Rugged
British Columbia, Canada's westernmost province
stretches
along the Pacific coast,
with
the vibrant City of Vancouver at its south border.
Dominated
by mountain ranges, it's a major skiing destination and home to
Whistler, co-host of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Hikers, campers and
anglers are drawn to its sprawling parks and reserves including
Glacier National Park and
the
Pacific Rim National Park.
On July 20,1871, British Columbia entered Confederation as its
sixth province...
extending the young Dominion of Canada to the Pacific Ocean. The
Government offered that a transcontinental railray would penetrate
the Rocky Mountains and join British Columbia to the east within 10
years. It was a massive, expensive undertaking... most of the land
between British Columbia and Ontario was barely inhabited.
Geography
and Climate:
Bordered
by the Pacific Ocean on its west, by the American state of Alaska on
its northwest...and to the north by the Yukon and the Northwest
Territories, on the east by the Province of Alberta and on the south
by the U.S. States of Washington, Idaho and Montana, British
Columbia's rugged coastline stretches for more than 27,000 kilometres
(16,780 miles) including deep mountainous fiords and about 6,000
islands (most of which are uninhabited).
British Columbia's capital is Victoria, located at the southeastern
tip of Vancouver Island. BC's most populace city is Vancouver,
located in the southwest corner of the BC mainland which comprises
several other major cities. Prince George is the largest city in the
northern part of the province.
The
Coast Mountains, the Canadian Rockies and the Inside Passage's many
inlets provide some of BC's renowed spectacular
scenery,
which forms the backdrop for growing outdoor adventures and
eco-tourism industry. 75% of the province is mountainous (more than
1,000 metres...3,280 feet) above sea level...60% is forested and only
about 5% arable. The Okanagan area is one of only 3 wine-growing
regions in Canada. The Fraser Canyon towns have some of the warmest
and longest summer climates in Canada where temperatures often
surpass 40C (104F).
Much
of the western part of Vancouver Island and the rest of the coast as
far north as the Alaska Panhandle to northern California, is covered
by temperate 'rain
forest'.
This overall region is one of a mere handful of such temperate
rainforest
ecosytems in
the world. The mainland (unmoderated by the Pacific Ocean) range
from desert and semi-arid plateau to mountain range and canyon
districts of the interior plateau. However, a few interior valleys
feature snowy, cold winters while those in the Cariboo are as cold as
anywhere else in wintertime Canada due to altitude and latitude.
Parks
and Protected Areas:
There are 14 designations of parks and protected areas...141
ecological Reserves...35 provincial marine parks...7 Provincial
Heritage Sites...6 National Historic Sites...4 National Parks and 3
National Park Reserves. These designations incluce over 800 distinct
areas.
The
Great
Bear Rainforest...
home to Spirit
Bears, grizzlies, black bears and wolves
is the largest intact rainforest in the world.
British
Columbia contains seven of Canada's National Parks: Glacier
National Park...Gulf Islands National Park Reserve...Gwaii Haanas
National Part Reserve and Haida Heritage Site...Kootenay National
Park...Mount Revelstoke National Park...Pacific Rim National Park
Reserve...Yoho National Park. Also,
over 4.7 million hectares of arable land are protected by the
Agricultural
Land Reserve.
Recreation:
Given its varied mountainous terrain and its coasts, lakes, rivers
and forests, BC has long been enjoyed for pursuits like hiking
and camping ,rock climbing and mountaineering, hunting and fishing.
Water sports, both motorized and non-motorized are highly enjoyed:
sea
kayaking
abound on the coast, white-water
rafting and kayaking
on inland rivers, sailing
and sailboarding.
In
winter, cross-country
skiing, telemark skiiing downhill skiing, snowboarding
are highly popular.
Ample opportunities are offered for joggers, bicyclists and
cross-country bike touring, horse-back riding. British Columbia also
has strong participation levels in other sports: golf, tennis,
soccer, rugby, softball, basketball, curling, figure skating and
professional teams of the NHL and CFL.
Consistent with both increased tourism and diverse recreations...
has been the proliferation of lodges, chalets, bed and breakfasts,
motels and hotels,
fishing camps and park-camping facilities in recent decades.
Wildlife:
Much of the province is wild
or
semi-wild...so
that populations of very many mammalian
species that have become rare in much of United States,
still
flourish in BC...including a very wide range of birds (including
Canada geese, swans, loons, hawks, ravens, ducks and smaller
birds)...bears (grizzly, black and the Kermode bear or 'spirit bear'
found only in British Columbia) live here...as do deer, elk, moose,
caribou, big-horn sheep, mountain goats, marmots, beavers, muskrats,
coyotes, wolves, wolverines and badgers, mountain lions, eagles,
ospreys, herons.
Many sorts of fish are found in the waters...salmon, trout, char,
halibut, bass and sturgeon. Harbour seals and river otters are
common along the coastlines. Native to Pacific waters are Orca, Gray
Whale, Harbour Porpoise, Pacific White-Sided Dolphin and Minke Whale.
Culture
and History:
Since
the retreat of the great glaciers 10,000 years ago,
Aboriginal populations have inhabited the BC landscape.
BC's first people may have journeyed to the region from Asia via a
land bridge across the Bering Sea. As the ice receded, forests
advanced and fluctuating sea levels exposed the temporary land
passage linking Asia to the New World. It is thought that BC's
coastal region became one of the most densely populated areas in
North America. Prior to European contact, BC's first nations
populations may have numbered 300,000. The Aboriginal way of life
would continue undisturbed for thousands of years until the arrival
of the British in 1778.
European
Arrival:
When British explorer Captain James Cook reached the west coast of
Vancouver Island in 1778, he was eager to trade with the Nootka
people.
In his wake, waves of European settlers arrived carrying smallpox and
other diseases that decimated Aboringal populations in the late
1700's. Nearly a century later, British agent James Douglas was
searching the Pacific Coast for a new Hudson Bay Company
headquarters. He was welcomed by the Lekwammen,
whose villages dotted the shores of what is now 'Greater Victoria'.
A year later, in 1843, Fort Victoria was built in the heart of
Victoria's downtown...now known as 'Old Town'.
Gold
Rush in BC:
The discovery of gold in the Fraser River and the Cariboo, brought
a rapid infux of prospectors, merchants, pioneers and other colourful
figures to BC in the 1860's. They came from around the world,
arriving from as far away as China. It was a time of rapid
expansion; sleepy hamlets became bustling cities...and new roads,
railways and steamships were constructed to carry the extra load.
Boomtowns were born and legends made...but not all experienced good
fortune. The Aboriginal peoples lsot most of their ancestral
lands...and in 1876, First Nations populations were made subject to
the federal Indian Act which regulated every aspect of their lives.
Rapid
Expansion in BC:
Transportation and development marked another period during the
1950's and 1960's. Massive building projects changed the shape of
the BC Landscape. Expansive damming projects turned rivers into
lakes; giant turbines powered dozens of new pulp mills and smelters;
and the Trans Canada Highway was completed, while bridges, railways
and BC ferries linked land, people and technological progress.
Symbols
of British Columbia
Name
origin
~ 'British' (it was a British colony in 1858); 'Columbia' refers to
the Columbia River.
Flag
~ The Union Jack is set above the province's shield. Below is a half
sun on blue waters. Waves are for the Pacific Ocean off the BC coast.
The setting sun represents the most westerly province.
It became the official provincial flag in 1960.
Flower
~
Pacific Dogwood which grows best in the southwestern forests, along
the Fraser River and on Vancouver Island. Flowering in April and
May, it has many white blossoms and in the fall, clusters of bright
red berries are produced.
Tree
~ Western Red Cedar which grows up to 60 metres high...is on the list
of provincial plants protected by law.
Mammal
~ 'Spirit Bear' (with white fur) living in the Great
Bear Rain Forest.
Bird
~ Stellar's Jay
Gemstone
~ Jade (a green gem used for jewellery and scupltures)
Information compiled by Merle Baird-Kerr
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