Canada’s wildfire season roared to an early start last month and it hasn't abated since. Currently, the situation is most severe in the prairie provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, which have each declared a Provincial State of Emergency. In response, the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) has raised its National Preparedness Level to 5, the highest level.
As of June 5, CIFFC reports that 201 wildfires are blazing across Canada, with 103 in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia classified as out of control, meaning they are expected to continue growing. More than 33,000 people have been ordered to evacuate their Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta homes, including 17,000 in Manitoba alone. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has called it the “largest evacuation Manitoba will have seen in most people’s living memory.”
The diverse landscapes of Canada’s prairies are settings for an array of travel adventures, from spotting bison in Saskatchewan’s grasslands to kayaking in Manitoba’s vast boreal forest and hiking among wind-sculpted hoodoos in the Alberta Badlands. They are also home to some of Canada’s most impressive cultural institutions, including the Quamajuq Inuit art center in Winnipeg and Wanuskewin heritage park in Saskatoon.
If you have an upcoming trip to the region, here’s what you need to know.
Where are the fires?
The most severe fires are concentrated in northern Saskatchewan and northern and eastern Manitoba. In early May the SHOE fire broke out in northern Saskatchewan, south of Narrow Hills Provincial Park, followed by the CAMP fire near Candle Lake—the two fires have since merged. The ongoing emergency took another turn on June 2, when the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency ordered the evacuation of the northern town of La Ronge and surrounding communities after a wildfire breached the town’s airport.
In Manitoba, two people were killed in May by the fire that forced the evacuation of the town of Lac du Bonnet, northeast of the provincial capital Winnipeg. While Lac du Bonnet residents have since returned, mandatory evacuation orders remain in effect in multiple communities, including Flin Flon, Pimicikamak Cree Nation (Cross Lake), Lynn Lake, and Sherridon.
How is air quality impacted in the US?
In an ominous reminder of the summer of 2023, Canada’s worst wildfire season on record, smoke from the wildfires has been impacting air quality in several US states. The smoke has also billowed across the Atlantic and caused hazy skies in parts of western Europe.
The National Weather Service has issued air quality alerts for Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. These alerts, which are in effect until 11 p.m., June 5, advise that people who are sensitive to air pollution should limit their time outdoors between 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Where is it safe to travel?
Manitoba:
Provincial park closures and fire restrictions are in effect across the province. Parks that are currently closed to visitors include Bakers Narrows, Grass River, and Wekusko Falls. Nopiming Provincial Park is also closed and campgrounds at the park’s Black and Beresford lakes will remain closed for the rest of the season, along with all water routes in the park. While parts of Whiteshell Provincial Park are closed, most areas in Caddy and West Hawk lakes have reopened and campgrounds in Brereton, Caddy, West Hawk, and White lakes will reopen on Friday, June 6, at 4 p.m.
That said, “Manitoba is a large province… almost double the size of Germany,” Travel Manitoba’s director of communications, Louise Waldman, wrote in an email. Many of the province’s most appealing destinations remain open to visitors, says Waldman, who recommends exploring Manitoba’s subarctic in the town of Churchill, home to thousands of belugas from June to September, or diverting your plans to other provincial parks. In western Manitoba, Spruce Woods is home to towering sand dunes; the rolling terrain of Turtle Mountain is a favorite of mountain bikers; and the forest of Duck Mountain is home to wildlife including black bear, moose, white-tailed deer, lynx, coyote, and wolves. For the latest updates, check the Manitoba Parks website and Manitoba Wildfire Status Dashboard before traveling.
Saskatchewan:
Narrow Hills Provincial Park, close to the SHOE fire, will remain closed until June 26 and its Gem Lakes and Lost Echo campgrounds will be closed for the 2025 season. Lac La Ronge Provincial Park is closed until at least June 8. For campground closures and fire restrictions at other parks and recreation areas, Saskatchewan Parks has a complete list.
In central Saskatchewan, the federal Parks Canada-run Prince Albert National Park has closed all backcountry areas for the foreseeable future, as well as all lakes, with the exception of Waskesiu.
Like Manitoba, Saskatchewan is a big province and many of its key tourism destinations, from Grasslands National Park to Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park, remain open to visitors. Tourism Saskatchewan advises travelers to check official sources such as the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency and its own Know Before You Go web page before traveling.
June is National Indigenous History Month in Canada, which provides a great reason to explore some of the newest developments in Canada’s Indigenous tourism scene that remain open. Pemiska Tourism in the Beardy’s and Okemasis’ Cree Nation, near Saskatoon, has just launched new tipi-style glamping lodges in Fort Carlton Provincial Historic Park. Open in Manitoba’s Riding National Park since 2023, Turtle Village is a first-of-its-kind Indigenous-operated, year-round glamping destination. On June 21, National Indigenous Peoples’ day, the company will launch Turtle Tours with an immersive walking tour in Winnipeg.
This is a developing news story and will be updated with information as it becomes available.
