Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park

Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park is a provincial park covering parts of the eastern Kitimat Ranges, northern Pacific Ranges, and the Rainbow Range in British Columbia, Canada. It was established on May 21, 1938 to protect a vast area of pristine wilderness in the western interior of the province.

Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park
IUCN category II (national park)[1]
Coast Mountains above a lake in Tweedsmuir Park
Location of Tweedsmuir South in British Columbia
Nearest cityPrince George and Bella Coola
Coordinates52°31′16″N 125°54′49″W
Area989,616 ha (3,820.93 sq mi)
DesignationClass A Provincial Park
EstablishedMay 21, 1938
Governing bodyBC Parks
WebsiteTweedsmuir Provincial Park – South

History

In 1793, British explorer Alexander Mackenzie travelled through the area of the park on his epic journey to the Pacific Ocean. He became the first European man to see the Pacific coast of North America, a full 12 years before the more famous Lewis and Clark Expedition.[2]

Establishment

In August 1937, Governor General of Canada John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir travelled extensively by float aircraft and horseback in the area of the park. He and his party were greatly impressed by the magnificence of its pristine wilderness, so much so that he encouraged the provincial government to preserve it.[2]

On May 21, 1938, the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia established Tweedsmuir Provincial Park by order-in-council under the Park Act. The park covered an area of 981,000 hectares at creation, making it by far the largest provincial park in British Columbia at the time. It included most of the present day parks of Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park, Tweedsmuir North Provincial Park and Protected Area, and Entiako Provincial Park.

Restructuring

In 1956, the park boundaries were revised so that the region around the Entiako River could be opened for resource extraction. The region would again be protected under the newly established Entiako Provincial Park in 1999 and Entiako Protected Area in 2001.[3]

Due to the difficulty of operating Tweedsmuir Provincial Park as a single park unit, it was broken up into two operating units: Tweedsmuir North Provincial Park and Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park.

Geography
McCauley Lake as viewed from Rainbow Range Trail

Tweedsmuir Park is located east of the Kitimat Ranges in the western interior of British Columbia. The park covers almost 1 million hectares and spans four regional districts: Bulkley-Nechako, Cariboo, Central Coast, and Mount Waddington.

The southern portion of the park is along Highway 20, approximately 400 kilometres west of Williams Lake. Access is also possible along the Discovery Coast Passage ferry and Inside Passage from Port Hardy on Vancouver Island on BC Ferries[4] or by float plane from Nimpo Lake, Anahim Lake or Bella Coola.[5]

Points of interest
Hunlen Falls is located in the southern portion of Tweedsmuir Park

Tweedsmuir Park protects the entirety of the Rainbow Range, a collection of volcanic peaks where heavy mineralization has given the soil an array of colours. The park also protects Hunlen Falls, a 260 metre tall waterfall with one of highest unbroken drops in Canada.[6]

The park was also home to Lonesome Lake, famed for homesteader and conservationist Ralph Edwards, who worked to preserve migration habitat there for the trumpeter swan.[7]

The Alexander MacKenzie Heritage Trail is a heritage trail that follows the routing of a historic footpath used by local First Nations for trade and travel between the coast and the interior. This trail would later be used by British explorer Alexander Mackenzie to become the first European to transit the continent by land and see the Pacific Ocean. A portion of the trail transits the park via Heckman Pass and Burnt Bridge Creek.[8]

Climate

With such a vast area the climate varies throughout the park. However in the lower regions closer to the Bella Coola Valley the temperature is warmer with a higher annual level of rainfall. Around one fifth of their annual precipitation falls as snow. Further west as the altitude climbs the weather is generally more severe and the temperature changes throughout the summer and winter are drastic. On average ranging between the minus thirties mid winter, to the higher forties during high summer.[7]

Ecology
Moose grazing in Tweedsmuir Park

This park was affected by the Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic in British Columbia.[7]

Recreation

The park hosts opportunities for angling, hiking, horseback riding, camping (both front-country and backcountry), and canoeing. There are two vehicle-accessible campgrounds in the park. There are also four designated picnic areas within the park. There is limited vehicle-accessible winter camping as well. The Tweedsmuir Ski Club maintains a small ski hill within the boundaries of the park with a single handle tow and cross-country ski trails.[9] Snowmobiling is also possible within the Rainbow Range. Wildlife viewing, specifically of grizzly bears and black bears is a focus of the park in the autumn along the Atnarko River.

The main corridor through the park, along the highway, is interpreted by a series of signs developed as a partnership between BC Parks and the Nuxalk Nation.[10]

References
  1. "Tweedsmuir Park". Protected Planet. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
  2. Environment, Ministry of. "Ministry of Environment - Tweedsmuir South". bcparks.ca. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  3. Environment, Ministry of. "Ministry of Environment - Entiako Provincial Park and Protected Area". bcparks.ca. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  4. "Inside Passage Fall/Winter/Spring". BC Ferries. British Columbia Ferries Corporation. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
  5. "Tweedsmuir Provincial Park – South". BC Travel & Tourism. BC Travel & Tourism. 2017. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  6. "Hunlen Falls, British Columbia, Canada - World Waterfall Database". www.worldwaterfalldatabase.com. Retrieved 2020-10-31.
  7. BC Parks Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park webpage, History section
  8. "Alexander Mackenzie Heritage Trail, BC". www.bcadventure.com. Retrieved 2018-03-13.
  9. Thompson, Caitlin (14 November 2018). "New Tweedsmuir XC ski cabin almost ready for winter season". Coast Mountain News. Black Press. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
  10. Thompson, Caitlin (8 August 2019). "BC Parks unveils new signage in Tweedsmuir Park". Coast Mountain News. Black Press. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
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