February 4, 2012 – Snakehead Natural Area with Jack and Shirley

Fran Lavoie has kindly given us directions to her natural area which is a braided river channel of the Red Deer River north of Sundre. My husband has been in the hospital since December 11^th and I welcome this time with friends away from my daily routine. In Sundre we stop at “The Chester Mjolsness World of Wildlife” that is just off the main drag. Shirley knows someone who worked on the taxidermy end of it. I had no idea that there were so many different kinds of antelope! Or sheep for that matter. The Sundre Museum is filled with historical memorabilia of every description and the three of us are attracted to different displays.

Snakehead is also the name of the local recreational area and the museum staff who have lived in the area all their lives are not familiar with the natural area of the same name “further up the road” (8 km north of the bridge). We take a road east (just north of the school bus parking area) that ends at a pumper. We climb a ridge to sit on a log in the sun and munch some snacks. We hear the pumping of the pumper, the humming of a plane overhead, some birdsong, trucks on the highway. From this height we can see the braided river channel below.

I plan to visit the east side of the natural area and I make a note to go there when I visit some of the other natural areas around Sundre. But for now, the sunshine and my friends are sufficient.