Woss Lake Provincial Park

IUCN Category II - National Park

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The Woss Lake Provincial Park is a 66.34 km ² large nature park on Vancouver Iceland in the province of British Columbia in Canada. Places in the vicinity of the lake are in the south and in the north Woss Zeballos. A special attraction is a waterfall at the south end of Lake Woss, who alone has an area of 13.66 km ². It is situated at 150 m above sea level. The park was established in 1995.

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

The name comes from the Woss Kwakwala and means " river ground" and was also the name of a village at the confluence of Woss and Nimpkish River. The Woss is about 20 km long.

The park is located in the traditional territory of the ' Namgis First Nation ( Nimpkish - Cheslakees ), which are among the Kwakwaka'wakw. In addition, it is a traditional trade route, the trail runs through Grease on the Tahsis Divide. About this " grease trail" similar to the fat of the butter used the candle fish ( Thaleichthys pacificus ) was transported, which was a coveted commodity. Its advantage was that it was in contrast to other specialist fish oil resistant.

The path is now used as a motorcycle trail. So-called Culturally Modified Trees, so due to cultural activities of the Native modified trees have been identified there. Only two of these trees are still standing on Oolichan Trail, like the Grease trail is also called. With Oolichan the candle fish was called. The two trees bear faces and look north and south. Maybe they marked the boundary between two tribal areas, more likely, however, that there was ritual gatherings there. Although the path is not easily navigated and is overgrown due to the heavy rains quickly, his passport is with 500 m height but relatively low.

History

The first recorded European visitor was Captain Hamilton Moffat, an employee of the Hudson 's Bay Company at Fort Rupert near Port Hardy. Moffat left the fort on July 1, 1852 Nimpkish direction accompanied by six Indians. Called the Woss Lake he " canoes Lake ", as he reached it on July 4. The next day he tried along with one of his companions to climb the Rugged Mountains - the mountain in the west he called Ben Lomond - but they failed. The group continued on her way to the Oolichan path towards Tahsis Inlet.

The next White visited the area until 1865. On September 10th of this year, the Vancouver - Iceland expedition crossed ago under the direction of John Buttle of Tahsis Inlet, the island. The Woss Lake now received the name " Conuma Lake ". He was accompanied by an Indian from the Clayoquot Sound and Tomo Antoine, an Iroquois, who accompanied several expeditions on the Vancouver Island. The main task of the expedition was the search for gold.

They also followed the Oolichan Trail, which, however, was out of use for several years - probably due to the devastating smallpox epidemic of 1862, heavy rains and the overgrowth of the path added to the expedition that found nothing except copper.. Finally, the two Indians refused to continue searching. They feared the steep descent into the valley Nimpkish. The two wanted to return to Nootka Sound, but Buttle waited six days until the rain subsided, and rowed and sailed across the lake. Under difficult conditions, it was on to Kleetsic or White River, a river that gets its water from the above -lying glaciers. But here was Buttle no gold.

1868 was an employee of the Hudson 's Bay Company, Pym Nevin Compton, on the White River, more precisely on the Woss Lake, and he found a tree with Buttles eingeschnitztem name. He himself had come from the east coast of the Nimpkish up.

After him came another 26 years, no more Europeans to the south bank of Woss Lake, but came first Lumberjack to the north side. Some pictographs called paintings have been preserved near the present campsite just above the waterline.

Reverend William Bolton tried to cross to the south of Iceland 1894 Vancouver North. On 2 August, the expedition made ​​the Oolichan Trail of Tahsis to Bolton Camp at Woss Lake. There, the men had to wait until August 10 to the backward Bolton, who made ​​his way with difficulty. When she finally went in sunshine over the lake he wrote: " There is so much beauty in this place that we were happy to spend the whole day here. But the Kowse Glacier at the summit of the Rugged Mountains, it is worth going many miles to see him, plus the waterfalls that seem to come from everywhere, pour on the ground in the milk-white stream even in the noon sun was boiling too cold to even drink from it. " Then they moved with great difficulty on towards Tahsis.

2001 began the ' Namgis First Nation to renew the trade path. Areas for camping were in came to archaeological investigations. Together with Ecotrust Canada, a business plan was formulated to support came from the province and the Canadian government. The Community Economic Adjustment Fund, the North Vancouver Iceland Aboriginal Training Society and the trunk itself brought the lack of resources and manpower on. In addition to 3 km long paths an infrastructure for visitors had to be created. Donald Svanvik carved a thunder bird in a tree at the beginning of Grease Trail in the East, a wolf at the west end, symbolizing the connection with the Mowachaht at the end of the trail.

Flora and Fauna

Within the ecosystem of British Columbia, the Park area within the Coastal Western Hemlock zone is assigned to the Very Wet Maritime Subzone and the Very Dry Maritime subzone. This Biogeoklimatischen zones are characterized by a respective same climate and the same or similar biological and geological conditions. This results in the respective zones then a very similar inventory of plants and animals. The area still bears primary forest (old growth forest ), but is little explored.

Chinook and steelhead live in a habitat located further above the lake of 1,600 hectares, also are Roosevelt Elk ( Wapiti ) frequently.

Activities

Few visitors enter the park, which is without any tourist infrastructure. It offer views of the rugged mountain that bears the largest glacier on Vancouver Iceland, the Kowse Glacier. Additionally there is a huge waterfall.