I enjoyed the years I worked and lived in Calgary. I met many nice people and there were lots of interesting things to see and do in and around the city. My favorite free-time activity was hiking, ideally in the Rocky Mountains on weekends. But it was great to go hiking after work in Fish Creek Provincial Park, which in retrospect was my favorite place to spend time in Calgary.
Fish Creek Park is an urban park centered around a valley carved by glaciers, in which Fish Creek now flows. Fish Creek extends about 12 miles west to east; its western end is a hilly area surrounded by a natural pine, aspen and birch forest.
(Trails in the western portion of Fish Creek Provincial Park)
Fish Creek flows into the Bow River in the eastern end of the park, this area being much flatter and with more open grassland than the western portion of Fish Creek Park.
(The land around the eastern portion of Fish Creek Park is flat
and relatively open)
Fish Creek is one of the largest urban parks in Canada, with more than 100 km (62 mi) of paved and unpaved trails, making it a popular place to hike and bike. I spent hundreds of hours wandering, enjoying and exploring the park. During the long cold winter months, many of the trails were plowed and open for walking. Even if it was cold, winter days in Calgary are often sunny and conducive to walking if you dress properly.
(Hiking trails around the Bow River)
The Bow River lies on the eastern end of Fish Creek Park and is a major river. It is also a popular place for fly-fishing and rafting during the summer months.
Fish Creek Park is a natural area and I commonly saw wildlife — especially mule deer, but also coyotes, beaver, garter snakes, great blue herons, bald eagles and osprey. Black bears and mountain lions are sometimes spotted, but I never saw any. There were lots of different types of birds around, like the black headed gulls floating on the Bow in the photo below. I presume they were gorging themselves on an insect hatch.
The Bow River flooded heavily in the Spring of 2013. Many of the trails were inaccessible and a number were ruined and needed to be rebuilt. Flooding is not common, but destructive when it happens.
(2013 flood of the Bow River, Calgary)
Among the pleasures of hiking are finding little treasures. For example, the prairie crocus is a rather uncommon flower that blooms for a short period in early spring. There was a small hill in Fish Creek Park where they grew, and where I could go to enjoy them as they heralded the arrival of spring.
(prairie crocus in bloom, Fish Creek Provincial Park)
I enjoyed spotting items like lichen growing on this polished granite boulder…
Or chokecherry bushes with their fall colors, in a stand of aspen…and so much more.
There are a several bridges that span Fish Creek and the Bow River, as you can see from the following photos. The bottom bridge photo was used as last weekend’s One Clue Photo Mystery. It was recognized by the talented travel sleuth, George G. Congratulations, George!
I close this post with a photo of an evening storm passing over Fish Creek Park….
