Elk Island National Park

We asked Brent what he wanted for Father’s day and he said “Camping, please.” We had a thing on Saturday and another thing on Sunday, so we could only go for 24 hours. I reserved a site at Elk Island National Park.

It’s less than an hour’s drive from our house in Edmonton, so a totally do-able quick trip and the perfect opportunity to test out our rig for the longer trips we’re planning this summer. Also, it’s gorgeous. It’s a Prairie Safari. The white flecks in this photo are nesting birds.

One of the big attractions is the Bison Loop road. From the safety of the Mothership we steered our car-seated kids through a herd of bison who had just finished calving. They complained all the way about how incredibly boring it is to be stuck in the van and then started shouting ecstatically about baby buffalo and proclaimed it THE BEST THING EVER.

This guy isn`t camera shy.

Oddly, the herd of bison do not stop munching on grass to deliver shocked and reproachful glares when a baby buffalo needs buffalo numnums.

A baby and a yearling.

This one’s horns are pointing in different directions.

There are plenty of stunning hikes to choose from. Some are all day epics and some are short and spectacular. We choose a few that were under 5K and made a day out of it. There is so much wildlife to see. We saw tons of ducks and geese and a muskrat on this boardwalk.

This is just a family of geese with 7 fluffy yellow goslings swimming across silvery Astotin Lake.

This is just a Canadian Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly drinking some nectar from a Wild Honeysuckle.

Our littlest hiker exploring the park.

Our littlest hiker having a nap.

A good spot for a picnic.

I like the dragonfly in this photo. See it? Top right corner.

Happy Father’s day, Brent. You are so loved.

XOXO

Marlene, Hazel, Oliver, Josephine & Gus