By Catrina Crowe

There are countless ways to have fun in the Interior of British Columbia: hiking, biking, camping, dirt biking, horse riding, bird watching, climbing, hunting, picnicking, or just resting. Each of these recreational opportunities away from the rain of the Lower Mainland has its own rewards, but you can still up the enjoyment quotient: add grass.

Now, the grass we’re speaking of is not the one for which B.C. is perhaps better known, but this grass provides a buzz all its own. We’re referring to the beauty and wonders of the grasslands of the province’s Interior and the richness of life they support.

When you come up into the Interior of B.C. to play, you’re either on or have passed through the province’s grasslands. What may at first appear in the high summer heat to be dry, brown scrub land of the Thompson and Okanagan valleys is in fact lush with life, variety, and stories. It’s on land such as this that more than 30 percent of B.C.’s threatened or endangered species depend for their survival: burrowing owls, badgers, western rattlesnakes, and the prairie falcon, to name just a few. Ranchers rely on the nutritious grasses for grazing their cattle. For thousands of years, humans have drawn on the wealth of the grasslands, developing lifestyles and cultures unique to the region.

The value of grasslands goes well beyond that which can be seen on the surface. They also play very important roles in carbon sequestration and water filtration—both areas of concern in a changing climate. The deep roots of most grassland plants can hold incredible amounts of carbon, and they filter water for our water sources. The same roots help stabilize slopes during increasingly frequent weather events, protecting not only the hillsides, but the streams, lakes, and homes below.

The myriad of services the grasslands provide occur on a surprisingly small portion of the province’s land base: less than one percent. However, much of it is on the same land that’s most appealing for human habitat, development, and recreation, including the Thompson, Okanagan, and East Kootenay valleys, and the Cariboo Chilcotin and Peace regions. Most of these areas have very attractive climates, with expansive, open, and easily accessible territory that provides numerous recreational choices and spectacular views. Sadly, in looking at these views, many people can’t see the grasses for the grasslands, to twist an old cliché.

So, next time you’re in the grasslands, take a break from your recreation for a few minutes. Look about you. Look down. How many grass types can you see? Do you see insects scurrying about? Birds nesting nearby? Is there any evidence of other animals? Are delicately coloured flowers mingling with the sagebrush?

Now, look up again. Does the landscape look quite as dry and brown to you now? The subtleties of gold and bronze hues against the dappled texture and shading of bunchgrass and sagebrush echo the subtle richness of the life the landscape encapsulates.

For the gifts the grasslands give you in recreational opportunities and visual splendour, they ask for just one thing in return: that you care for them. Grasslands are sensitive and in many cases take decades to repair, if ever at all. Much has already been lost to development, intensive agriculture, fragmentation, weed infestations, and misuse.

So, it would be a great benefit to the grasslands and the lives they support if we respect their fragility by staying on designated trails and at established campsites. This will reduce erosion, weeds, damage to sensitive plants and animal burrows, and disturbances to wildlife and livestock. By staying on trails around wetlands, you’ll know you haven’t crushed any spadefoot toad or turtle eggs buried in the mud. You’ll also be leaving a clean and drinkable watering source for wildlife and livestock. Finally, help the grasslands by leaving them as you found them, by taking out your garbage and ensuring plants and seeds haven’t hitched a ride on your equipment or vehicles.

By taking a few precautionary steps and looking more closely about you, you’ll take your recreation on the grasslands to a new high and ensure that there’ll be grasslands forever for you and future generations to enjoy.

Catrina Crowe is the communications and outreach coordinator for the Grasslands Conservation Council of British Columbia.