Northeast Swale

Many members of Wild About Saskatoon also volunteer with the Swale Watchers, and on September 22nd, the two organizations hosted a meditative walk through the Northeast Swale to celebrate the fall equinox. A dozen participants arrived prepared to enjoy a break from routine and to feel the fleeting warmth of the evening sun.

After introductions, Nikki Kennedy led the group through a tailored meditation that connected everyone to each other and to the natural rhythms of the Swale.

Nikki Moggey shared a handout with prompts to guide a sensory walk through the crisp air, to support experiencing the contrasting landscape. The suggestions on the handout would support a person in carrying out a similar meditative sensory walk in other nature places.

Participants crouched down to feel fuzzy prairie sage creeping across the trail, scented the rich aroma of sage on their fingers, leaned towards the delicate curls of blue grama grass swaying in the wind, and reached out to touch the layers of vibrant and subtle coloured lichens blanketing the rocks, listened to the migrating geese honking farewell from above, and appreciated the rapid transitions of autumn that connect the overwhelming heat of sultry summer to the breath-taking cold of crisp winter.

We encourage you to look at your calendar and find time to be present in one of your favourite locations to experience it fully during the fall, and then continue your sensory exploration of that place through the winter and spring. Nature in Saskatoon offers unique sensations every day, in every way, and in every season. Start now! If you’re not sure where to go, take a peek at some of our previous adventure guides for inspiration, or reach out to us with specific questions.

We plan on hosting another outdoor sensory experience at the Northeast Swale soon, so watch our social media closely for details! Attendance will be limited, so register early. Or, if you wish to go independently with your friends/family, or even your work colleagues, the hand-out for the sensory walk is attached, to provide suggestions for observing with all your senses.

– Nikki Moggey

With my feet firmly planted on a rock, I feel a fresh breeze blowing in, rustling through last year’s dry grass. Spring has come to the prairies, and there is no better place to celebrate this wondrous time than at the Northeast Swale. The Swale is a unique and unassuming landscape. From afar it may just look like an open field on the edge of a growing city. But it is certainly more than that, with wetlands nestled in an ancient river channel and endangered grasslands in between and around them.

Soon this place will be alive with flowers, birds, bugs, and many other critters. I am always happy to welcome back the migrating birds and find my first crocus here. Grasslands contain a miniature world around our feet, and you may need to take a closer look to find the flowers. Some are smaller than my pinky nail, but no less beautiful or important for that. These first blooms are vital to our early pollinators.

My favourite place to walk is along the ridges, as they are rich in biodiversity. Nestled between the rocks you’ll find many different flowering plant communities. In the cracks, these prairie plants eke out their tiny existence, and it always amazes me that flowers can grow with so few resources. At this time of year you are sure to find crocuses, moss phlox, and soon-to-bloom three-flowered avens.

After walking the ridges I always make sure to take a break from looking down, and spend some time watching the wetlands and the skies for birds. As the ice breaks up, ducks will come and go, and shorebirds will scurry along the waters edge. Keep an eye out for hawks, circling on the hunt for lunch, and listen for the meadowlarks melodic spring song.

Getting to know a place is a real joy, watching it change through the seasons, finding new things while walking the same paths. Even though I’ve been here dozens of times, each visit still feels a little like an “adventure”. So if you are ready to celebrate the prairies in spring (but don’t want to leave the city), make your next adventure a visit to the Swale.

– Meghan Mickelson

All photos © Meghan Mickelson