Prince Albert National Park: First Overnight Hike & Hitchhiking Via Horse!

I chose Prince Albert National Park for my first overnight hike

Now that I was really getting into hiking on my 2017 cross-Canada motorcycle trip, I wanted to try a 2-day hike. Something about being alone in the woods really thrills me, maybe because it gives me a feeling (or illusion) of self-reliance and independence. For my first 2-day hike, I decided on the “Elk Trail” in Prince Albert National Park, located in Saskatchewan. The trailhead can be accessed via Sandy Lake campground, located in the national park.

 

 

As I rode to Prince Albert National Park, one of the distinct memories I have is that it smelled SO GOOD! I saw a black bear on the side of the road somewhere, as well as an elk! I didn’t get to Waskesui (a town located within Prince Albert National Park) until sunset, so I camped in one of the larger campgrounds. On the morning of Aug 12, I packed up my wet tent in a rush and headed to the Elk trailhead.

 

 

When I got to the Elk trailhead, I saw a truck and a horse trailer, so I knew I might have company. I laid out my wet tent to dry as I started packing for my 2-day hike, using Google’s help (since I’m a newbie!). I somehow made my 22L daypack work! Basically, I used my motorcycle luggage net to attach my sleeping bag to the daypack somehow.

Where was I going to leave my motorcycle and the REST of my stuff, you ask? Why, right at the trailhead! It’s not like I had very many other options. I honestly just didn’t feel like it was very likely that someone would steal any of my belongings. It’s just a risk I took, I guess.

 

 

Learning how not to pack… the hard way

My overloaded daypack was painful when I set out on my hike, as the straps dug into my shoulders. Hiking was HARD carrying this much weight. Fortunately, this trail was very flat and I only had to cross one stream. The mosquitoes in Prince Albert National Park were pretty bad at this time, which is the only reason I rarely stopped to take any breaks. My original plan was to hike all the way to Hunter’s Lake, a 50 km round trip that included unmaintained trails.

 

 

The hike was beautiful; the trail was wide and the trees were thin, tall and swaying. I didn’t see any bears. My mind wandered, and I felt so incredibly grateful than I was actually able to do this. I saw a bear print and a wolf print, and lots of massive dragon flies. I had to climb over a few logs, and I fell backwards the first time because I forgot how heavy my backpack was!

 

 

It took me almost 4 hours to get to Camp Lake, where I came across a small family (Danielle, Rob, and their son Landon) camped with their horses! It was the people who parked the horse trailer at the trailhead! They were really surprised I was hiking alone, and wished me luck getting to Hunter’s Lake. I soon discovered that the “unmaintained” portion of the trail to Hunter’s lake was basically un-hike-able. At one point, the trail seemed to just disappear, and no matter which direction I went in just resulted in ankle-deep mud. After falling down several times, I gave up and turned back to Camp Lake and the horse family.

 

 

Honestly, I’m glad I ended up camping with them. I can’t even imagine how creepy it would have been if I was in the dark, 4 hours into the bush, all alone. Don’t people do that all the time though? I ended up pitching my tent right in their site after they started talking about bears and wolves, haha!

 

 

One of my teenage fantasies was to travel via horse, and here I was, hanging out with people who did it all the time! They attached glow stick bracelets and bells to their horses’ halters to keep track of them at night! There were 4 horses there (3 riding horses, and one pack horse), and I tried taking selfies with all of them. I had a great time hanging out with Rob and Danielle by the fire, talking about my days working at a ranch, the importance of solitude, and what Danielle referred to as “Antiestablishmentarianism”. When you randomly meet people in the middle of the woods, every moment must be savoured. It’ll be 2 days of my life I will never forget.

 

 

Hitchhiking on a horse… and falling off!

To my delight, “the horse family” offered me a ride back to the trailhead the next morning. Due to my misadventures on the unmaintained part of the trail, they had to change their trip plans as the horses would definitely not get through to Hunter’s Lake if a girl on foot couldn’t. They actually re-packed all their luggage to make “room” for me on one of the horses (how incredibly nice!). The boy, Landon, ended up sitting on a heap of luggage, all so I could ride back.

 

 

I couldn’t even mount my horse with my backpack on because it was so heavy! It had to be handed to me only after I got on the horse! The saddle I was riding in was also Landon’s, so it was too small for me, and I couldn’t put my feet in the stirrups but instead let my legs dangle. I thoroughly enjoyed the ride back, which was faster (and easier!) than hiking, but painful. By the end of the ride, I was in agony and my legs felt like jello! Totally worth it though! The best trail ride of my life!

 

 

I actually fell off my horse too, which resulted in a bruised ego and inner thigh (which got caught on the horn as I fell off). Basically, my horse jumped over a log, which I was unprepared for, and my backpack was so heavy that I couldn’t control my body, and just fell backwards, lol! My backpack cushioned me and I was totally fine, thank goodness! I actually wasn’t in condition to ride my bike considering I could barely walk, so I decided just to camp at the Elk trailhead.

 

 

I got this weird urge to head to Sandy Lake (which was maybe a 5-minute ride, still within Prince Albert National Park) so I forced myself to pack up. Funny, I ended up staying at Sandy Lake Campground for nearly 2 weeks! And I almost didn’t even go! It’s the people that really make my memories more than the places…

 

 

Have you ever done an overnight hike alone? Would you consider it? Why or why not? Please leave your thoughts in the comments below!

 

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