| Douglas Provincial Park | |
|---|---|
 Sacred stone in Douglas Provincial park (Lake Diefenbaker and Qu'Appelle Dam in background) | |
  Location of Douglas Provincial Park within Saskatchewan Show map of Saskatchewan Douglas Provincial Park (Canada) Show map of Canada | |
| Location |  Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Nearest city | Elbow |
| Coordinates | 51°02′57″N106°28′07″W / 51.0491°N 106.4686°W /51.0491; -106.4686 |
| Area | 6,300 ha (16,000 acres) |
| Established | 1973 |
| Governing body | Saskatchewan Parks |
 | |
Douglas Provincial Park[1] is aprovincial park in theCanadian province ofSaskatchewan. Established in 1973, it is named afterTommy Douglas, the seventhpremier of Saskatchewan and father of Canada's firstsingle-payer,universal health care programme. The park is located along the Gordon McKenzie Arm[2] ofLake Diefenbaker and at theQu'Appelle River Dam, which is the source of theQu'Appelle River. The closest community isElbow and access to the park is fromHighway 19.[3]
Attractions to the park include access to Lake Diefenbaker, camping, hiking, and the Elbow Sand Hills.[4] Less than 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of the park and just south of Elbow is Harbor Golf Club & Resort.[5]
Located on the shores of Lake Diefenbaker, the largest body of water in southern Saskatchewan, Douglas Provincial Park has many recreational activities associated with the lake from swimming[6] to boating to fishing. Inside the park, there is acampground, hiking trails, picnic area, andsand dunes.
There are 150 campsites in total, 140 of which are electrified. Campground services include laundry facilities, potable water, washrooms/showers, sani-dump, convenience store, concession stand, and a fish cleaning station.[7]
Douglas Provincial Park has two different trail systems–theTrans Canada Trail and the Dunes Nature Centre Trail. The portion of the Trans Canada Trail in the park is about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) long and it begins at the beach. It winds its way around the campground throughbirch forests and flat prairie with views of Lake Diefenbaker. The Trans Canada Trail continues on out of the park and heads north for about 30 kilometres (19 mi) towardsDanielson Provincial Park. The Dunes Nature Centre Trails system is made up of different trails that traverse different parts of the sand dunes.[8][9]
TheElbow Sand Hills,[10] also known as Sand Hills[11] and Douglas Sand Dunes, are glacially depositedsand dunes[12] that cover an area of about 13,500 ha (33,000 acres) at the head of the Qu'Appelle River. The tallest dune is almost 30 metres (98 ft) high and more than a kilometre long.[13]
The Elbow Sand Hills, and neighbouringGreat Sand Hills, were formed about 12,000 years ago near the end of thelast ice age. As the glaciers were retreating, they createdproglacial lakes, spillways (South Saskatchewan Valley andQu'Appelle Valley), and huge piles of sandy debris,glacial till, andmoraines. This debris is what makes up the sand dunes.[14]
Flora found in and around the dunes includes prairie grasses,western spiderworts,aspens,prickly pear cacti, and ball cacti.[15]
Media related toDouglas Provincial Park at Wikimedia Commons