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Jasper National Park is the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies, spanning 10,878 km² (4200 mi²). It is located in the province of Alberta, to the north of Banff National Park and west of the city of Edmonton. The park includes the glaciers of the Columbia Icefield, hot springs, lakes, waterfalls and mountains. Wildlife in the park include elk, caribou, moose, mule deer, white-tailed deer, mountain goat, bighorn sheep, grizzly bear, black bear, beaver, Rocky Mountain pika, hoary marmot, gray wolf, mountain lion, and wolverine.

History

Transient Indian campsites and workshops, dating back approximately 3,000 years, have been excavated in the park. A quarry just outside the park's boundaries was the source of flint-like quartz used for tools and arrow-heads.^[1] European explorers and fur trappers begin to travel the Jasper region in the late 1700s.^[2]155 From the early 1800s, there were many trading party expeditions through the area that would become Jasper National Park.^[3]228 In 1811, David Thompson was the first European to map Athabasca Pass, which became a new route to western trapping grounds.^[2]156-157 By the 1820s Jasper had become a key route in the western trading enterprise. Trappers traversed Athabasca Pass to access the Columbia River and the Pacific, and traversed Yellowhead Pass to reach the New Caledonian trapping grounds. More trading crews traversed the mountain passes in Jasper than anywhere else in the Canadian Rockies. Fur companies established posts inside the boundaries of the present day park.^[2]158 The North West Company built Rocky Mountain House, later known as Jasper House after its proprietor Jasper Hawsen the northern shore of Brule Lake in the eastern park of today's park in 1813.^[2]158^[4] By the time the post was abandoned, the name "Jasper" was used to describe the area the house was situated in.^[4] During the 1800s the wildlife was under pressure from sportsmen, prospectors, and settlers.^[2]162 The park was expanded to its current size of 10,878 km2 in 1930.^[4] It in combination with Kootenay, Banff and Yoho national parks became part of the Canadian Rockies World Heritage Site in 1984.^[1]

Geography

The park stretches from the Continental Divide to the eastern Front Ranges of the Rocky Mountains. Some of the exposed rocks in the park date back over 500 million years. A small area along the Southesk River in the south-east of the park is the only protected part of the rounded rolling hills of the Foothills, the easternmost extension of the Rockies. Beds of Palliser limestone form large cliffs at Roche Miette and the Palisades. The park's major peaks include Columbia (3,747m), the Twins (3,684 and 3,559m), Alberta (3,619m), King Edward (3,475m), Fryatt (3,361m), Brazeau (3,470m), Poboktan (3,323m) and Sunwapta (3,315m). Some peaks in the park were carved by glaciation.^[1] Mount Edith Cavell was named after the World War I heroine in 1916.^[4] Maligne Canyon is very narrow and 50 metres deep.^[4]

The park has several active glaciers (Angel, Dome, Athabasca and Saskatchewan). The Columbia ice field covers 37,500ha.^[1]

Alpine and rock barrens cover approximately 10,400ha at higher altitudes.^[1]

The Athabasca River is the park's major waterway. It originates in the Columbia Icefield and flows south-north along the central broad, flat valley that runs the length of the park. It is fed by numerous tributaries draining the surrounding mountains.^[1]

Athabasca Falls is a 23 metre high waterfall. It has the most powerful flow in Canada's mountain parks. Sunwapta Falls was named by the alpinist A.P. Coleman in 1892. "Sunwapta" is a Stoney Indian term meaning "turbulent river". Medicine Lake is drained by one of the largest underground river systems in North America. Maligne Lake is 22 km long and well-known for its beauty.^[4] It is the largest glacier-fed lake in the Canadian Rockies.^[1] Lakes Annette, Beauvert, and Edith are kettle lakes formed at the end of glaciations. They are fed by springs.^[4] The park has numerous lakes filled by glacial meltwater that collects in valleys carved out by glaciers. These lakes include Amethyst, Brazeau, and Maligne.^[1]

The town of Jasper is located within the park. It has a population of 4,643.^[4]

The Yellowhead Highway stretches across the park from east to west.^[4] Other main roads and a major railway also cross the park.^[1]

The park's mean monthly temperatures are -12.2°C in January and 15.6°C in July. Mean annual precipitation is 508mm.^[1]

Flora

The park has a series of vegetation zones at different altitudes. The valleys are heavily forested with conifers. There are forest communities of aspen (Populus tremuloides) and poplar (Populus balsamifera). Some of the lower and drier slopes in the park have Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) forest and there is spruce-fir (Picea engelmanii-Abies lasiocarpa) forest near the timberline. There are open meadows above the timberline, which support communities dominated by arctic species such as heath Cassiope tetragona, mountain avens Dryas integrifolia and willow Salix arctica. Noteworthy herbaceous species include Heuchera glabra, Lupinus nootkatensis, Galium palustre and Dryopteris phegopteris.^[1]

Fauna

Marmot Marmota caligata, bighorn sheep Ovis canadensis and pika Ochotona princeps are typical fauna in the park's higher elevations. Moose Alces alces, mule deer Odocoileus hemionus, caribou Rangifer tarandus (woodland form) and beaver Castor canadensis occur in the valleys. The park's carnivores include timber wolf Canis lupus (V), grizzly bear Ursus arctos horribilis, wolverine Gulo gulo luscus, badger Taxidea taxus, lynx Lynx lynx canadensis and cougar Felis concolor.^[1]

About 200 species of birds have been identified in the park, including Clark's nutcracker Nucifraga columbiana.^[1]

Tourism

Jasper House, the trading post established by Jasper Hawse, was restored as a historical monument.^[1] It became the Parks Canada Information Centre in the 1970s. The Jasper-Yellowhead Museum and Archives has exhibits about Jasper's history.^[4]

The park has an Icefield Centre and there is a hiking trail to the Athabasca Glacier.^[4]

Annette and Edith Lakes have sandy beaches and are popular places for swimming and wading in July and August.^[4]

The large amount of tourism in the park creates some disturbances. Littering by hikers and garbage disposal at major campsites attracts wildlife and has changed bears' feeding patterns.^[1]

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