70 Mile Butte
70 Mile Butte is a fairly easy route taking about 2-3 hours to complete.
The trailhead is a short distance from Val Marie. Please read my general
comments on hiking in Grasslands
National Park and my list
of known errors in the published Guide book before proceeding.
70 Mile Butte and its nearby companion, Sleeping Lion Butte are features
of Grasslands National Park. Even when hiking 30 km away to the East,
you can still catch glimpses of these two features on the horizon. Numbered
walking points correspond to numbered points on the map.
1. As you depart from the kiosk, follow the fence line south.
The Sleeping Lion Butte will slowly come into view. |
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A coulee leads up to the Sleeping Lion's head. There's lots
to see on this stretch of the hike. We found a discarded bull
snake skin, an amazing assortment of flowers, and a short-horned
lizard. |
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2. The view from the head of the lion is spectacular enough
but the best is yet to come. |
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3. Walking north, you can climb up to the top of 70 Mile Butte
using a coulee to the west of the summit. |
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4. An aerie of a Golden Eagle can be seen on the southwest
side of the 70 Mile Butte summit. We first noticed this aerie
as an adult eagle took to flight just as we were approaching up
the coulee. As we enjoyed the view, the owner soared the skies
around the butte, waiting for us to leave. The young were no where
to be seen, but they obviously hadn't cleaned up from their lunch
of deer chops. |
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5. Descending back to the trailhead, a small coulee offers
enough shelter for a small grove of Trembling Aspens. Due to the
arid and inhospitable conditions, these trees are fully grown
yet barely reach 10 feet in height. |
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| Looking out from the head of Sleeping Lion Butte |
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| Sedum trying to establish itself in a bentonite base. |
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| 70 Mile Butte in the background |
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| View looking east from 70 Mile Butte summit |
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| The tail of Sleeping Lion Butte viewed from 70 Mile Butte
summit. |
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Park Visit
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