with Heinz Unger
July 5&6, 2025
Milk River Canyon and White Rock Coulee (Meeting location details will be emailed to participants a few days before the event)
Difficulty: Moderate to difficult (10-12 km of off-trail hiking each day, with moderate elevation gain)

We will hike through two different Badlands-type landscapes that – due to their remoteness – are rarely visited provincially protected areas. We will do “reverse hikes”, i.e. start out by hiking downhill and hopefully have enough energy to come back up again, especially during a hot day. This will be the best time to visit the area because the Prickly Pear and the Pincushion Cactus should be in full bloom. There are also wildflowers and many rare native plants in the prairie coulees, such as milkweed, beardtongues and sagebrush. The hikes will be a live geology tour as we descend through about 200 vertical metres of geological layers with a great variety of colours and textures. In the river valley (Milk River and South Saskatchewan River, respectively), the poplars provide cooling shade, and dips in the river await. There are great views of the Sweetgrass Hills from the Milk River hike.

Why join this adventure?

It’s a rarely visited area and access is a bit difficult to find the first time around. It’s a great opportunity to see great expanses of natural prairie grasslands and pronghorn antelopes but also fields of pulses (lentils and peas).

Logistics and preparation:

An early start (5 am) from the Calgary area gets you to the Milk River Canyon trailhead in good time on the first day. There’s good accommodation, including camping, available in Medicine Hat or also in the Village of Burstall (south of Empress on the Sask. side of the border) near the trailhead for the White Rock coulee hike. Accommodations will not be arranged by AWA.

Note: Access to White Rock requires informing the grazing lease holder through whose lease we will travel to access the coulee.

Required equipment:

Lots of water and a good head cover. It can be very hot, but also very slippery after rain.

Hiking boots, a backpack with additional clothing, and trekking poles are advised. Bring bear spray and a trail lunch for both days.

Warning: Rattlesnakes are occasionally encountered in these area but their warning by rattle usually works. Another risk is stepping or falling on a spiny cactus. Watch your step, and wear closed-toed shoes and gaiters!

About the Coordinator: Heinz has lived in the Ghost Valley for 25 years, enjoys hiking the backcountry and still finds new trails (with the help of other old timers). Heinz first ‘discovered’ these coulees when paddling down the prairie rivers 20 years ago. By joining in this adventure you will also help Heinz achieve his “What’s Your 60 Challenge”, which is to lead at least 60 hikers out into the Ghost Country in the summer of 2025.

Register below by donation