JASPER NATIONAL PARK - Canadian Rockies: Including Banff and Jasper National Parks - page 385

More remote is Willmore Wilderness Park, northeast of Jasper, where most travel is by
horseback.
MM MOUNT ROBSON PROVINCIAL PARK
At the northern end of the Canadian Rockies, spectacular 224,866-hectare (555,650-acre)
Mount Robson Provincial Park was created in 1913 to protect a vast wilderness of steep
canyons and wide forested valleys; icy lakes, rivers, and streams; and rugged mountain
peaks permanently blanketed in snow and ice. The park lies along the Continental Divide
in British Columbia, adjacent to Jasper National Park, and shelters the headwaters of the
Fraser River, one of British Columbia's most important waterways. Towering over the
park's western entrance is magnificent 3,954-meter (12,970-foot) Mount Robson, the
highest peak in the Canadian Rockies.
Highway 16 splits the park in two, and many sights of interest are visible from the high-
way. But you'll have to leave the car behind to experience one of the park's biggest draws;
the famous Berg Lake Trail is strictly for hikers.
Getting There and Around
Mount Robson Provincial Park is west of the town of Jasper along Highway 16. From the
park boundary at Yellowhead Pass it is 62 kilometers (39 miles) west to the visitor center.
No public transportation serves the park, so you will need your own vehicle.
Flora and Fauna
The elevation differences within the park are as great as anywhere else in the Canadian
Rockies, making for a great variety of flora and fauna. The main service center lies in a
forested valley at an elevation of just 840 meters (2,750 feet), right in the heart of the mont-
ane. The oft-photographed view of Mount Robson from the visitors center is framed by a
stand of trembling aspen across a cleared meadow, but the most common tree at this eleva-
tion is Douglas fir, which covers the valley floor. Western red cedar and hemlock thrive
in damp sections of the park. As in the rest of the Canadian Rockies, the subalpine zone
is dominated by Engelmann spruce and, at higher elevations, subalpine fir. The alpine
zone in the park begins at around 2,300 meters (7,550 feet).
In spring, black bears are often seen feasting on dandelions by the roadside, but their
larger relative, the grizzly, rarely makes an appearance in the busy valley through which
Highway 16 winds. Elk, moose, and mountain goats are also present, as are many smaller