Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Nature Conservancy of Canada

On 3 August 2013, a group of us was lucky enough to spend the day hiking on the Nature Conservancy of Canada land at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, a long drive east of Calgary. This area is not far from Drumheller, in the Badlands of Alberta. This is one of the views from the highest point that we walked - such a beautiful landscape, especially different views that show the more eroded canyons that are typical of the Badlands. Ha, we WILL have summer this year, won't we??? "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

White Prairie-clover is one of the plants that we saw at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, SW of Drumheller, in Alberta Badland country. On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. I don't often see this species, as it grows only in a few places in Calgary. There was a lot of it at Beynon, along with Purple Prairie-clover, which is another plant I very rarely see. It was a fairly windy day and so many of the wildflowers were blowing in and out of the viewfinder when I was trying to photograph them, lol. Unfortunately, it's not exactly the most photogenic flower, but I need to add it to my Beynon album. "The flower spike is about 1-3" tall and ¾" across. The small flowers form a wreath around the bottom of the spike, which moves upward as the season progresses. Each flower is about ¼" across, with 5 petals and 5 white stamens. The flowers often have a pleasant fragrance." www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/wpr_cloverx.htm "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

This is where seven of us spent the day yesterday, botanizing the slopes and floor of the spectacular Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, Alberta. To the north east of our city, there are endless miles of flat prairie. Then, suddenly, one comes across the amazing Badlands - our own mini Grand Canyon! This is one of the best-known sites in the Canadian Badlands, located 17 kilometres west of Drumheller on Highway 9. The buildings and trees on the far distant rim give an idea of the size of this portion of the canyon. Horseshoe Canyon is about 145 km (88 miles) from Calgary. It takes between 1½ hours and 2 hours to drive there from Calgary. "Horseshoe Canyon is an isolated pocket of badlands amidst the Alberta prairie. Apart from its aesthetic value, Horseshoe Canyon also represents three unique habitats or ecosystems: the prairie, the wooded coulee slopes and the badlands." www.natureconservancy.ca/site/PageServer?pagename=ab_ncc_... www.tyrrellmuseum.com/