ABSTRACT
A little over a century ago, the cultures of hunter-gathers that had occupied the Canadian Rockies for over ten millennia were rapidly replaced by an industrial culture advancing from both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The government of Canada established large areas of national parks yet, within a few decades, long-term ecosystem states and processes were dramatically altered. The Bow Valley of Banff National Park (BNP) (see Figure 12.1) is the birthplace of Canada's national park system, established in 1885. It is also the busiest area of any Canadian national park, and one of the most developed landscapes (see Figure 12.2) within any national park in the world (BBVS, 1996). Due to historical development patterns, the Bow Valley holds a transcontinental railroad, the four-lane Trans Canada Highway, two large towns (Banff and Canmore), and another very busy visitor service centre (Lake Louise). Several million people per year pass through the BNP on the highway, and many utilize the national park trails and roads.
