Answer the call of the wild

By KAREN GOA

Where can you play a game of golf while dragging your clubs between bear paw-prints on the sand traps and chasing ball-stealing foxes? Try Northern Saskatchewan. One of Canada's prairie provinces, Saskatchewan, tagged "land of the living skies" by its tourism department, has more than its fair share of cute, if pesky, mammals.

While the menfolk are fending off furry beasts on the Chitek Lake golf course I'm basking at my in-laws' log cabin by the lake. I've got iced tea in one hand and bag of sunflower seeds in the other.

The grey squirrels dashing up and down the jack pines give me shrill squirrel lip for being too slow with the seed handouts.

In the heat of summer, New Zealanders head for the baches at the beach. Saskatchewanians drive north to the log cabins at the lakes - it's 1000km to the nearest ocean. We've made the drive north from Saskatoon to visit the rellies and escape the 35C heat further south.

On the way up we pull into the Riverbend Gas and Store near Blaine Lake. We buy gas, a bale of chocolate bars, pillow-sized bags of chips and a six-pack of root beer for the three-hour drive.

In the back of the store there's a gruesomely enthralling display of stuffed, moth-nibbled Siamese calves, a mysterious dog-like "River Monkey" and a Big Mouth Lobster mounted on a plaque, a long way from home.

It's a fine day for spotting live critters, too. A few kilometres down the road a white-tailed stag bounds in front of us and over a barbed-wire fence. He stops picture-perfect in a stand of poplars framing a field of golden canola.

Before I can gibber "Look" or "Camera", he vanishes into the trees. A little while later we spy a lean-haunched coyote glowering at us from under a pine.

When we slow down for a closer look he turns scraggy tail and slinks off like a shadow. We drive on, past signs pointing to Wild Bear Road, Pelican Cove, Iroquois Lake and finally, to Chitek.

The cabin's exactly what a log cabin should be: stripped-pine logs cleverly jointed and mortared with cement to keep out the breeze, a stone fireplace stretching from hearth to heaven, and chipmunks scampering across the roof.

It's cooler up here than further south, but it's still hot and dry enough to spark forest fires.

A large one is threatening settlements to the east. Every 15 minutes, floatplanes buzz the lake. They open their bellies, skim the surface and scoop up water before taking off towards the too-close-for-comfort flames.

Unperturbed, a flock of pelicans gangles across the sky.

It would be pleasant to sit on the cabin's shady deck doing absolutely nothing but watch nature flap past, but there's hunting and gathering to be done.

The hunters take their fishing rods and try their luck on northern pike and pickerel lurking among the cattails in the lake.

The gatherers grab icecream pails and troop off in search of that exquisite native treat, the Saskatoon berry. Wild blueberries grow up here too, but they're so close to the ground you have to grovel on your knees to pick them.

Saskatoon berries, sensibly, grow on large, leafy bushes in warm, sunny spots. I'm plucking the fat, purple berries with both hands - one for the bucket, one for me - when another berry-picker nearly trips into a large hole in the ground.

It's the thieving fox's den. The feathery remains of a slow-moving seagull are scattered around the mouth of the den, but there's no sign of the stolen golf balls.

Once the berry-picking's finished there's a whole swag of afternoon activities to choose from.

Play a game of horseshoes in the sandy road, go for a swim (but mind the leeches - and the float planes), or mosey up the tree-lined path and buy a pair of beaded, moosehide moccasins from local artisans.

At latitude 53 north you have plenty of time to do all of these things. Sunset isn't till 10 o'clock at the earliest.

At dusk we're back on the cabin's deck, slapping the odd mosquito and ooh-ing at the bronze and apricot sky. The loon's hair-raising ululation wavers across the lake.

A pair of beavers playing around in the water slap their tails - crack! loud as a gunshot. Even at this late hour, the critters are frisky.

* Karen Goa travelled around northern Saskatchewan with the assistance of


www.sasktourism.com

Case notes:



Getting there:

From Auckland fly to Vancouver via Los Angeles or Honolulu on Air New Zealand/Air Canada co-shared flights. Connecting Air Canada flights depart Vancouver for Saskatoon several times daily. Cost: $2543 a person return, high season.

Rental cars are available in Saskatoon for the drive north to the lakes and to Missinipe (floatplane departure point for fly-in resorts).

When to go:


July-August (high season), June or September (shoulder season).

Autumn is best in the town of Bright, with spring colourful along the whole route. The road is also open through winter, a boon to those visiting the skifields of Mt Hotham. Mid to late summer is excellent as an escape from the heat of the plains.

Getting around:


The Great Alpine Rd poses no problems for caravans and motorhomes (RVs). However, in winter van drivers are strongly advised to contact the Mt Hotham Resort management office, (03) 5759 3550, for a road report, as caravans and RVs may not be allowed to travel in wind or blizzards.



What to do:


Big-game hunting, golf, birdwatching, snowmobiling, fishing, visiting museums - you name it and can be done in Saskatchewan.

Where to stay:


Rustic (basic facilities, some with long-drops) to deluxe cabins are available to rent in northern Saskatchewan on private land and in parks. Consider:

Little Pine Lodge, Chitek Lake, ph 001 306 984 2332

Email sloboda@sasktel.net


Clarke Lake Lodge, ph 001 469 5721

Box 157, Big River, SK S0J 0E0

Land of the Loon Resort, Christopher Lake, Ph 001 306 982 4478

www.landoftheloonresort.com


Kapasiwin Bungalows (Waskesiu Lake, Prince Albert National Park), ph 001 306 663 5225 or 975 0627

Email info@kapasiwin.com


Advisory:



Take clothes for all seasons - temperatures can vary by up to 30C, even in summer. Buy on arrival: mozzie repellent, fishing licence.