Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TERRY FOX: LEGACY OF HOPE
Terry Fox is a name that is sure to come up at some point on your Canadian travels.
In 1977, as a college-bound teenager, Fox lost his right leg to cancer. On April 12,
1980, after three years of training, with next to no sponsorship and little media cov-
erage, he set off from Newfoundland on his Marathon of Hope, with the aim of rais-
ing money for cancer research. After he ran over 5,000 kilometers (3,100 miles) in
144 days, a recurrence of the cancer forced him to stop just outside Ontario's Thun-
der Bay. Cancer had begun spreading to his lungs, and on June 28, 1981, aged just
22, he died. As his run had progressed, the attention had grown, and, more import-
ant, the donations poured in. In total, his Marathon of Hope raised $24 million, far
surpassing all goals.
The legacy of Terry Fox lives on in many ways, including 2,650-meter
(8,700-foot) Mount Terry Fox, along the Yellowhead Highway; the Terry Fox
Run ( www.terryfox.org ) , an annual fall event in many Canadian towns; Vancouver's
Terry Fox Plaza and a tribute in the adjacent BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum;
and an annual $5 million scholarship fund.
The main access road into the 540,000-hectare (1,334,000-acre) park leads north from
Clearwater for 37 kilometers (23 miles) to the park boundary. From there it continues 11
kilometers (6.8 miles) to one of the park's highlights, Helmcken Falls, where it turns to
gravel and continues another 18 kilometers (11 miles) to its end at Clearwater Lake. Al-
though this access road barely penetrates the park, driving its length is enough to get a taste
of the rugged northern reaches. If it's not, you can take a canoe trip or boat tour from the
end of the road.
Sights and Recreation
Make your first stop 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from Clearwater, where a short trail leads
through an old-growth forest of cedar and hemlock to a colorful lava canyon where
61-meter-high (200-foot-high) Spahats Creek Falls plummets over multicolored bedrock
into the Clearwater River.
Continuing through the park, take a signposted gravel road to the west to Green View-
ing Tower atop Green Mountain. The viewpoint provides panoramic views of a volcanic
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