Saskatchewan is a prairie province in central Canada. Saskatchewan belonged to Canada on September 1, 1905. Important and largest cities are its capital Regina and the cities of Saskatoon, Yorkton, Price Albert and Moose Jaw.
The province is bordered by Manitoba to the east, the United States to the south, the Northwest Territories to the north, and Alberta to the west. The Satkatchewan River is the main river in the province.
First the current capital, Regina, was the capital of the North West Territories in 1883, then in 1905 it became the capital of the new province of Saskatchewan. Regina is lively and friendly at the same time. An artificially created city park, the Wascana Center, was created in Regina and impresses with around 350,000 trees and a huge artificial lake. Here they have settled a wide variety of water bird species, such as the Canada goose.
Also worth seeing is the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, which houses many Native American sculptures, paintings, and wall paintings, as well as art by white provincial artists. The exhibition is supplemented by lectures by tribal elders.
Saskatchewan key figures
Area: 651,036 sq km, 7th place in the provinces of Canada (Land Area: 591,670 sq km, water Area: 59,366 sq km)
Share of water surface: 9.1%
Population: 1.02 million people, ranked 6th of the provinces of Canada (2009, estimate)
Population density: 1.6 residents per square kilometer
Member of the Confederation: September 1, 1905 (8th Province of Canada)
Capital city: Regina (179,246 residents, 2006, metropolitan area 206,700 residents, 2006)
Largest city: Saskatoon (202,340 residents, 2006, metropolitan area 233,923 residents, 2006)
Highest point: 1,468 m, Cypress Hills
Lowest point: 213 m, Lake Athabasca
Lieutenant Governor: Gordon Barnhart
Prime Minister: Brad Wall
Local time: east 106 ° W: CET -7 h. No changeover between summer and winter time.
The time difference to Central Europe is -8 h from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November, otherwise -7 h
west of 106 ° W, including Lloydminster: CET -8 h. From the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November: CET -7 h.
The time difference to Central Europe is -8 hours in both winter and summer.
Postal abbreviation: SK
Saskatchewan – Map and Geography
The Canadian province of Saskatchewan is the middle of the country’s three prairie provinces. Saskatchewan is bordered to the north by the Northwest Territories, to the northeast by Nunavut, to the east by Manitoba, to the south by the United States, and to the west by Alberta. The total area of the province covers around 651,000 square kilometers, making it the same size as France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland combined. The capital of Saskatchewan is Regina.
Just like the other two prairie provinces of Alberta and Manitoba, the flat endlessness of the landscape referred to as the “sea of grass”. The grass of the prairie, however, had to give way to the gigantic wheat fields that stretched to the horizon, which earned the province the nickname of the “bread basket of Canada”. The fields, endless forests and around 100,000 lakes in the north determine the landscape of Saskatchewan, which is about as sparsely populated as Tibet. Seen from the air, the landscape between the 49th degree of latitude on the border with the USA and the 54th degree of latitude resembles a chessboard whose monotonous uniformity is only interrupted by a few rivers and lakes.
The northern part of Saskatchewan is shaped by the lowlands surrounding Hudson Bay, which are about 200 to 500 meters above sea level. Occasionally the lowlands are interrupted by groups of hills. The level then rises gradually to the south and southwest, up to the Cypress Hills on the border with Alberta, which are up to 1,500 meters high. This is where the deeply cut valleys of various rivers such as the northern and southern Saskatchewan River and the Qu’Appelle River made their way. In the north there are still extensive forests and tundra areas the landscape interrupted by large lake landscapes. The largest of these lakes are Lake Athabasca and Lake Reindeer. Further south, the landscape becomes flatter and increasingly used for agriculture.
The Saskatchewan River, whose riverbed splits into a northern and a southern arm, is the most important river in the province. The two arms of the river eventually merge east of the city of Prince Albert, which is in central Saskatchewan.
Saskatchewan Landmarks
Saskatchewan has some interesting Attractions to offer.
The oldest church in Saskatchewan is in Regina, the capital of this region of Canada. The Saint Pauls Anglikan Cathedral was built in 1894. Nowadays there is a sacred building in this sacred building museum which shows exhibits from the sixteenth century.
The First Nations University of Canadais the first and only university of the American Indians in North America. It was founded in 2003.
Museum lovers will also get their money’s worth in Saskatchewan. The Western Development Museum in Saskatoon is the longest covered museum street in Canada. It was built around 1910. There are a few shops, a hotel, workshops, a train station and even a printing house on Museum Street.
An important historical site of the Cree Indians is in the Opamikaw Valley. Those who are interested just have to ask about the Wanuskewen Heritage Park.
An absolute must is the seat of the provincial government of Saskatchewan. The building was built between 1908 and 1912 and is a Regina landmark.
Prince Albert National Park is located in southern Saskatchewan. The park was established in 1927 with an area of 3,875 square kilometers. The park is a mixture of high and lowlands. This is also where Lave Liue Lake is located, which is home to the second largest colony of white pelicans in Canada. Approximately 15,000 animals live in the colony. There are also more than two hundred species of birds to discover in the park. But bison, lynx, wolves, deer, elk and black bears are also at home here.
