You wouldn’t expect to see hoodoos in the middle of Saskatchewan’s pasture lands.
Located about 75 km from Moose Jaw and Regina on private land is Avonlea Badlands which protects one of the most unique landscapes found in Saskatchewan.
The Avonlea Badlands offers scenic views of stone-capped hoodoos and buttes, clear skies and stunning sunsets and you can visit this private land on a guided tour offered by the Avonlea Heritage Museum.
The tours of these scenic badlands began in 2013 with the goal to protect this beautiful landscape while still allowing thousands of people to have access to it.
On your 3 km hike to the badlands, you will get to see many native plants including cacti unique to the area.
You will be surprised to see the prairie pasture drastically giving away to the awe-inspiring landscape sculpted by millions of years of glacial erosions – the area was once covered by an inland sea and then by a large glacier. You can see various badlands topography here — deep drainage channels, steep ridges, buttes and hoodoos.
Tours are available twice a day (morning and evening) throughout the week. The morning tours are wonderful if you want to discover some of the wildlife that inhabits this region. If you want to take some wonderful pictures or watch the sunset the evening tours are perfect for that.
These guided tours take about an hour and a half to complete. Since the property is privately owned, you have to book your tour in advance.
After or before your guided tour, explore Avonlea Heritage Museum which is located inside 1912 CN train station and learn more about the history of the surrounding area. There is also a CN Cook Car, St. David’s Anglican Church, Pioneer Display Building and murals by Paul Geraghty on the site.
Saskatchewan has many unique attractions including sand dunes, crooked trees and Canada’s own Dead Sea. Plan a weekend in the area as Avonlea Badlands is located near Castle Butte – a towering sandstone and clay structure.
Avonlea Badlands
What: Spend some time at Avonlea Heritage Museum learning all about life in this area Saskatchewan. At The Avonlea Heritage Museum, you can learn about its vast history and the history of the surrounding area. This includes the rich history of Avonlea: pre-history, indigenous history and settlement. Book a guided tour to the private Avonlea Badlands which is located 4km outside of the Village of Avonlea. See various kinds of badland landforms while learning about the geology, archeology and paleontology of this region.
When:
Badland tour: visit the website for the tour schedule, May to Labour Day Weekend
Museum: May-August, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m
How much:
Museum: $5 for adults (18+)| $3 for student
Badland Tour:
$20/ Adults (18+)
$15/ Ages 12-17
$10/ Ages 5-11
Free/ Under 5
Where:
Address: 219 Railway Ave, Avonlea, SK S0H 0C0
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