Buse Lake Protected Area

Buse Lake is a favourite location for birders and naturalists. The lake is known for shorebirds, with some relatively rare species such as American avocets, which are attracted to the rich alkaline shoreline. The top of Buse Hill offers expansive views of surrounding landscapes of the Thompson Basin. The hike to the top of the hill from the south is relatively short and easy. The north facing terrain above Buse Lake rises steeply through forested slopes to a high cliff face, topped by rocky summits. The 200 meter high cliff formations include a impressive detached rock tower. The steeply sloping terrain on the south side of the park drops down into upper grassland habits on adjacent grazing lease lands. Local rockhound enthusiasts have collected blue opal from the area immediately adjacent to the park, lying southwest of Buse Lake. While most of the rock hounding activity occurs outside of the park, there is some interest in using the park. Rock hounding activities in the park are confined to low impact rock chipping and surface collecting. The Park exhibits some of the diversity of rock types found in the Robbins Range, which originate from Cenozoic (Upper Triassic), Mesozoic and Paleozoic eras. The lower portions are comprised of volcanics and the upper slopes are a complex array of basalts, breccia, schists and conglomerates.