Rooted in Memory, Shaped by Ice: The Glacial History and Geological Legacy of the Clavet Memorial Healing Forest, Saskatchewan

Based on the geological interpretation presented by Larry Edwin Hodges in Morphology of the South Saskatchewan River Valley: Outlook to Saskatoon (University of Saskatchewan, Ph.D. Thesis), the proposed Clavet Memorial Healing Forest occupies a landscape that was profoundly influenced by the retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the final stages of the last Ice Age. The site at NW 17-35-03-W3, immediately northwest of the former shoreline of Glacial Lake Elstow and just northwest of the Clavet Moraine, lies within a region that preserves evidence of some of the most dynamic glacial and post-glacial processes documented in central Saskatchewan.

Ice at the Clavet Memorial Healing Forest During the Lake Hanley Phase

During the period Hodges refers to as the Lake Hanley Phase, the effective ice front had begun retreating from its maximum southern extent, but large lobes of glacial ice still occupied both the Saskatoon Lowland and the Last Mountain Lake Lowland. At that time, the Memorial Healing Forest site would have been situated very near the margin of the Saskatoon Lowland ice lobe.

Hodges notes that differences in elevations of lake sediments and the cutting of the Blackstrap spillway indicate that the Saskatoon Lowland ice lobe still extended onto portions of the Allan Hills Upland, Hawarden Hills Upland, and The Coteau. The proposed forest site lies within this transitional landscape between active glacier ice and expanding glacial lakes.

According to Figure VI.c of the thesis, the future Memorial Healing Forest was located immediately northwest of Glacial Lake Elstow, placing it along what would have been an evolving shoreline environment where melting ice, expanding lake waters, and sediment deposition interacted continuously.

The Clavet Moraine and the Memorial Healing Forest

One of the most important glacial features associated with the site is the Clavet Moraine.

A moraine is a ridge or accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (till) deposited by a glacier. As the ice advanced and retreated, it transported clay, silt, sand, gravel, cobbles, and boulders, leaving them behind when the glacier melted.

Hodges describes the Clavet Moraine as a distinct ice-margin feature created when active ice in the Saskatoon Lowland continued to push eastward into the Elstow Basin after ice in adjacent regions had already begun to stagnate and retreat.

The thesis states:

“Ice in the Saskatoon Lowland remained active longer than in the Elstow Basin, and pushed slightly into the basin from the west to form the Clavet Moraine and related outwash gravel deposits.”

This interpretation suggests that the glacier margin remained dynamic near present-day Clavet while surrounding areas experienced significant downwasting and lake expansion.

The proposed Memorial Healing Forest is situated immediately northwest of this moraine system. As a result, the site occupies terrain directly influenced by the final advances and standstills of glacier ice approximately 12,000–14,000 years ago.

Lake Saskatoon I and Lake Saskatoon II

The Memorial Healing Forest also lies within a landscape shaped by two major glacial lakes identified by Hodges:

Glacial Lake Saskatoon I
Glacial Lake Saskatoon II

These lakes occupied portions of the Saskatoon Lowland during successive stages of deglaciation.

Evidence cited by Hodges includes:

Lacustrine sediments covering the Clavet Moraine
Lake deposits over former meltwater channels
Fine-grained sediments extending across much of the Elstow Basin
Deposits associated with the Dundurn Bench and Blackstrap region

Because the Clavet Moraine is overlain by lake sediments reaching elevations of at least 1770 feet (540 metres), the moraine must have existed before portions of Lake Saskatoon I flooded the region.

This places the Memorial Healing Forest within an area that likely experienced:

Active glacial ice occupation
Moraine construction
Meltwater outwash deposition
Flooding by proglacial lakes
Subsequent drainage and landscape stabilization

The Blackstrap-Elstow Drainage System

Figures VI.d and VI.k in the thesis demonstrate that the Clavet area occupied a strategic position within a major deglacial drainage network.

As ice retreated northward, meltwater flowed through:

The Blackstrap spillway
Strehlow Pond Channel
North Bradwell Channel
The Elstow Basin
Early South Saskatchewan River channels

The Memorial Healing Forest lies near this network of former meltwater routes.

Although the site itself is not located within a major spillway channel, it occupies terrain adjacent to corridors through which enormous volumes of glacial meltwater once moved toward newly developing drainage systems.

A Landscape of Ice, Water, and Transition

The geology around the Memorial Healing Forest records a remarkable sequence of environmental change.

Approximately 13,000 years ago:

Thick Laurentide ice covered the region.
The glacier margin stood near present-day Clavet.
The Clavet Moraine formed as ice pushed into the Elstow Basin.
Meltwater created outwash plains and gravel deposits.
Glacial Lake Elstow expanded along the ice margin.
Lake Saskatoon I flooded portions of the landscape, and the proposed forest was northeast of Glacial Lake Saskatoon I being that it was north of the North Bradwell Channel.
The proposed forest was under Glacial Lake Saskatoon II which occupied lowlands northwest.
Meltwater channels evolved into the drainage systems that would eventually become part of the modern South Saskatchewan River watershed.

The proposed Memorial Healing Forest therefore occupies a landscape forged at the boundary between glacier and lake—a place where ice, water, sediment, and time combined to create the rolling prairie terrain visible today.

Significance for the Memorial Healing Forest

The geological history provides a powerful metaphor for the purpose of the Memorial Healing Forest.

The site exists on land shaped by the retreat of immense glaciers, the formation of ancient lakes, and the gradual emergence of new ecosystems. What was once a landscape of ice and uncertainty became one of renewal and life.

Similarly, the Memorial Healing Forest seeks to transform a place of remembrance into a living legacy of hope, resilience, healing, and growth.

Just as the glaciers receded and new landscapes emerged, the forest will stand as a testament to recovery after tragedy—honouring the sixteen lives lost in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash, supporting survivors and families, and creating a lasting sanctuary rooted in memory and growing in hope.

Rooted in Memory, Shaped by Ice

Reference

Hodges, L. E. (1975). Morphology of the South Saskatchewan River Valley: Outlook to Saskatoon. Doctoral Dissertation, Department of Geography, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, pp. 247, 255–257, 272–273.

Christiansen, E. A. (1968). The Quaternary of the Saskatoon Area, Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan Research Council, Geology Division Report.

Greer, W., & Christiansen, E. A. Studies of Late Wisconsinan deglaciation and glacial lake development in central Saskatchewan.

Edmunds, F. H. Research on the Elstow Basin and Lake Elstow phases of deglaciation in south-central Saskatchewan.

Klassen, R. W. (1989). Quaternary Geology of the Southern Prairie Provinces. Geological Survey of Canada.

Christiansen, E. A. (1979). The Wisconsinan Late Glacial History of the Saskatoon Region. Geological Association of Canada Special Papers.

Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and West Swale Wetlands , Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Addresses:

Part SE 23-36-6 – Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A

Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A

S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A

NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063

Coming soon the Clavet Memorial Healing Forest honouring the Humboldt Broncos

Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area or

Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot

Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com

Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map

Where is the George Genereux Urban Regional Park (Afforestation Area)?with map

Pinterest richardstbarbeb

Blogger: FriendsAfforestation

Tumblr friendsafforestation.tumblr.com Facebook Group Page: Users of the George Genereux Urban Regional Park

Facebook: StBarbeBaker Afforestation Area

Facebook for the non profit Charity Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. FriendsAreas

Facebook group page : Users of the St Barbe Baker Afforestation Area

Facebook: South West OLRA

Reddit: FriendsAfforestation

BlueSky Social

Mix: friendsareas

YouTube

Support via Zeffy

Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail / e-transfers )

Donate your old vehicle, here’s how!

Support using Canada Helps

Support via a recycling bottle donation and Join the plastic-recycle challenge!

United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
Make it your own
Spread the word about the UN Decade
Let’s Bring Back Forests
Let’s Green Our Cities

““Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”Richard St. Barbe Baker

Trees with a Story

Trees with a Story: Celebrating Arbor Week and National Smile Day in Saskatoon’s Living Forests

By Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc.

What makes you smile?

For some, it is a favourite song, a visit with friends, or a sunny spring day. For others, happiness can be found in the quiet rustle of leaves overhead, the flash of a bird’s wing, or the discovery of a wildflower along a forest trail.

This year, Arbor Week and National Smile Day come together on May 31, creating the perfect opportunity to celebrate one of Saskatoon’s greatest natural treasures: the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area.

The event, Trees with a Story: An Arbor Week Celebration & Smile Day Walk, invites nature lovers, families, photographers, hikers, citizen scientists, and curious explorers to discover the fascinating stories hidden within Saskatoon’s urban forest.

Every Tree Has a Story

At first glance, a forest may appear to be simply a collection of trees.

Look closer.

Each tree represents a chapter in a much larger story—one of resilience, survival, biodiversity, and community stewardship.

Some species have called Saskatchewan home for thousands of years. Others arrived through human settlement and agricultural development. Some were deliberately planted during the Green Survival Program of 1972-73, while a few have become unwelcome invaders that threaten native ecosystems.

Together, they form a living library waiting to be explored.

Visitors on the walk will encounter towering American Elms and Green Ash trees, both species now listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List due to increasing threats across their native ranges.

Participants will also meet the ever-popular Trembling Aspen, whose shimmering leaves seem to dance in even the gentlest breeze, and the mighty Bur Oak, one of the prairie’s most enduring symbols of strength and longevity.

A Forest Born from Vision

The Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and nearby George Genereux Urban Regional Park owe their existence to a remarkable vision that began more than fifty years ago.

In 1972 and 1973, thousands of trees were planted as part of Saskatchewan’s Green Survival Program, with species selection guided by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration.

The goal was practical: protect the landscape from erosion, improve environmental conditions, and establish shelterbelts capable of thriving in the prairie climate.

What emerged over the decades was something far greater.

Today, these former nursery lands have matured into thriving urban forests that support wildlife, improve air quality, sequester carbon, provide recreational opportunities, and serve as outdoor classrooms for environmental education.

No one planting those young saplings could have predicted the extraordinary biodiversity they would one day support.

Seeking Rare Treasures

One of the most exciting aspects of the Arbor Week walk is the possibility of discovering rare and unusual species.

Participants will learn about the Red-Berried Elder, an S2-ranked species considered rare in Saskatchewan. This beautiful shrub provides habitat and food for birds and pollinators while adding another layer of ecological richness to the forest.

Even more intriguing is the possibility of finding the elusive Smooth Rose, an S1-ranked species that has not yet been documented in the area but remains a tantalizing possibility for observant naturalists.

Every walk becomes a treasure hunt.

Every observation could become an important scientific record.

The $50 Linden Tree Mystery

Adding to the excitement is one of the forest’s most enduring mysteries.

In 1984, a Linden Tree was reportedly planted somewhere within the afforestation area.

Its exact location remains unknown.

To celebrate Arbor Week, organizers are offering a $50 prize to the first participant who locates the tree and records a verified observation using the iNaturalist platform during the event.

Will this be the year the mystery is finally solved?

Only the forest knows.

Citizen Science in Action

One of the most remarkable developments in conservation today is the rise of citizen science.

Participants are encouraged to bring smartphones equipped with the iNaturalist app and help document the biodiversity of the forest.

A photograph uploaded during the walk can contribute to global scientific databases, assist researchers, document rare species, or help track the spread of invasive plants.

Citizen science transforms visitors into researchers and casual observations into valuable scientific contributions.

It reminds us that environmental stewardship is not limited to scientists and academics.

Everyone can participate.

Everyone can contribute.

Watching the Watchlist

Not every species encountered on the walk belongs in the forest.

Participants will also learn how to identify highly invasive species such as European Buckthorn, a plant capable of outcompeting native vegetation and altering habitat conditions.

By documenting invasive species through platforms such as iNaturalist, community members become active partners in conservation and ecological restoration.

Protecting biodiversity begins with knowing what belongs—and what doesn’t.

A Smile for the Future

National Smile Day encourages us to celebrate the simple joys in life.

Few experiences are more uplifting than spending time among trees.

Research consistently shows that forests improve mental health, reduce stress, increase physical activity, and strengthen our connection to nature.

The Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area offers all of these benefits while providing critical habitat for birds, pollinators, mammals, and countless other species.

It is a place where children can discover nature, families can explore together, and adults can reconnect with the natural world.

Most importantly, it is a place that reminds us of our responsibility to future generations.

The people who planted these forests more than fifty years ago may never have imagined the impact their work would have today.

The question now becomes: What legacy will we leave?

Every tree planted matters.

Every species protected matters.

Every observation recorded matters.

Every smile shared in nature matters.

This Arbor Week and National Smile Day, join us for a walk through a forest filled with stories, discoveries, and inspiration.

Come for the trees.

Stay for the smiles.

And perhaps leave with a deeper appreciation for the living legacy growing right here in Saskatoon.