South Atikaki
Eastern Parks
South Atikaki Provincial Park is approximately 140 square kilometres in size and is classified as a natural park. The park is located on the east side of Manitoba approximately 25 kilometres east of the community of Bissett and 175 kilometres northeast of the city of Winnipeg. It is situated between Wallace Lake Provincial Park and Atikaki Provincial Park. Both Wallace and Siderock lakes are included in South Atikaki Provincial Park. There are no roads leading into South Atikaki, however Wallace Lake is road-accessible.
Much like Atikaki Provincial Park to the north, South Atikaki is characterized by forested rock outcrops and granite cliffs mixed with rivers, lakes and bogs. The park is bordered on the west and south by the Broadleaf and Wanipigow Rivers. The park contains significant habitat for a large variety of plants and animals. Generally, vegetation in the park is typical of the boreal forest and includes trees such as black spruce, jack pine, trembling aspen, balsam poplar, white birch, white spruce and balsam fir. Several plants that are rare or uncommon in Manitoba have been found in South Atikaki. These include rattlesnake grass and white-buttons, both very rare in the province, and running-pine, sensitive fern, pale manna grass, American wintergreen, dwarf huckleberry, swamp-pink, hooker’s orchids, tessellated rattlesnake plantain, water lobelia, long-spurred violet, interrupted fern, round-leaved bog orchid, water-milfoil and graceful manna grass. Wildlife that may be found in the park includes woodland caribou, moose, black bear, wolf, lynx, beaver, loon, bald eagle and other birds, furbearers and small mammals. The rivers and lakes within the park abound with many fish species, such as walleye, northern pike and lake trout.
The purpose of South Atikaki Provincial Park is in part to protect woodland caribou habitat. Atikaki is an Ojibwe word meaning “country of the caribou”. There are two caribou herds whose ranges are in the vicinity of the park – the Atikaki-Berens herd and the Owl-Flinstone herd.
South Atikaki Provincial Park is intended to offer nature-oriented recreation. The park is enjoyed by people looking for solitude, or a landscape that is physically challenging to navigate. Activities that take place in the park include canoeing, wilderness camping, boating, fishing and hunting. Motorized boating in the park originates from the Wallace Lake shoreline and occurs on Wallace and Siderock lakes. Snowmobiling also occurs in the park on Wallace and Siderock lakes.
Canoe routes through South Atikaki provide access to the Manitoba-Ontario Interprovincial Wilderness Area, which includes Woodland Caribou Provincial Park and the Eagle-Snowshoe Conservation Reserve in Ontario, as well as Atikaki Provincial Park and part of Nopiming Provincial Park in Manitoba. This wilderness area was established to conserve a significant portion of Canada’s boreal forest and a high quality wilderness recreation area. A common route into Atikaki Provincial Park involves paddling or portaging from Wallace Lake east to Siderock Lake and then portaging north through South Atikaki to Obukowin Lake in Atikaki. Another option, when water levels are high enough, is to travel northwest from Wallace Lake up the Broadleaf River toward Aikens Lake in Atikaki.
All lands within South Atikaki Provincial Park are designated as wilderness camping areas, with the exception of the shorelines of Siderock and Wallace lakes. Wilderness camping areas do not include any camping infrastructure, but camping can occur at any suitable location.
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