When people think about the highest point in Alberta, or British Columbia, they usually picture massive mountains, that stretch up through the clouds and towards the heavens. However, what do they think about when trying to imagine the highest point in Saskatchewan? Is it Cypress Hills? Or Northern Saskatchewan’s Athabasca Sand Dunes? If it’s either of those they would be wrong.
The highest point in Saskatchewan isn’t a point at all. It’s a flat piece of land in the middle of a farmer’s field! It’s a very fitting landmark for this province, especially since Saskatchewan license plates used to have the slogan “The Wheat Province”. The field isn’t wheat though. It is currently being used as grazing land for cattle. It is very reminiscent of the TV show Yellowstone.
So where exactly is the highest point in Saskatchewan? It’s along the western side of the province, a few miles south of the western block of Cypress Hills. It sits 1392 meters (4567 feet) above sea level, which makes it 500 meters higher than neighbouring Manitoba’s highest point, Baldy Mountain.
The journey to get here takes you along dirt roads and over several cattle guards. There’s one point along the drive, when heading here from Elkwater, where the road heads north/south along the Saskatchewan/Alberta border. While driving it, if I looked to the west, I could see cattle grazing on a flat Albertan field, and if I looked to the East, I could see cattle grazing on a flat Saskatchewan field. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought I spent the entire time in the same province.
The road is lined with barbed wire fences to keep the cattle in. However, most of the fences were in disrepair. This allowed the cattle, and non-domesticated wildlife, like Pronghorns, to roam freely. There were several instances where the cattle were huddled in the middle of the roadway, looking like a gang of outlaws, ready to commit a robbery. This, combined with the lack of vegetation, and no visible human habitation, created a post-apocalyptic-like vibe, which stood in stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of Saskatchewan’s capital city, Regina, which I had experienced the day before.
