After coming across so many shale outcrops, particularly in the Pasquia Hills, I learned that the darker slabs contain the fossil fuel kerogen. On our trip to Rice River Canyon, I decided to grab a few dark pieces, put them under heat and see what happens.
Lighter? ... nothing... but with a camp stove? Well, something. After bits and chunks of the sedimentary rock started bursting off, I lowered the heat and eventually managed to get the rock to self-sustain combustion. The result was the overwhelming scent of burning rubber.
I'm not going to lie, I still want to experiment with this stuff. But unless you want your food to taste like a tire fire, you're better off using whatever fuel you have left.
Nature & Ecology
Prairie Peaks: Brockelbank Hill
We don't have frosted peaks or rocky skylines blotting out the sun, but topography does exist on the prairies in the form of valleys, canyons and escarpments. There are several land features that stand in contrast to the flat plains after millions of years of tectonic and glacial activity.
This Prairie Peaks series investigates scenic viewpoints that put the prairies' often dramatic, but understated elevation changes into perspective.
About Brockelbank Hill
Pictured above: the view near the highest point in Saskatchewan's Porcupine Hills, situated close to the Manitoba border. This point is easily accessed by driving along the Woody River Road (980) north of Townsend Lake. What you see is an expanse of the Red Deer River Valley and the lowlands east of the Pasquia Hills. There is a difference of nearly 500m (1,617 ft.) between the peak and the plain below.
Prairie Peaks is an article series documenting noteworthy land features and viewpoints found in the Canadian plains.