Our 4 days in Elk Island National Park, also known as the “island of conservation,” has been a restful haven supported by the woodsy enchantment, as well as supporting something bigger I was to come to understand during the days unfolding. Here, I found myself resting more in order to nourish all that is integrating on deeper levels and prepare for what’s ahead, which calls for the body’s need to sleep and relax so that that can take place. During this time I found myself connecting with new animal guides that I now take along with me, as a part of my heart and soul and as always, I do my best to share their messages and energy with others.

We’ve experienced some new animal friends here and some old, but this wooded sanctuary carried a different energy that felt healing.

Elk Island is not an actual island, but a metaphorical island surrounded by populated areas of a million people creating it as an island ecosystem in the middle of developed settlements. It is also a completely enclosed sanctuary where repopulation efforts and conservancy has been put in place to help restore the wildlife that had nearly been killed off by trappers and hunters back in the day.

It is now host to the densest population of hoofed mammals in Canada and the herds have been seeds to help repopulate other areas in North America.

Wikipedia shares: “Though there was never any permanent First Nations settlement in the area, there are over 200 archaeological remains of campsites and stone toolmaking sites. The land has been influenced by the Blackfoot, Sarcee, and Cree peoples.”

So there is a real healing integration energy within the grounds of Elk Island, to return things back to harmony where imbalance had been imposed by those before us.

Interestingly, any time we saw animals, exception being ducks and dragonflies, they were all solitary creatures, making connecting with them feeling to be very focused to specific messages individuals wanted to share.

We encountered wood bison, moose, snowshoe hare, wood frogs, great gray owl, loons, variety of ducks, cormorant, red tailed hawk, coyotes, beaver, dragonflies and butterflies while in the park.

Our moose connection has been an interesting unfolding, which first began in West Glacier National Park with our double sighting of the female moose. Then the baby moose crossing the road in Kootenay National Park. And now the big moose buck with full rack in Elk Island. A full circle experience of moose energy.

Sacred experiences were definitely shared with each of the animals and I felt a gentle energy within each of them. Some were more brief, but divinely aligned in timing, and others were long and more involved – yet all equally rich.

And this began from day one until the very end.

During our time we enjoyed trails like the 6+ mile Hayburger Trail loop, which was a lovely forested walk past ponds, meadows, bogs, beaver lodges, and even potent quicksand.

These types of visuals would continue throughout our time, except for the quicksand, which was unique to this particular hike and I felt was very symbolic and magickal given I’d just been reading in my book about an incident with quicksand where a shaman was teaching the main character about its symbolism and how to master this energy when she got stuck in it and was sinking.

This seems to keep happening with everything, but especially my books I’m reading, where the things I read are coming to life and I’m merging into the experiences just like the Neverending Story.

Anyway, this park hosts a variety of woodsy enchantment including faery tale mushrooms and berries galore, which on this first hike gifted us a harvest of wild raspberries we thoroughly enjoyed and were grateful for. Mmmmm!

Dave got silly with this mushroom that looked like a fried egg.

I also have been continuing to enjoy frog energy….here I’ve seen 3 different varieties of wood frogs jumping around our feet in the clover as we hiked, of which I only got photos of 2 – the other had stripes. I paid great care and attention not to step on any, as they were eager to leap about and were quite tiny.

Dragonfly energy continued, but in abundance like I’ve never seen and so many different types including some gigantic ones! They were filling the path and fluttering all around us and our legs, flying right at us, and feeling like a faery tale coming to life. I could just envision the golden pixie dust that surrounded us.

My beloved snowshoe hare also made herself known on this first day, twice appearing in the same area at the start and end of our loop hike. This time she stood peacefully for several minutes letting me come quite near to connect.

And the amazing great gray owl swooped directly in front and across our path, which was a sacred gift for sure, especially since I’d been talking about owls and sensing their energy around, not to mention had been told my new medicine path is that of the owl at this time in my life.

While here I completed a potent Magick Stone – my last for now – which also felt synchronous. And we experienced the powerful Full Moon Eclipse, which woke me up.

The other short trails we ventured on, just to get out and about, were the Beaver Pond Trail and a trail that went straight from our rv campground around the land surrounding.

Our last day we spent at Astotin Lake Sandy Beach breaking in our new magick boat kayak, picnicking, resting, catching some sunshine on our beach chairs, and relaxing with some good books.

Here we got to see the rescue of a cormorant that was injured, which made me so happy to see the rangers on top of this. It took 2 tries, but they gently wrapped him up and drove him off to receive care for his injuries. Yay!

I’d been feeling that in one of the lakes, before leaving Alberta, I’d be placing a crystal for healing integration.

When I arrived at Elk Island, I knew it would be here, and Astotin Lake was it.

We were there on a Saturday and found that this lake, although not dramatically stunning as those we’ve seen in other areas of Alberta, drew in a melting pot of people here, which felt divinely perfect for collective healing activation that would trickle out from what I felt led to do.

This lake is the central draw of this park and due to the nature of peaceful sanctuary and a return to natural harmony being implemented here, this felt to be a safe haven to anchor in the seed crystal energy that would help to be a beacon that could emanate strongly out to surrounding areas in need, as well as connect with energies worldwide and throughout the Rockies, since this is the last connected area to them we would be visiting, since we’ve left the Rockies on our way to Saskatchewan today. This feeling like another good reflection of anchoring our several month journey in the Rockies with beautiful closure.

This was a place that seemed inconspicuous in nature, under the radar so to speak, a safe and subtle way to do this work.

So as we kayaked out on the lake, we veered off around some of the little islands and came to an area that was more enclosed, with two narrow entrances in and out…it is here I did a sacred intention and release of the crystal into the water.

It was a crystal I had found on one of our hikes in a more highly charged visual area of Alberta where we’d experienced other kinds of energy. I had kept this crystal with me daily, working with it and cleansing and transmuting the energy. It felt perfect to release that crystal here, which would directly affect the other areas it is connected to, and would be protected.

As I released it, I noticed a pair of ducks at one of the entrances to this area sitting peacefully on the water feeling like the union of divine feminine and masculine energy bearing witness to, and supporting this intentional action of harmony I intended to help restore to these areas, and to our beautiful Terra. They flew off when I was done.

It was short, sweet, gentle, and yet heartfully intentional.

And this brings me to the wood bison, who I fell in love with and will continue to carry in my heart and work together with.

From day one in Elk Island, the wood bison began to make his connection.

And during our 4 days, 3 of those days continued with wood bison encounters, except for the day we stayed close at home on the trails behind our rv site.

During these encounters, we connected with two wood bison – both males. The first two times were individual encounters with each of them, and the last day was a combination of both of them and was also the day that the moose buck appeared as well.

The energy we were encountering seemed to be that of sacred masculine energy, which I have felt to be key in remembering to integrate, while many have had a more focused intent on the sacred feminine. Both are needed, and integral to the other. We mustn’t forget our parts.

Anyway, the first encounter was with a wood bison serenely and almost meditatively sitting amidst the brush at the edge of the forest. He was only about 15 feet away, while we stopped the car to connect. I immediately felt the sweetness emanating from those gentle, soulful eyes of this tender giant.

My energy shifted in this connecting and wondered what else was to come.

It was the second encounter with a different male wood bison that ignited things deeply.

We had just finished a shorter hike on Beaver Pond Trail. On this hike I’d found this lovely large white, delicate and heavenly down feather – the biggest I’ve seen and knew it came from a sacred bird, but loved that it was the under feather that reveals the sacred power that is unseen.

I had this feather with me, as I had received it as gift. It felt like gentle, tender, peaceful energy. The same energy that this wood bison we then came upon after, while driving, embodied.

We came upon him at the edge of the woods and stopped. I got out of the car to not have a barrier between me and him.

He was standing at the edge of the forest, but eventually he came about 30 feet away.

I spent time connecting intentfully and feeling drawn to send him healing energy, as well as being in deep respect and honor of him, and I could see that he received this and was doing the same, as he stood very still, as if in meditation and trance-like as I did so.

I then was moved to receive anything he might have to share and immediately got that he wanted me to share his message.

When I asked him what that was it came through clearly.

“Peace,” he said. Simply that.

And yet this simple message was layered in depth and meaning.

Interesting due to the feather I found and what I felt from it.

I spent a half hour with him. Just exchanging energy and being with his sweetness. He was not the male energy one might attach to a creature of his stature and physical strength.

He was like my Cosmo….expressing and embodying the new male. He was not about the fight and did not want to engage that path.

After about half the time I spent with him, I realized that he had wounds received from another male. There was one large wound – a big puncture from a horn right through his left side – the side connected to the sacred feminine. This open wound being a portal for transmutation.

I then knew more of why I’d felt called to send him healing, which now also included the physical. I spent time helping to mend the wound energetically.

Interesting to note also, the horns grow up toward the sky, which brings an embodiment of this higher intelligence. That he was punctured by these Cosmic horns from another bison in his solar plexus seemed also to reflect bringing this higher consciousness into deep assimilation and digestion of universal truths and enlightenment through as personal empowerment and creative energy to actively move forward with. Integration of Earth and Cosmos.

He wanted much to connect and knew I was sending healing energy, so he just sat receiving in kind and coming closer. He didn’t move at times for minutes like a statue just looking..then the rest of the time grazed as he connected.

During our connecting I energetically hugged him, and this experience was not one simply in my mind’s eye, but physically experienced, as I could feel his thick fur…it’s texture, it’s warmth from the sun and his tough flesh and blood beneath it, and it’s thick soft and coarseness between my fingers, on my skin, and caressing my cheek that lay against his massive power and nurturing guardianship.

I surrendered into the sacred male energy as my own guardian and trusted partner of mutual respect and support. Our energies together becoming a gentle power of unification meant to walk hand-in-hand together – each reflecting the gifts and strengths of the other and how they work divinely in synergy with one another.

I was reminded of Beauty and the Beast, but this was a new faery tale story unfolding a whole new reality and dynamics.

I felt like I could have sat in the field with him and he’d have welcomed it. But I knew our window created for this experience and exchange was not endless, and that someone would eventually show up when the time was concluded, which would shift and disturb the energy.

Interestingly no one came during the time we were connecting, but at the end when it felt complete, our bubble of sacredness came to closure when a car came by and stopped to see him. I knew it was time to go.

But he did show up again, along with the other wood bison, as mentioned, on our last day to say our farewells and lock in our bond.

I knew it was them by their energy and their faces, having connected with each, and by their showing up in the same spot we’d seen them on the other days, much as the moose cow in Glacier National Park had returned to the same spot two days in a row.

On the second day of seeing the wood bison who shared his message of peace, I found him this time laying peacefully in a dirt patch in front of the forest.

And the other wood bison, who the first day was laying in the bushes, had now switched with this other and was up and about and literally 10 feet from the car.

It was interesting that the feather I found before this encounter I realized was gone when we left to head home. I can only imagine it fell out of the car? Or had somehow transmuted?

I thanked him before we’d left, feeling the magnitude of his simple message and all that it contained in potent layers without needing to express it all. I’d received those layers through our connection, his ancient eyes, and the ages of experiences we would be helping to mend and unify together.

When I got home, I felt called to look more deeply into bison medicine. And this stood out in what I found, which is exactly what he meant in the exchange I received in his peace:

“Those with buffalo/bison as power animal must walk a sacred path, honoring every walk of life. Buffalo will assist you in establishing a deep connection with Mother Earth and Father Sky (interesting since buffalo is Earth and the feather is Sky) and will ask that you help the endangered species and all of life in the world. Pray/meditate/focus on harmony and peace amongst all beings.”

And that is just what I am, have, and will continue to do.

My intention has been and will always be for a return to natural harmony within and without.