Saskatchewan Traveller Written By: Dale Buxton


On a beautiful day in July we pack the bike for an adventure southbound, this time destination is Medicine Hat, Alberta.
We have chosen a familiar route and that is head to Kindersley via highway 7.
Stop for a little gas and have a break.
We turn south on one of my favourite highways, number 21 to Leader.
Did you know that in Leader it is the only known Saskatchewan habitat of the rare Ord’s Kangaroo Rat? This furry little fellow comes from its large kangaroo-like legs and a long tail like a rat.
The reason that the habitat is so good for these little creatures is because it like to bury into sandy soil or eroding sand dunes, that is near Leader.
The Kangaroo-Rat is on Canada’s endangered species list.
When in Leader you could take a scenic walk up the “Checkerboard Hill”, which offers you some very nice views of the South Saskatchewan River. The valley is rich in history as it was once use in the fur trade and the native tribes that inhabited the area hunted buffalo.
A fur trading post was established on the hill back in 1800 by a man named Peter Fiddler. There were more white people that had ventured to the site and trading was brisk between the local people and the traders as fur would be shipped to Montreal.
After a couple of years there was a massacre of all white people and trappers by the hostile natives, trading was stopped for a couple of years and then the post was re-established in 1805.
between 1907 and 1911 there was a twp man Royal North West Mounted Police Detachment called the “Montgomery Landing Detachment” near the river crossing.
One other sign that you will notice is about another threatened species that lives in the area and that is the “Prairie Rattlesnake”.
The habitat surrounding the area is the natural habitat for the rattlesnake, so one has to be careful when walking around the tall grass.
You can’t go by Leader without having a look at one of the nine larger than life wildlife sculptures, which depicts the native wildlife species that call leader and area home.
The town of Leader back in 1992 commissioned a local man, Ralph Berg, to build a fibreglass structure, the first was a Mule Deer and the other sculptures followed. When Ralph had passed away, Grant McLaughlin took over until the last sculpture of a Long Billed Curlew & Loggerhead Shrike was erected in 2009, the sculptures have become a huge tourism draw for the community.
Another tourism attraction in Leader is the replica of the W.T. “Horseshoe Barn”, which originally built was the largest barn in North America.
If you are looking for a little something to eat you could stop in at the Rattler’s Cafe and Lounge. Good food and homemade baking to satisfy your appetite.
Stay tuned for more adventures of The Saskatchewan Traveller.


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