| Porcupine Hills Provincial Park | |
| Iucn Category: | V |
| Photo Width: | 255 |
| Map: | Saskatchewan#Canada |
| Relief: | yes |
| Map Width: | 255 |
| Nearest City: | Hudson Bay |
| Coordinates: | 52.4592°N -102.3819°W |
| Established: | 2018 |
| Governing Body: | Saskatchewan Parks |
Porcupine Hills Provincial Park[1] is the newest provincial park in the Canadian Province of Saskatchewan. It was created in 2018[2] through the amalgamation of five pre-existing provincial recreation sites south-east of the town of Hudson Bay.[3] The park is in the Porcupine Provincial Forest in the Porcupine Hills, which is a geographical feature in eastern Saskatchewan and western Manitoba. The hills are part of a range of hills called the Manitoba Escarpment.
Initial consultation for the creating of the park began in 2011 with local First Nations, Métis people, and other stakeholders to share information, identify concerns, and come up with a name. Porcupine Hills Provincial Park was the overwhelmingly favourite choice.
The park's total area is and is composed of five previously existing recreation parks that were divided between two blocks. The original names for these blocks were Woody River Block and McBride Lake Block. After the creation of the park, these blocks were renamed East Block and West Block with new names to be determined at a later date. The East and West Blocks are quite different in landscape and cultural features with the West Block consisting of open grasslands mixed aspen, birch, and white spruce while the East Block is covered in dense evergreen forests and lakes. The East Block has several campgrounds, a year-round lodge, and a cottage subdivision while the West Block has two campgrounds and three cottage subdivisions. Four of the five original recreation parks are in the West Block. The Woody River Recreation Site plus additional Crown land makes up the East Block.[4]
The West Block is composed of four separate recreation sites.
Woody River Recreation Site [18] consists of separate parcels of land plus additional Crown land centred around several lakes, Woody River, and Midnight Creek in the Porcupine Hills. Access is from Highway 980, which connects all of the lakes and amenities in the park, and by snowmobile. When travelling by snowmobile from the town of Hudson Bay, there are two warm-up shelters along the way.[19] Accessible lakes within the East Block include Isbister, Spirit, Smallfish, Woody, Elbow, and Townsend. All six lakes have boat access and fish commonly found in the lakes include walleye, perch, and northern pike. Campsites and picnic areas exist at Spirit, Isbister, Smallfish, and Townsend Lakes.[20] A rough ATV trail begins at the Spirit Lake Campground and heads north-east past Spirit Mountain and goes to Armit Lake, which is the largest lake in the Porcupine Hills.
Rental cabins are available within the park at Moose Range Lodge on Townsend Lake. The lodge is the centre for snowmobiling in the area and has a restaurant, gasoline, and groceries.[21] The 14-kilometre network of snowmobile trails are maintained by Hudson Bay Trail Riders.[22]
Almost 20 different types of trees are found in the boreal forest of Porcupine Provincial Park. Some of the more common evergreen trees include spruce, fir, and pine. Deciduous trees include trembling aspen, balsam poplar, and birch. A variety of birds make the park home including ducks, loons, kingfishers, and grebes. Mammals include wolves, Canada lynx, elk, deer, and black bears.[23]