Your Travels: ‘Otherworldly’ at Red Rock Coulee
By Medicine Hat News on October 27, 2018.
Leslie Maltin Red Rock Coulee is located in south-eastern Alberta, 60 kilometres south of of Medicine Hat just outside the hamlet of Seven Persons. The main feature of this natural landscape is the huge red boulders, some measuring 2.5 metres across. They are scattered over a relatively small distance and can be viewed without walking far at all. From the viewpoint off Highway 887 you can view the red rocks and see the Sweetgrass Hills of Montana on the horizon. The most striking features of this landscape are the round reddish boulders, the sandstone concretions which at up to 2.5 m in diameter are among the largest in the world. The boulders were formed in prehistoric seas as layers of sand, calcite and iron oxide collected around a nucleus formed by shells, leaves or bones. The concretions grew larger as the circulating waters deposited more layers. The reddish colour comes from iron oxide. Look carefully at the concretions and you may be able to see their “growth rings” (layers of sediment deposition) and fossilized shells, leaves or bones. Interestingly, while Red Rock Coulee is the most famous area (due largely to its relatively easy access) in the province with concretions, these unique geological formations are actually more common than you think. Alberta is home to at least a handful of areas where concretions are found and one — a remote area on the Athabasca River at Grand Rapids — also boasts some of the largest concretions in the world. But, unfortunately, they are difficult to reach and only a handful of people see them each year. While the plants and flowers can be stunning, especially in spring — some of the most photogenic include shooting stars, prickly pear cactus, gumbo primrose, and prairie crocus — it’s the creepy-crawly critters that usually inspire the most spirited conversations. Specifically, the scorpions, short-horned lizards, bull snakes, and western rattlesnakes that all reside in the nooks and crannies of the coulee. Red Rock Coulee has an otherworldly aura that few places in Alberta can match. Well worth the time and drive to get there for stunning vistas, flora, fauna and uniqueness! 7-6
