JASPER NATIONAL PARK - Canadian Rockies: Including Banff and Jasper National Parks - page 319

up behind the moraines. Maligne Lake, like many other lakes in the park, was created by
this process. The glacial silt suspended in the lake's waters produces amazing emerald, tur-
quoise, and amethyst colors; early artists who painted these lakes had trouble convincing
people that their images reflected reality.
In addition to creating the park's gemlike lakes, the retreating glaciers carved out the
valleys that they ever-so-slowly flowed through. The Athabasca River Valley is the park's
largest watershed, a typical example of a U-shaped, glacier-carved valley. The Athabasca
River flows north through the valley into the Mackenzie River system and ultimately into
the Arctic Ocean. The glacial silt that paints the park's lakes is also carried down streams
into the Athabasca, giving the river a pale green milky look. Another beautiful aspect of
the park's scenery is its abundance of waterfalls. They vary from the sparkling tumble of
Punchbowl Falls, where Mountain Creek cascades down a limestone cliff into a pictur-
esque pool, to the roar of Athabasca Falls, where the Athabasca River is forced through a
narrow gorge.
FLORA
Elevations in the park range from 980 meters (3,215 feet) to more than 3,700 meters
(12,140 feet). That makes for a wide range of resident plant life. Only a small part of the
park lies in the montane zone. It is characterized by stands of Douglas fir (at its north-
ern limit) and lodgepole pine, while balsam poplar, white birch, and spruce also occur.
Savanna-like grasslands occur on drier sites in valley bottoms. Well-developed stretches of
montane can be found along the floors of the Athabasca and Miette River Valleys, provid-
ing winter habitat for larger mammals such as elk.
The subalpine zone, heavily forested with evergreens, extends from the lower valley
slopes up to the tree line at an elevation of around 2,200 meters (7,220 feet). The subalpine
occupies 40 percent of the park's area. The dominant species in this zone is lodgepole pine,
although Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, poplar, and aspen also grow here. The park's
extensive stands of lodgepole pine are inhabited by few large mammals because the under-
story is minimal. Wildflowers are common in this zone and can be found by the roadside,
in clearings, or on riverbanks.
Timberline here lies at an elevation of 2,050-2,400 meters (6,275-7,870 feet) above sea
level. Above this elevation is the alpine zone, where the climate is severe (the average
yearly temperature is below freezing), summer is brief, and only a few stunted trees sur-
vive. The zone's plant species grow low to the ground, with extensive root systems to pro-
tect them during high winds and through the deep snow cover of winter. During the short