk Island Park sign but unfortunately it was extremely blurry. Instead, you'll see the photos I took during our driving tour. These are the better photos anyways!

 Though Alberta does not seem to have many evergreen trees, I took this beautiful shot early in. As I learned, beavers tend to use these kinds of trees to make their homes, which is why these trees tend to be less prevalent. So it was a great sight to see! Speaking as an Oregonian, the sight of evergreen trees fills me with life, and they are one slice of life I truly miss.

Elk Island featured an array of interesting angles, with all kinds of slight curves that lead to beautiful sights. As I was told, people like to come to Elk Island around this time of year to paint -- with all the wonderful shadows coating the snow, I can see why!

Elk Island featured some impressive panoramas.

 Some areas looked more like swamps but with snow instead of ice, with little tufts of plants sticking out. This park is surprisingly diverse in its geography. In addition to lakes, there are also many camping sites. And even hiking trails! Unfortunately, our driving tour did not take us to these trails, but it really does impress me how many different sights are in one park. This park, known for being relatively untouched over the past 150 years, really does earn its prestige!

Now, bear with me. The park is called Elk Island, but it's actually a worldwide-renowned buffalo conservation site! ARound a century ago, the Canadian government had the foresight to save a buffalo population and grow it. Now these creatures seem on the shyer side, so we did not get to go right up to them.

But it was really cool to see the buffalo! Despite their size, they are rather chill creatures, I must say. It was quite the shock for me actually -- somehow I imagined the buffalo as not really here anymore, so it was a welcome surprise to see them here!

An elk crossing sign but no elk....    :(

More cool photos!

Like I said, this *is* also a camping site as well!

 Below is....actually a lake! Surprise, surprise.

Before leaving the park, we did see more buffalo!

 Well, you might be wondering. So this *was* a daytrip, right? Well, technically, we were out from 9 am to 1 pm.

But as we drove back to the city, we got the chance to drive past various sites, including the Ukrainian traditional village. Below is an awe-inspiring egg that had to be carefully assembled from many metal pieces. As I hear it, this egg is an incredible engineering feat.

To be honest, much of the drive back was not *that* different. But one cool experience was seeing what a farming town looks like in Alberta. There are still many pickup trucks, and it does seem like the stores are either big brand names (yes including a Walmart) or small local shops. I got to see what the life of a rural Alberta town is like, which is very different from what I mostly see here.

My guide was very kind and took us back into the city from another entrance as well! Though the industrial areas just outside the city all look the same to me, we got the chance to see some outlying districts of the city that I have not been to before. Rather than being the end of my travels *within* the city -- this trip kickstarted my desire to understand this place even more.

However, I do hope to travel to places like Calgary and St Albert and take a proper day trip. Maybe by myself, or maybe with others, but I feel excited knowing I still have places to visit!

My time here is just below 4 months. I must make the best of it!