Wainwright Dunes Discovery – May 31 Adventure for Wilderness

June 2, 2026

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• Adventures for Wilderness

Text by Lindsey Wallis
Photos by Lindsey Wallis and Sara Heerema

The rain held off for a couple hours! As we approached the Wainwright Dunes Ecological Reserve boundary we heard a barred owl calling. We never found it, but as we walked we saw and heard many more bird species, including rose-breasted grosbeak, ovenbird, black and white warbler, American redstart and numerous others. In the fen, dotted with glistening white buckbean, we flushed a snipe from its nest holding a clutch of beautifully speckled eggs.

This landscape is so interesting, holding rare species and representing the southernmost points in the province for some boreal species. It is not often you see reindeer lichen alongside prickly pear! The active dunes also held sand-loving species including sand heather, nutgrass and sand rocket. The views from the top were spectacular, with rolling emerald dunes stretching to the horizon, dotted with groves of stunted aspen.

The rain did start, and it was heavy! We hustled back to the vehicles, but counted ourselves lucky for the half-day we salvaged before the June monsoon hit a day early!