The Yellowhead Pass is a
mountain pass across the
Continental Divide of the Americas
The Continental Divide of the Americas (also known as the Great Divide, the Western Divide or simply the Continental Divide; ) is the principal, and largely mountainous, hydrological divide of the Americas. The Continental Divide extends from t ...
in the
Canadian Rockies. It is located on the provincial boundary between the
Canadian provinces of
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
and
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, and lies within
Jasper National Park
Jasper National Park is a national park in Alberta, Canada. It is the largest national park within Alberta's Rocky Mountains spanning . It was established as a national park in 1930 and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984. Its locatio ...
and
Mount Robson Provincial Park
Mount Robson Provincial Park is a provincial park in the Canadian Rockies with an area of 2,249 km². The park is located entirely within British Columbia, bordering Jasper National Park in Alberta. The B.C. legislature created the park in 19 ...
.
Due to its modest elevation of and its gradual approaches, the pass was recommended by Sir
Sandford Fleming
Sir Sandford Fleming (January 7, 1827 – July 22, 1915) was a Scottish Canadian engineer and inventor. Born and raised in Scotland, he emigrated to colonial Canada at the age of 18. He promoted worldwide standard time zones, a prime meridian, ...
as a route across the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
for the planned
Canadian Pacific Railway. The proposal was rejected in favour of a more direct and southerly route, through the more difficult
Kicking Horse Pass
Kicking Horse Pass (el. ) is a high mountain pass across the Continental Divide of the Americas of the Canadian Rockies on the Alberta–British Columbia border, and lying within Yoho and Banff national parks. Divide Creek forks onto both s ...
, which was opened in 1886. However, both the
Grand Trunk Pacific and
Canadian Northern Railways used the Yellowhead Pass for their main lines, built c. 1910–1913, and the main line of their successor, the
Canadian National Railway, still follows the route.
Via Rail
Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...
's premier passenger train, the ''
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
''; the
Jasper – Prince Rupert train
Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref> i ...
; and the Jasper section of the ''
Rocky Mountaineer
Rocky Mountaineer is a Canadian rail-tour company based in Vancouver that operates luxury scenic trains on four rail routes in British Columbia, Alberta, Colorado, and Utah.
History
Via Rail Canada
The Rocky Mountaineer concept was created b ...
'' use the Yellowhead Pass, which is now used also by the
Yellowhead Highway
The Yellowhead Highway (french: Route Yellowhead) is a major interprovincial highway in Western Canada that runs from Winnipeg to Graham Island off the coast of British Columbia via Saskatoon and Edmonton. It stretches across the four western ...
.
It is believed that the pass was named for Pierre Bostonais (nicknamed ''
Tête Jaune'', French for "yellow head", because of his blond hair), an
Iroquois
The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
-
Métis trapper employed as a guide by the
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...
. Bostonais led one of the first expeditions for the company to what is now the interior of British Columbia through the pass in 1820.
See also
*
List of Rocky Mountain passes on the continental divide
*
List of mountain passes
References
External links
Jasper Alberta Yellowhead Pass HistoryYellowhead Pass and its People. Valemount Historic Society
{{Canadian Rockies
Mountain passes of Alberta
Mountain passes of British Columbia
Great Divide of North America
Canadian National Railway facilities
Rail mountain passes of Alberta
Rail mountain passes of British Columbia
National Historic Sites in Alberta
National Historic Sites in British Columbia
Jasper National Park
Borders of Alberta
Borders of British Columbia
Landforms on the National Historic Sites of Canada register