Yoho National Park

Yoho National Park (/ˈjoʊhoʊ/ YOH-hoh) is a national park of Canada. It is located within the Rocky Mountains along the western slope of the Continental Divide of the Americas in southeastern British Columbia, bordered by Kootenay National Park to the south and Banff National Park to the east in Alberta. The word Yoho is a Cree expression of amazement or awe, and it is an apt description for the park's spectacular landscape of massive ice fields and mountain peaks, which rank among the highest in the Canadian Rockies.

Yoho National Park
Parc national Yoho
IUCN category II (national park)
Takakkaw Falls
Location in Canada Location in British Columbia
Location	British Columbia, Canada
Nearest city	Golden
Coordinates	51°23′43″N 116°29′12″W
Area	1,313 km2 (507 sq mi)
Established	October 10, 1886
Visitors	663,878 (in 2022–23)
Governing body	Parks Canada
Website	parks.canada.ca/pn-np/bc/yoho
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Part of	Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks
Criteria	Natural: (vii), (viii)
Reference	304
Inscription	1984 (8th Session)

Yoho covers an area of 1,313 square kilometres (507 sq mi), the smallest of the region's four contiguous national parks, which also include Jasper, Kootenay, and Banff National Parks, as well as three British Columbia provincial parks—Hamber Provincial Park, Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park, and Mount Robson Provincial Park. Together, these parks form the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage Site. Yoho's administrative and visitor centre is in Field, British Columbia, beside the Trans-Canada Highway.

History

Yoho National Park is in the traditional territories of the Secwepemc and Ktunaxa First Nations. Before the establishment of the park, the Ktunaxa primarily used the area—specifically, Kicking Horse Pass—to cross the Rockies in order to access bison hunting grounds on the eastern side of the mountains. The park was created following a trip by Prime Minister John A. Macdonald and his wife Agnes through the Rockies on the newly completed Canadian Pacific Railway, Canada's first transcontinental. After his return to Ottawa, Yoho National Park was created on October 10, 1886. Glacier National Park was created on the same day, making Yoho and Glacier the second and third national parks in the country, after Rocky Mountains Park (now named Banff National Park).

The contiguous national parks of Banff, Jasper, Kootenay, and Yoho, as well as the Mount Robson, Mount Assiniboine, and Hamber provincial parks, were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984.

Fauna

Common species of animals that roam in this park are the timber wolf, coyote, badger, moose, elk, mule deer, mountain goat, golden-mantled ground squirrel, rufous hummingbird, hoary marmot, wolverine, cougar, pika, lynx, grizzly bear, and black bear.

Climate

The weather in the park is localized and changeable. Located on the western side of the continental divide, it receives more precipitation than areas east of the divide. Precipitation in the park increases with elevation. In winter, average temperatures are between 5 and −15 °C (41.0 and 5.0 °F) from the months November to April although temperatures can range between 10 and −35 °C (50.0 and −31.0 °F). The coldest weather usually occurs in the months December to February. In summer, mean temperatures average 12.5 °C (54.5 °F) with an average high of 20 °C (68.0 °F) and an average low of 5 °C (41.0 °F). Snowfall and freezing temperatures can occur during the summertime at altitudes above 1,500 m (4,900 ft).

Geology

Chancellor Peak and Kicking Horse River

Emerald Lake

Lake McArthur, 1924 painting by J. E. H. MacDonald

Natural Bridge in Yoho National Park

The Kicking Horse River, a Canadian Heritage River, originates in the Wapta and Waputik icefields in the park. This river has created a natural bridge through solid rock. This formation is located 3 km (1.9 mi) west of Field, accessible from the road to Emerald Lake.

The Canadian Rockies consist of sedimentary rock, with numerous fossil deposits. In particular, the Burgess Shale, in Yoho National Park, has among the world's richest deposits of rare fossils. The Burgess Shale was discovered in 1909 by Charles Doolittle Walcott. In the southeastern corner of the park is an igneous intrusion known as the Ice River Complex containing deposits of sodalite, an ornamental stone.

Mountains

• Mount Goodsir 3,567 m (11,703 ft)
• Mount Vaux 3,310 m (10,860 ft)
• Mount Balfour 3,272 m (10,735 ft)
• Chancellor Peak 3,266 m (10,715 ft)
• Mount Stephen 3,199 m (10,495 ft) is the tallest of the four mountains that surround the town of Field, British Columbia. A portion of the Burgess Shale fossils were discovered on Mount Stephen.
• Cathedral Mountain 3,189 m (10,463 ft)
• The President 3,138 m (10,295 ft)
• Odaray Mountain 3,137 m (10,292 ft)
• The Vice President 3,077 m (10,095 ft)
• Wapta Mountain 2,778 m (9,114 ft)
• Mount Field 2,643 m (8,671 ft)
• Mount Burgess 2,599 m (8,527 ft) is a frequently climbed mountain. For 17 years, it was featured on the Canadian ten-dollar bill.
• Paget Peak 2,560 metres (8,399 ft)

Waterfalls

• Takakkaw Falls have a total height of 373 metres (1,224 ft), making it the 2nd tallest waterfall in Canada. The main drop of the waterfall has a height of 254 metres (833 ft).
• Wapta Falls is the largest waterfall of the Kicking Horse River, at about 30 metres (98 ft) high and 150 metres (490 ft) wide. Its average flow can reach 254 cubic metres per second (9,000 cu ft/s).

See also

• List of lakes of Yoho National Park
• List of national parks of Canada
• Emerald Lake

External links

• Official website
• Yoho National Park travel guide from Wikivoyage
• A travel guide for Yoho National Park and the village of Field, BC
• "Yoho National Park". The Canadian Encyclopedia