Sheep River Provincial Park, Provincial park in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada
Sheep River Provincial Park is a protected area in the Kananaskis region of Alberta, Canada, covering a river valley flanked by forest and rocky peaks. The park runs along the Sheep River and offers several campgrounds along with a network of hiking and skiing trails.
Sheep River Provincial Park lies in the Kananaskis Improvement District, 23 km west of Diamond Valley (Turner Valley) on Highway 546. It forms part of the Kananaskis Country park system and takes in a stretch of the Sheep River valley on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains. Its core is the Sheep River Wildlife Sanctuary, permanent habitat for bighorn sheep, while the eastern section reaches the Foothills Natural Region, summer range for elk and deer.
The park lies within the Sheep River Wildlife Sanctuary, which protects permanent habitat for bighorn sheep; its eastern portion reaches the Foothills Natural Region, summer range for elk and deer. The name comes from the river and the sheep of its valley. Campgrounds at Sandy McNabb and Bluerock serve as bases for watching wildlife along the Sheep River.
The park lies 23 km west of Diamond Valley on Highway 546, within Kananaskis Country. Camping is available at the Sandy McNabb and Bluerock campgrounds, and cross-country ski trails run from Sandy McNabb. Hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding are possible on most of the roughly thirty named trails, including Bighorn, Bluerock, Gorge Creek and Windy Point.
The park's trail network includes paths named after the features they cross, such as Volcano Ridge, Indian Oils, Death Valley and Hog's Back, alongside the Bighorn and Sheep trails. The Sheep River itself holds brown, bull, cutthroat and rainbow trout, plus mountain whitefish and longnose and mountain suckers.
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