Kakwa Provincial Park BC: description and recreation potential of the new provincial park

The purpose of this project was to gain a better understanding of the Kakwa Park area and to examine the recreational potential. A literature review provided information about the geology and the human history of the area. Official BC Parks reports were an important source of information to situate Kakwa in the context of other protected areas. Personal communications with visitors and field notes were used to describe the trails and routes of the area. Kakwa Park is at the northern end of a network of protected areas along the Canadian Rocky Mountains beginning at the U.S. border. Although its spectacular scenery is comparable to that found in the southern part of the Rockies, it has received much fewer visitors than the other Rocky Mountain parks. The main reasons have been its distance from large population centres and the lack of road access. The complexity of its geological structures and the diversity of its rock formation, which are described in this project, have helped to forge the unique character of the area. The deep valleys carved by the passage of the glaciers and separated by high mountain ridges form natural barriers between the different management units of the park. Located along the Continental Divide and mostly buffered from surrounding resource activities, Kakwa plays a major conservation role in a regional context. The recreation potential of the area has still to be developed. The route and trail system described in the project may contribute to a world-class destination if the area is made more accessible to the public. The two multi-day loop trips listed in the trail and route system traverse all the main natural features of the Main and Front Ranges of the Central Rockies. This project provides insight on the important conservation role of Kakwa Park in its regional context and in the BC Parks system. The area also has all the attributes for a destination of a high quality wilderness experience.--Page i.