Waterton Lakes National Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Waterton Lakes National Park | |
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IUCN Category II (National Park)
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 Upper Waterton Lake |
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| Location | Alberta, Canada |
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| Nearest city | Pincher Creek |
| Coordinates | 49°02′45″N 113°54′55″W / 49.04583°N 113.91528°WCoordinates: 49°02′45″N 113°54′55″W / 49.04583°N 113.91528°W |
| Area | 505 km² |
| Established | 1911 (national park) 1979 (biosphere reserve) 1995 (world heritage site) |
| Visitors | 367,500 (in 2004) |
| Governing body | Parks Canada |
| World Heritage Site | 354 |
Waterton Lakes National Park is a national park located in the southwest corner of Alberta, Canada, and borders Glacier National Park in Montana, USA. Waterton was Canada's fourth national park, formed in 1895 and named after Waterton Lake, in turn after Charles Waterton. The park contains 505 km² (203 mi²) of rugged mountains and wilderness.
Operated by Parks Canada, Waterton is open all year, but the main tourist season is during July and August. The only commercial facilities available within the park are located at the Waterton Park townsite. The park ranges in elevation from 1,290 metres (4,232 ft) at the townsite to 2,910 m (9,547 ft) at Mount Blakiston. It offers many scenic trails, including Crypt Lake trail. In 2004, Waterton Lakes National Park had 367,500 visitors.[1]
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[edit] History
In 1932, Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park was formed from Waterton and Glacier. It was dedicated to world peace by Sir Charles Arthur Mander on behalf of Rotary International. This park symbolizes the bonds of peace and friendship between the people of the United States and Canada, and a border crossing is open in the park during the summer. Although the park has a lot of diversity for its size, the main highlight is the Waterton lakes—the deepest in the Canadian Rockies—overlooked by the historic Prince of Wales Hotel.
[edit] Biosphere Reserve
In 1979, Waterton was also designated a World Biosphere reserve, preserving mountains, highlands, lakes and freshwater wetlands ecosystems. Habitats represented in the park range include: prairie grasslands, aspen grove forests, alpine tundra/high meadows, Arctic-alpine communities above the tree line, lower subalpine forests, deciduous and coniferous forests.[2]
[edit] World Heritage Site
The park is part of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, designated as World Heritage Site in 1995 for its scenery and wealth of plant and animal species.[3]
[edit] Photo gallery
 Cameron Lake |
 Moose at Cameron Lake |
 View from top of Summit Trail |
 Summit Lake |
 Panorama taken from Prince of Wales hotel looking south |
 49th parallel at Waterton Lake |
.jpg) The Prince of Wales Hotel at Waterton Lakes National Park |
 Cameron Falls |
 Red Rock Canyon |
 Doe & Fawn at Waterton townsite campground |
 South Beach of Waterton townsite |
 Blakiston Falls (upper) |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Waterton Lakes National Park |
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Parks Canada website
- Travel Guide for Waterton Lakes Park in Alberta, Canada
- Waterton Lakes National Park Info Guide in Alberta, Canada
- Waterton Lakes National Park from Canadianrockies.net
- Prince of Wales Hotel website
- A brief history of the Park
- Hiking Trails in Waterton National Park
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