Saint Anthony's near Haight

An attractive country church and cemetery near Haight, Alberta.

I couldn't find any history of Saint Anthony's but birth dates on the headstones date back as far as 1831...almost two centuries.  I'm no spring chicken but that seems like a wonderfully long time ago on the prairies.   

Photographed on June 23, 2025.

Peony

Saw this peony in full bloom on a recent trip to central Alberta.  Don't think I've ever seen one this dark rosy red colour before...a treat for certain  Looks beautiful amongst the marble and brilliant white painted headstones.

Photographed at Saint Michael Archangel Roman Catholic Cemetery near Saint Michael, Alberta. 

Saint Asaph's near Bangor

A look inside Saint Asaph's Anglican Church...

The church was established in 1905 by Welsh settlers.

To quote a plaque in the nearby Llewelyn Cemetery:

"To be born Welsh is to be born privileged, not with a silver spoon in your mouth, but with poetry in your blood and music in your soul."

Love and appreciation with heart and soul.

The church hasn't been used in years but is still in reasonably good condition.  That new metal roof should keep it safe for many years to come.

A shot of the church from the Llewelyn Cemetery.

This is the trail that leads from the cemetery to the church.

And this is the sign just off the main road. 

Photographed near Bangor, Saskatchewan on July 22, 2022.

This Morning at Saint Margaret's

Tiny cathedral out in the hills.

Everything is lush and green this spring...

...and the lilacs are coming into full bloom.

The columbarium tucked away in the southwest corner of the grounds.

Peaked roof in front of a peaked hill.

Heather's Garden...new plants and field stone border.

Sage keeps his vigil under the limbs of a spruce tree.

More lilacs blooming.

The view across the coulee.

If and when you're in the area, stop in for a visit.

Photographed at Saint Margaret's Church and Cemetery near Eagle Butte, Alberta on June 3, 2023.

Grape Hyacinths

Fresh blooms in Heather's Garden.  They have a lovely fragrance too.

Photographed at Saint Margaret's Church and Cemetery near Eagle Butte, Alberta on May 14, 2025.

Heather's Garden

An early and most welcome colourful spot in Heather's Garden this spring.  As any gardener will know...plant fall bulbs for spring blooms.

The perennials are slowly coming to life.  

As well as the crocuses shown above, I planted about a dozen saffron crocuses which I didn't get so see blooming because a deer ate all of the flowers before I got there.  That's a pretty exotic taste treat for a deer.  Hope he or she enjoyed them.  Maybe next year.

Some hyacinths popping up.  They should be blooming in about ten days.

A lamium groundcover plant was thriving as soon as the snow melted.  

The pasque flowers should bloom the same time as the hyacinths.

Photographed at Saint Margaret's Church and Cemetery near Eagle Butte, Alberta on April 26 and 27, 2025.

A Beautiful Place Out in the Country

More to see here: Буковина

Saint Michael's Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Cemetery was photographed near Lepine, Saskatchewan on August 4, 2020.

Easter Monday

Hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend.

Malin Cemetery was photographed near Saddle Creek, Alberta on November 9, 2024.

Jerald

So young.

Photographed at Holy Trinity Romanian Orthodox Cemetery near Pierceland, Saskatchewan on July 17, 2023.

Holy Family Ukrainian Catholic Church

Holy Family is a country church and cemetery just seventeen miles north of the Canada/U.S.A. border.  I believe it is the southernmost Ukrainian church in all of Saskatchewan.

Settlers arrived to the area in 1905 and lived in dug outs and hillside shelters in those early days.  Frequent prairie fires added even more hardship to their meagre existence, and, the original chapel built around 1919 was completely destroyed in a storm only a few years later.  They truly had a hard life.  

But perseverance prevailed...

Over two decades later the congregation was finally able to build a new church in 1944 after one of the founding parishioners died and left a quarter section of land to the church.  The profits from this generous donation enabled the congregation to erect the new church, and only four years later, completely renovate and enlarge it.  Now that's a success story if I ever heard one.  

The wooden mission cross that stands midway between the church and cemetery commemorates the Holy Missions of 1956 and 1964.

The church was seventy-nine years old at the time of my visit.  My thanks to all those at Holy Family who still love and care for this little church out in the country.

Information courtesy of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Saskatoon.

Photographed near Maxim, Saskatchewan on September 13, 2023.

Kaplychka

A favourite place to drop by for a visit...the "little chapel" in the countryside near Rhein, Saskatchewan is now one hundred and twenty-five years old...and that's definitely a cause for celebration.

More about this historical landmark here:

Kaplychka

Photographed on October 13, 2022.

Annie & John

Two oldtimers spending eternity together at Saint Joseph's Parish Cemetery.  Good for them. 

Photographed near Candiac, Saskatchewan on May 19, 2021.