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Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park

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Cross‑province collaboration on the ground

Few protected areas in North America are overseen by two provincial governments working in tandem, and Cypress Hills offers a practical case study. Rangers from Alberta and Saskatchewan alternate patrols, sharing data on wildlife movement and fire risk, which creates a seamless visitor experience despite the political border. This joint stewardship also means funding streams are pooled for trail upgrades and interpretive signage, resulting in a consistency that can be surprising to travellers who cross the invisible line at Elkwater. For the keen observer, the subtle shift in signage colour—green in Alberta, brown in Saskatchewan—marks the jurisdictional change, yet the spirit of the park remains unified.

Seasonal light beyond the prairie horizon

The hills rise above the surrounding plains, granting a sky that seems to stretch further than elsewhere in the Prairies. In late summer, the angle of the sun creates an extended golden hour, ideal for photography and late‑day hikes. Winter brings a crisp clarity; the highland position often yields a dry, powdery snow that keeps the trails open longer than the lowlands, while the aurora borealis can be spotted on clear nights, a rarity for most of southern Canada. Visitors planning a multi‑day trek should time their arrival for either the shoulder months of May or September to balance comfortable temperatures with these unique lighting conditions.

Indigenous pathways and modern trails

Long before the park’s formal designation, the Cypress Hills formed part of an extensive network of Indigenous travel routes linking the plains to the Rockies. Modern trailheads often follow these ancient corridors, but the park’s interpretive centres now highlight the original names and purposes of these pathways, from bison hunting grounds to seasonal gathering sites. For travellers interested in a deeper narrative, arranging a guided walk with a local Indigenous interpreter adds context to the landscape’s rugged features, revealing how the hills functioned as both a refuge and a meeting point for diverse peoples across centuries.

Introduction

Interprovincial park in Western Canada Cypress Hills Interprovincial ParkIUCN category II (national park)Cypress HillsLocation of Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park in CanadaInteractive map of Cypress Hills Interprovincial ParkLocationCypress County, AlbertaRM of Maple Creek No. 111, Saskatchewan, CanadaNearest cityMedicine Hat, AB; Swift Current, SKCoordinates49°34′31″N 110°00′23″W / 49.57528°N 110.00639°W / 49.57528; -110.00639Area400 km2 (150 sq mi)Established1931 (Saskatchewan)1951 (Alberta)1989 (interprovincial)Governing bodyAlberta Environment and Parks and Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport (Saskatchewan) Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park is a natural park in Canada straddling the Alberta / Saskatchewan boundary and jointly administered by the two provinces. Located south-east of Medicine Hat in the Cypress Hills, it became Canada's first interprovincial park in 1989. The park consists of two protected areas, the 345 km2 (133 sq mi) West Block, that straddles the Alberta / Saskatchewan boundary between Alberta Highway 41, the townsite of Elkwater, Saskatchewan Highway 615, Saskatchewan Highway 271, and Fort Walsh, and the Centre Block, an additional area of 58 km2 (22 sq mi) in Saskatchewan, west of Saskatchewan Highway 21.

Geography

[edit] Main article: Cypress Hills (Canada) The Cypress Hills plateau rises up to 200 m (660 ft) above the surrounding prairie, to a maximum elevation of 1,468 m (4,816 ft) at "Head of the Mountain" at the west end in Alberta, making it Canada's highest point between the Canadian Rockies and the Labrador Peninsula. Eastward across the boundary is the highest point in Saskatchewan, at 1,392 m (4,567 ft). The "West Block" of the Cypress Hills spans the provincial boundary. Battle Creek runs through the central part of the park. Although the hills seem relatively low, in a larger geographic context the plateau does rise gradually from many kilometres away so that the total elevation gain from Medicine Hat is approximately 600 metres (2,000 ft). The vegetation of park is undergoing changes through woody plant encroachment, with a detected 1% increase of shrub cover annually.

History

[edit] 1931 — Cypress Hills Provincial Park was established in Saskatchewan. 1951 — Cypress Hills Provincial Park was established in Alberta. 1989 — On August 25, the governments of Alberta and Saskatchewan signed an agreement committing themselves to cooperation on ecosystem management, education, and park promotion. 2000 — Fort Walsh National Historic Site (located on the Saskatchewan side of the West Block) joined the collective. Together, these three partner agencies make up the park. Both Alberta and Saskatchewan provincial governments signed the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park agreement, establishing the first interprovincial park in Canada. 2001 — On August 18, Vance Petriew discovered a comet from Cypress Hills during the Saskatchewan Summer Star Party. The comet was later named 185P/Petriew. 2004 — On September 28, Saskatchewan Parks, Alberta Community Development, Parks Canada and the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada signed an agreement that declared the park a dark-sky preserve. 2011 — On August 25, the Park opened the Cypress Hills Observatory and Yurt classroom.

Activities

[edit] On both sides of the park, all year long, park interpreters present education programs to school and youth groups, adult and seniors groups, and a wide range of park visitors. During the summer months, there's camping, hiking, and swimming. During the winter, there's skiing, winter camping, snowmobiling, and other winter activities. In summertime, kayak, canoe, bicycle, and stand up paddle boards are available for rent. In the winter, kicksleds, snowshoes, skates, and cross-country skis rentals are available. Alberta[edit] On the Alberta side of West Block, key park features include Head of the Mountain Viewpoint, the highest point between the Rocky Mountains and Labrador, the Elkwater townsite (a cottage community sitting at the same elevation as the Banff townsite), Horseshoe Canyon and Reesor Lake viewpoints (offering 100-kilometre (62 mi) views on a clear day), over 50 kilometres (31 mi) of hiking and mountain biking trails, and Hidden Valley Ski Resort. Three lakes sit on the Alberta side of the park — Elkwater Lake, Spruce Coulee Reservoir, and Reesor Lake. Saskatchewan[edit] Loch Leven Like in Alberta, there are campgrounds, hiking trails, and lakes. Some of the lakes include Harris, Adams, Coulee Lake, Loch Lomond, and Loch Leven. On the shores of Loch Leven in Centre Block is a marina, the community of Loch Leven, a restaurant, swimming pool, tourist info centre, and The Resort at Cypress Hills. Winter amenities around the park include a winter picnic shelter, warm-up shacks, a tobogganing hill, a mini-luge slide, and Camp-Easy yurt rentals. There are also snowmobile and winter fat bike trails. Cypress Hills Ski Area[edit] Cypress Hills Ski Area is a cross-country ski area on the Saskatchewan side of Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park. During the winter, summer campgrounds are transformed into 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) of Cross-country skiing trails and 3.8 kilometres (2.4 mi) of snowshoeing trails. A further 27 kilometres (17 mi) of summer hiking trails are designated for cross-country skiing, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) of which are groomed.

Nature

[edit] A panorama of Cypress Hills Approximately 700 species of plants and animals thrive in the park, including 14 species of orchids. The park protects the majority of the Cypress Hills landscape, which consists of three separate elevated blocks of lush forest and fescue grassland surrounded by dry mixed-grass prairie. The West and Centre Blocks are protected as provincial parks, and are managed by Alberta Parks and Protected Areas and Saskatchewan Parks, respectively. The "East Block" of the Cypress Hills, situated near Eastend, Saskatchewan, is not a park or protected area. The Fort Walsh National Historic Site is also located adjacent to the West Block. Mammals[edit] There are five species of large hoofed mammals found in the park: wapiti, moose, mule deer, white-tailed deer, and pronghorn. Other mammals found in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park include: Eulipotyphla Masked shrew (Sorex cinereus) American pygmy shrew (Sorex hoyi) Wandering shrew (Sorex vagrans) Lagomorpha Snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) White-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus townsendii) Nuttall's cottontail (Sylvilagus nuttallii) Chiroptera Hoary bat (Aeorestes cinereus) Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) Silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) Eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) Small-footed myotis (Myotis ciliolabrum) Long-eared myotis (Myotis evotis) Little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus) Carnivora Coyote (Canis latrans) North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) Bobcat (Lynx rufus) Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) Stoat (Mustela erminea) Black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) Least weasel (Mustela nivalis) Long-tailed weasel (Neogale frenata) American mink (Neogale vison) Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Mountain lion (Puma concolor) American badger (Taxidea taxus) Northern pocket gopher (Thomomys talpoides) Swift fox (Vulpes velox) Rodentia North American beaver (Castor canadensis) Black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) Ord's kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ordii) North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) Thirteen-lined ground squirrel (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus) Sagebrush vole (Lemmiscus curtatus) Western meadow vole (Microtus drummondii) Gapper's red-backed vole (Myodes gapperi) Least chipmunk (Neotamias minimus) Bushy-tailed woodrat (Neotoma cinerea) Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) Northern grasshopper mouse (Onychomys leucogaster) White-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) Western deer mouse (Peromyscus sonoriensis) American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) Richardson's ground squirrel (Urocitellus richardsonii) Olive-backed pocket mouse (Perognathus fasciatus) Western jumping mouse (Zapus princeps) Fish species[edit] Fish species include walleye, yellow perch, northern pike, brook, brown, westslope cutthroat and rainbow trout, burbot, common carp, white sucker, and shorthead redhorse.