Cape Scott Provincial Park

IUCN Category II - National Park

Experiment Bight in Cape Scott Park Provinical

The Cape Scott Provincial Park is a 220 km ² large Provincial Park in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is located about 60 kilometers northwest of Port Hardy on the north western tip of the island of Iceland in Vancouver Island part of the Regional District of Mount Waddington.

Plant

The park is a wilderness area and extends over the north-western tip of the island Vancouver Iceland. It protects over 115 km of rough and rugged coastline to the Pacific Ocean from the Nissen Bay in the north to San Josef Bay to the south. rocky promontories and rugged headlands alternate with coves from a total of 30 km of sandy beaches. The largest beach is 2500 m long and 200 m wide beach of Nels Bight, other beaches are the 1500 m long beach of Nissen Bight, the San Josef Bay, Guise Bay, Experiment Bight and Lowrie Bay. In the northwest, the deeply Hansen Lagoon is located. The highest elevation in the park is the 422 m high Mount St. Patrick on the San Josef Bay. Through the park flow numerous creeks and smaller rivers like the San Josef River and Fisherman River. The largest lake in the park area is the 44 -acre Eric Lake in the southeastern part of the park.

The climate in the park is a maritime nation, very rough and rainy. The Cape is often sturmumtost fall in the park between 3750 and 5000 mm of annual rainfall.

In the park is a protected area category II (National Park).

History

Three Indian tribes - Tlatlasikwala, Nakumgilisala and Yutlinuk - shared the region at Cape Scott before the beginning of white settlement. The root of the Yutlinuk died at the beginning of the 19th century, the Nakumgilisala and Tlatasikwala merged in 1850 and moved to Hope Iceland, where they lived until 1954. In this year, there still living 32 Indians united with the tribe of Koskimo and moved south to Quatsino Sound. Today the Indians are referred to as Nahwitti, where six reservations, including three in the park area belong.

Cape Scott in 1786, designated by one consisting of two ships trading expedition under the leadership of James Strange after their funders David Scott, a merchant from Bombay. After the two ships, experiment, and Captain Cook, and the two captains Guise and Lowrie several bays have been designated. From 1897 Danish immigrants tried to establish a settlement at Cape Scott. Most of them came from the northern prairie states of the USA, they hoped that they could establish a Danish settlement on the Hansen Lagoon and at Fisherman Bay. The settlement was difficult to reach, a road to Holberg, the nearest settlement was never built, so that the settlers their meat and dairy products could not market. The settlers tried to live from fishing and fur hunting, but in 1907 they gave up and left the settlement. At the Danish settlement remember only a few remnants of buildings and the names as Nels Bight, Hansen Lagoon and Frederiksen Point.

By 1909 only lived less than 60 residents between Cape Scott and Holberg. 1913 began a second wave of immigration with settlers from the State of Washington, the Canadian prairie provinces and from Europe. Many of the settlers used the abandoned houses of the Danish settlers, others settled in Fisherman Bay and the San Josef Bay. At times, lived almost 1000 inhabitants at Cape Scott, but the harsh climate and ultimately conscription into the army in 1917 led to the end of the colony, so that Cape Scott was deserted again in the 1920s.

During the Second World War, a small radar station at Cape Scott was built, which remained in operation until 1945. In 1960, built on the site of the radar a lighthouse. The present lighthouse established in 1981, consists of a metal structure. The land belonged to the Canadian Coast Guard and is not publicly available.

The Provinical Park was established in 1973. On 12 July 1995, the park around the 6750 acre Nahwitti - Shushartie was extended stretch of coastline, a narrow strip of land along the north coast of Vancouver Iceland.

Flora and Fauna

Within the ecosystem of the area of British Columbia Very wet hyper- maritime subzone within the Coastal Western Hemlock zone is assigned.

The park is covered with a still partially preserved as a jungle rain forest of giant trees of life and Nootka false cypress, coastal pine and western American hemlock trees and a dense understory of Shallon bill berries, superb raspberries, evergreen blueberries and ferns. On the coast stocks dominate from old Sitka spruce, the largest tree is a north of the campground at Eric Lake located Sitka spruce with seven meters in circumference.

The Hansen Lagoon, a deeply incised into the country Inlet, is an important resting place for Canada geese, mergansers, trumpeter swans and other water birds on their migration. The park is home to beaver, elk, mule deer, black bears, cougars and wolves live on the coast seals, sea lions, sea otters and minks and in the sea occur dolphins, gray whales and orcas. In the rivers and streams Rainbow and Cutthroatforellen live from June to September are the waters of the goal of the migration of king, red, humpback and silver salmon.

Activities

The four-season park is a wilderness area with almost no tourist facilities. By car from the park is only accessible by a 60 km long unpaved forest road from Port Hardy. From the parking at the end of the road from eleven different trekking routes through the park, including the 23 km long Cape Scott Trail. Branching off from Cape Scott Trail runs since May 2008, the 43 km long North Coast Trail from the Nissen Bay to Shushartie Bay along the northern coast of Vancouver Iceland. Along with the Cape Scott Trail section of the wilderness hiking trail is 59 km long and can be handled by experienced outdoor hikers in about five to eight day in one direction. From the Shushartie Bay, however, lead back no roads or paths, so that the walker either the same path to return or be picked up by helicopter or water taxi.

Tents within the Park is allowed on primitive campgrounds or on the beaches and until September to charges of May. Just outside the park boundary, there are two basic campsites. With appropriate licenses and fishing and sometimes hunting is allowed in the park.

Because of its remoteness, the rough, rainy climate and the lack of tourist facilities of the visit to the park is recommended only for enabled and Outdoor experienced visitors .. The park management estimated 2003 the number of annual visitors to around 6500th With the investment of the North Coast Trail, which is considered more natural and more extreme than the West Coast Trail, the number of visitors to be increased.