Parks Canada is starting a prescribed fire in the Lake Audy and Strathclair Trail area of Riding Mountain National Park. Prescribed fire operations will take place between April and May, as weather and environmental conditions allow. Early spring operations will involve treating grasslands and aspen parklands to form guards (blacklining), followed by treating boreal mixed-wood forests later this spring. (See Map 1)
Image – Jackfish Creek Map 1 – Riding Mountain National Park
Riding Mountain National Park will remain open to visitors during the prescribed fire. Some areas will be closed for short periods to ensure visitor and staff safety. (See Map 2) There will be closures in place for the following areas:
Image – Jackfish Creek Map 2 – Riding Mountain National Park
Lake Audy Bison Enclosure
Lake Audy Campground, Day Use Area, and horse corral
Lake Audy Road (from 61A to district station)
Strathclair Trail (closure at both entrances), Central Trail from eastern trailhead to Long Lake Trail junction, north section of Grasshopper Valley
Kinnis Creek, Vermillion, and Minnedosa River Backcountry campsites
The safety of people, infrastructure and neighbouring lands is always Parks Canada’s priority.
Smoke and flames may be visible from a long distance. There is a possibility that smoke may drift to areas adjacent to the park. Neighbouring residents and property owners may experience some smoky conditions due to smoke travelling outside of the prescribed fire area.
Prescribed fire allows for the targeted and safe reintroduction of fire as an important ecological process into ecosystems that would have historically relied on fire to help shape those landscapes. The Jackfish Creek prescribed fire in the Lake Audy and Strathclair Trail area aims to improve the forage for bison, elk, deer, and other grazing wildlife, to maintain and restore prairie grasslands, and reduce the risk of a high-intensity wildfire happening in Riding Mountain National Park.
There’s more information at Information Bulletin – Spring prescribed fire: Jackfish Creek (Lake Audy and Strathclair Trail area) – Bulletins – * – Riding Mountain National Park (canada.ca)
