Sheep River Provincial Park

A Foothills Park Along The Sheep River With Campgrounds, A Wildlife Sanctuary For Bighorn Sheep, Hiking Trails And Mountain Views, And The Bluerock And Death Valley Routes. A Calm Alternative To The Main Kananaskis Lakes, With Wildlife Best Seen In The Cooler Season · Turner Valley, Alberta

Sheep River Provincial Park lies in the Kananaskis foothills west of Turner Valley, roughly 60 km south-west of Calgary along Highway 546 (confirm), where the prairie grass ends against the first ridges of the Front Ranges. The Sheep River runs clear and cold through a wide valley of aspen, lodgepole pine, spruce and open meadows, with limestone peaks standing along the western skyline. The park is best known for the Sheep River Wildlife Sanctuary, where bighorn sheep gather on the road shoulders and grassy benches in the colder months, and for quiet trails that see far fewer people than the Kananaskis lakes. Campgrounds such as Sandy McNabb and Bluerock offer forest sites beside the river (confirm names), and walks lead to Sheep River Falls and along Death Valley and Bluerock Creek. Elk, mule deer, black bears and cougar share the valley. A Kananaskis Conservation Pass is needed for each vehicle (confirm the price), and the park suits day trips from Calgary and Okotoks.

Sheep River Provincial Park, in the Kananaskis foothills about 60 km south-west of Calgary on Highway 546 near Turner Valley; coordinates approximate, Turner Valley, Alberta, Canada

The park is open all year, and Highway 546 is usually ploughed in winter, but services follow the season. Campgrounds, washrooms and day-use areas run mainly from about mid May to early October, with shorter availability at the edges of that period, so confirm dates before you drive out. Parts of the wildlife sanctuary and the roads beyond the main day-use areas can be closed in winter to protect sheep or because of snow (confirm closure dates). Trails are open at all hours, but daylight is short from November to February.

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