On the bison trail: Canada's Wild West province of Saskatchewan

By Chris Melzer Sep 27, 2011, 3:06 GMT

Saskatoon, Canada - Saskatchewan is not a place for vegetarians. Hamburgers and sausages made from bison, moose, deer or bear meat are often on the menu and moccasins and gloves are produced using animal raw materials.

But for non-vegetarians Saskatchewan is an insiders' tip where holidaymakers can experience the Wild West up close, ride horses, go canoeing, travel by dog sled, enjoy hearty food and meet friendly people. That is if you meet anyone at all.

Saskatchewan is an enormous province covering 651,000 square kilometres yet very few people live here. The province's biggest city Saskatoon, and the capital Regina, both have international airports but there are no direct flights from Europe. The majority of planes arrive from Toronto, Montreal or Minneapolis and Denver in the US. Many of the people in Saskatchewan are grain farmers with 10 per cent of global wheat production grown here. A few of the locals are cowboys -- wranglers as they're called -- who look after horses, cattle and tourists.

John almost qualifies for the cowboy cliche: country music blares from his truck and his sunglasses and belt buckle are large. A portly man, his guitar almost falls out from the truck as he emerges from behind the steering wheel. But when it comes to wrangling horses John treats them just as carefully as he does visitors to the province.

'That's Coco,' says John as he helps me into the saddle. 'She's quiet. Both of you will get on well.' We're on our way to see bison in Prince Albert National Park. John keeps one eye on his visitors and the other on the ground. 'That's bison track,' he says and points to a fresh hoofprint in the mud. A short time later fresh bison dung confirms the animals have been in the area.

John trots ahead on his horse and then raises a hand. Conversation ceases. Our group has arrived at Long Meadow. We look intently around us - and see nothing. No bison. A couple of deer gaze at us, a stag can be seen at the edge of the forest and there's even a skunk waddling across the meadow. In fact, there are plenty of animals - but not a single bison.

Our next attempt to find bison is by horse and wagon. Rancher Gord Vaadeland has brought along his father Reuben who is smiling happily from the coachman's seat. Reuben is 78-years-old and was the first of the Norwegian Vaadeland family to be born in the New World. 'We're sure to see them today,' he says encouragingly and sets the wagon on its way.

After about 90 minutes we arrive back at Long Meadow - again it appears to be a bison-free zone. 'The day's not over yet,' murmurs Reuben. Gord Vaadeland, who in the meantime scouted ahead, returns at a gallop: bison!

Our group carefully makes its way through the undergrowth. Suddenly the bison are there. They stand like black spots on the landscape, heads bowed down, and tightly packed together. A few bulls keep watch.

'Bison have a very good sense of hearing and an even better sense of smell,' whispers Gord. 'But their eyes are terrible. Don't move, stay quiet!' For several minutes the enormous creatures with huge, barrel-shaped chests graze peacefully on the prairie until one of the bulls decides to move on. Slowly the herd is set in motion and then disappears - all in total silence. 'I'd say that herd had about 70 animals,' says Gord, 'five bulls at the most.'

The bison are the park's biggest attraction but if bison-watching is not enough you can try dog sled riding in Saskatchewan. Bradley Muir offers sled riding for periods lasting from an hour to a few days. 'Customers sit in the sled while the driver stands at the rear. After watching how things work for a while they change position,' he says.

Although the guest may be in charge in fact it's the leading dog that guides the way. A quick 'Ha!' commands the leading dog to turn left, a 'Gee!' will set it to the right. That's all you need to know. There are no reins to pull and no steering wheel.

A more relaxed form of transport is provided by Morris McLachlan. His father used to remove ice from the river in winter by boat and sell it over the summer months. When electricity and refrigerators arrived in the 1970s the family started transporting park rangers at first and later tourists.

'I've had people from all over the world as passengers in my small boat,' says Morris. He's very happy every time he has a guest from a country that's not yet in his collection. Most come from Canada, 'but lots of people come from far away to get close to nature. It's important to look after them well.'