Arctic Pacific Lakes Provincial Park
Encyclopedia
Arctic Pacific Lakes Provincial Park is a provincial park
in British Columbia
, Canada
, protecting a pair of lakes known as Arctic and Pacific Lakes, which as their name indicate are on the divide between the Pacific
and Arctic
drainages. Inherently, the Continental Divide runs between the two lakes, which lie in a narrow valley amid the rugged mountains of the northwesternmost McGregor Plateau
. The pass formed by the lakes was important during early fur trade
operations and was one of the main links between New Caledonia
and the fur companies' eastern territories beyond the Rockies.
The park is located 90 kilometres northeast of Prince George, British Columbia
and is 13,887 ha. in area.
The parks aims to protect fall and spring grizzly bear
populations and year round caribou
habitat. As well fish populations including lake trout
, bull trout
, rainbow trout
, kokanee
, dolly varden
, mountain whitefish
, redside shiner, lake char, and chinook salmon
, and Arctic grayling
. The secondary role of the park is to protect the 1793 route of Alexander Mackenzie through the continental divide
.
Provincial park
A provincial park is a park under the management of a provincial or territorial government in Canada.While provincial parks are not the same as national parks, their workings are very similar...
in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, protecting a pair of lakes known as Arctic and Pacific Lakes, which as their name indicate are on the divide between the Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
and Arctic
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
drainages. Inherently, the Continental Divide runs between the two lakes, which lie in a narrow valley amid the rugged mountains of the northwesternmost McGregor Plateau
McGregor Plateau
The McGregor Plateau is a sub-plateau of the Fraser Plateau, the northernmost major subdivision of the Interior Plateau spanning the inland regions of the Pacific Northwest...
. The pass formed by the lakes was important during early fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
operations and was one of the main links between New Caledonia
New Caledonia (Canada)
New Caledonia was the name given to a district of the Hudson's Bay Company that comprised the territory largely coterminous with the present-day province of British Columbia, Canada. Though not a British colony, New Caledonia was part of the British claim to North America. Its administrative...
and the fur companies' eastern territories beyond the Rockies.
The park is located 90 kilometres northeast of Prince George, British Columbia
Prince George, British Columbia
Prince George, with a population of 71,030 , is the largest city in northern British Columbia, Canada, and is known as "BC's Northern Capital"...
and is 13,887 ha. in area.
History and conservation
The park was established June 29, 2000.The parks aims to protect fall and spring grizzly bear
Grizzly Bear
The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...
populations and year round caribou
Reindeer
The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...
habitat. As well fish populations including lake trout
Lake trout
Lake trout is a freshwater char living mainly in lakes in northern North America. Other names for it include mackinaw, lake char , touladi, togue, and grey trout. In Lake Superior, they can also be variously known as siscowet, paperbellies and leans...
, bull trout
Bull trout
The bull trout, Salvelinus confluentus, is a char of the family Salmonidae native to northwestern North America. Historically, S. confluentus has been known as the "Dolly Varden" , but was re-classified as a separate species in 1980. Bull trout are listed as a threatened species under the U.S....
, rainbow trout
Rainbow trout
The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....
, kokanee
Sockeye salmon
Sockeye salmon , also called red salmon or blueback salmon in the USA, is an anadromous species of salmon found in the Northern Pacific Ocean and rivers discharging into it...
, dolly varden
Dolly Varden trout
The Dolly Varden trout, Salvelinus malma malma, is a subspecies of anadromous fish in the salmon family, and is technically a char. Although many of the fish are anadromous, the fish also exists in landlocked waters.- Range :The subspecies S. m...
, mountain whitefish
Mountain whitefish
The mountain whitefish is one of the most widely distributed salmonid fish of western North America. It is found from the Mackenzie River drainage in Northwest Territory, Canada south through western Canada and the northwestern USA in the Pacific, Hudson Bay and upper Missouri River basins to the...
, redside shiner, lake char, and chinook salmon
Chinook salmon
The Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, is the largest species in the pacific salmon family. Other commonly used names for the species include King salmon, Quinnat salmon, Spring salmon and Tyee salmon...
, and Arctic grayling
Arctic grayling
Arctic grayling is a species of freshwater fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. It comprises five subspecies native to the Nearctic and Palearctic ecozones. T. a. arcticus is widespread throughout the Arctic and Pacific drainages in Canada, Alaska, and Siberia, as well as the upper...
. The secondary role of the park is to protect the 1793 route of Alexander Mackenzie through the continental divide
Continental divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea...
.