Bulletins

Parks Canada is planning a prescribed fire in the Lake Audy area of Riding Mountain National Park this spring. If weather and environmental conditions allow, prescribed fire operations for Seech-Hopper and Jackfish Creek will take place between April and June 2026.

Jackfish Creek Prescribed Fire Area (east of Lake Audy): Prescribed fire will be applied to 4,000 hectares (2,000 ha grasslands/aspen parkland to establish firebreaks; 2,000 ha boreal mixed wood forest) located near Lake Audy and extending north along Strathclair Trail to beyond the Kinnis Creek backcountry campsite.

Seech Hopper Prescribed Fire Area (west of Lake Audy): Fire will be applied to 2,700 hectares of aspen parkland, including 400 ha of native grasslands, situated between Lake Audy and Whitewater Lake.

Riding Mountain National Park will remain open to visitors during the prescribed fire. Some areas will be closed temporarily to ensure visitor and staff safety.

There will be closures in place for the following areas:

• Bison enclosure and facilities
• Lake Audy Road (from 61A to the district station)
• Lake Audy Dam Road
• Strathclair Trail (closed at both entrances), Central Trail – North Bison Enclosure to Gunn Lake, Long Lake Trail, Grasshopper Trail, Link Trail, Grasshopper Valley Trail
• Whitewater, Long Lake, Kinnis Creek, Vermillion, Minnedosa River backcountry sites

Parks Canada will inform the public when the prescribed fire has begun. The safety of people, infrastructure, and neighbouring lands is Parks Canada’s top priority. Smoke may be visible from a long distance and may drift to areas adjacent to the park. Neighbouring residents and property owners may experience some smoky conditions due to smoke travelling outside of the prescribed fire area.

Prescribed fires are complex operations that can require several years of preparation. The Parks Canada National Fire Management Program has expertise in fire information and data management, fire science, prescribed fire, wildfire risk reduction, wildfire response, fire technology, geographic information systems, safety, and aircraft operations. Before any work begins, Parks Canada wildland fire management specialists, who are recognized experts in their field, prepare a detailed prescribed fire plan and a project impact assessment.

Prescribed fires reduce the amount of available fuel for wildfires, which reduces intensity, slows spread, and makes them easier to control or extinguish. At Parks Canada administered places, prescribed fires are only carried out under specific predetermined conditions. Fire management specialists assess weather and environmental conditions several days in advance and continue monitoring them right up to the moment the prescribed fire is authorized to begin.

For up-to-date information about area or facility closures and other updates on the prescribed fire, please visit Riding Mountain National Park’s website and Facebook page at facebook.com/RidingNP.

More information about Parks Canada’s National Fire Management Program can be found at: https://parks.canada.ca/nature/science/conservation/feu-fire.