Atlin / Téix'gi aan Tlein Provincial Park

Atlin
Climate diagram
	Temperature in ° C , precipitation in mm
	Source: Canadian Climate Normals 1971-2000. In: Environment and Climate Change Canada . Retrieved March 18, 2013 .

	Atlin / Téix'gi aan Tlein Provincial Park IUCN Category II - National Park
	Juneau Icefield on the edge of the park
location	British Columbia (Canada)
surface	2,298.94 km²
WDPA ID	4178
Geographical location	59 ° 9 ' N , 134 ° 3' W Coordinates: 59 ° 9 '0 " N , 134 ° 3' 0" W
Sea level	from 668 m to 2062 m
Setup date	May 18, 1973
administration	BC parks
particularities	Back Country Park; Highest peak on an island in a freshwater lake

The Atlin / Téix'gi Aan Tlein Provincial Park , formerly Atlin Provincial Park and Recreation Area , is a total of 229,894 hectares of protected area in the extreme northwest of the Canadian province of British Columbia . The Provincial Park is located in the west of Atlin and belongs to the Regional District Stikine Region .

When Atlin / Téix'gi Aan Tlein Provincial Park is a so-called Backcountry Park . These parks usually have no direct connection to a real road and can only be reached via gravel roads or lumberjack roads or on roads not at all. Here the park can usually be reached by boat or seaplane. In the southwest area of the park, a gravel road approaches the park, but does not reach it.

investment

The protected area lies in the Boundary Ranges and consists of two parts. The foothills of the Juneau Icefield with various glaciers run through the eastern part of the two areas , of which the Llewellyn Glacier and the Willison Glacier are the most important.

The park area extends to the east to the state border with the US state of Alaska , where the Haines State Forest is partly connected to the border. Atlin Lake and all the islands in the park can be found in this part of the park. The largest of them all, Teresa Island, is one of these islands. On Teresa Island there is also the highest point of the park, Birch Mountain with a height of 2062 m . The mountain is considered to be the highest peak on an island in a freshwater lake. As far as there is infrastructure in the park, it can be found in this part.

The park is a category II protected area ( national park ).

history

The park was established in 1973. Over time, the park's status and size have changed several times. With the last change in 2012, the protected area was given its current size. In addition, the park is now also run under its current name. Originally, the park consisted of Atlin Provincial Park and Atlin Recreation Area . With the change in 2012, the Atlin Recreation Area was repealed. Part of the previous area (around 9,000 hectares) has been added to the Provinzial Park, while the rest has been transferred to the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations .

As with almost all provincial parks in British Columbia, it is also true that long before the area was settled by immigrants or became part of a park, it was the settlement and hunting / fishing area of various tribes of the First Nations , here mainly the Tlingit people , was. The name Áa Tlein, for "large body of water", also comes from their language .

The area first became widely known at the end of the 19th century through an offshoot of the Klondike gold rush . Several thousand prospectors found themselves in this area within a very short time. After the gold discoveries finally declined, the prospectors left the area and it disappeared from public observation. Only when BC Hydro wanted to generate electricity from hydropower here at the beginning of the 1970s (by connecting Atlin Lake with the Taku River ) did it briefly return to public awareness.

Flora and fauna

Within the ecosystem of British Columbia, the park area is assigned to different eco-zones due to their size and different characteristics. The area becomes zones as different as the Boreal White and Black Spruce Zone (with the Dry Cool Subzone ), the Spruce - Willow - Birch Zone , the Alpine Tundra Zone , the Engelmann Spruce - Subalpine Fir Zone (with the Wet Very Cold Subzone ) and the Sub-Boreal Spruce Zone . These biogeoclimatic zones are characterized by a similar climate and the same or similar biological and geological conditions. This results in a very similar population of plants and animals in the same zones.

The predominantly wintry climate with only a few months in which the average temperature is over 10 degrees Celsius leads to slow growth of the trees. While the boreal coniferous forest still predominates in the lower altitudes , this is replaced first by the subalpine and then by the alpine forest in the higher altitudes. Depending on the location and height, the respective trees can be found in the park area. The park administration also lists five different endangered plant species in the management plan for the park.

The wildlife matches both the altitude and the secluded location of the park. Accordingly, grizzly bears , black bears and wolves can also be found here . Other mammals include the Columbia black-tailed deer , the Canadian forest caribou (a subspecies of the reindeer ), the mountain goat and a subspecies of the Dall sheep, as well as the ice gray marmot and the arctic ground squirrel .

The park administration lists numerous bird species that occur in the park; some appear in the park all year round and some only in the summer or winter months. Birds that can be seen include the bald eagle and gyrfalcon, as well as the arctic tern , the common loon , the Pacific diver , the northern gray shrike , the plover and the pine grouse .

In the lakes and rivers, in addition to the widespread species of salmon and trout, there are also the American arctic char , pike , Arctic grayling and various Coregoninae (called round whitefish and Lake Whitefish ).

activities

The park is not of major tourist interest, nor does it attract many visitors. Therefore there is no extensive tourist infrastructure in the park. At Atlin Lake there are various anchorage points for boaters and nearby prepared tent sites. There are a few simple toilets there. The three hiking trails in the park are also not developed any further.

Web links

Atlin / Téix'gi aan Tlein Provincial Park . In: BC Geographical Names (English)
Atlin / Téix'gi aan Tlein Provincial Park . In: English language website of the park at BC Parks
Information park on britishcolumbia.com (Engl.)

Individual evidence

↑ Birch Mountain in the Internet version of the Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia
↑ World Database on Protected Areas - Atlin / Téix'gi Aan Tlein Provincial Park (English)
^ BC Parks - 2012/2013 Anual Report. (PDF; 2.28 MB) British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations , 2013, pp. 6-8 , accessed on August 27, 2018 .
↑ Management Direction Statement. (PDF, 149.1 kB) British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks , July 2000, accessed on March 18, 2013 (English).
^ Ecosystems of British Columbia. (PDF, 10.31 MB) British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations , February 1991, accessed on March 18, 2013 .
↑ Biogeoclimatic Zones of British Columbia. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations, accessed April 4, 2016 .

[1] Birch Mountain in the Internet version of the Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia

[2] World Database on Protected Areas - Atlin / Téix'gi Aan Tlein Provincial Park (English)

[BCParks_2012/2013-3] BC Parks - 2012/2013 Anual Report. (PDF; 2.28 MB) British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations , 2013, pp. 6-8 , accessed on August 27, 2018 .

[4] Management Direction Statement. (PDF, 149.1 kB) British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks , July 2000, accessed on March 18, 2013 (English).

[5] Ecosystems of British Columbia. (PDF, 10.31 MB) British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations , February 1991, accessed on March 18, 2013 .

[6] Biogeoclimatic Zones of British Columbia. British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations, accessed April 4, 2016 .