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Yoho National Park, British Columbia
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Yoho National Park
IUCN Category II (National Park)
Location British Columbia, Canada
Nearest city Golden
Coordinates 51°23′43″N 116°29′12″W / 51.39528, -116.48667
Area 1,313 km˛
Established 1886
Governing body Parks Canada
World Heritage Site 304
Yoho National Park is located in the Canadian Rocky Mountains along the
western slope of the Continental Divide in southeastern British
Columbia. Yoho NP is bordered by Kootenay National Park on the southern
side and Banff National Park on the eastern side. The name Yoho comes
from a Cree word expressing amazement.
Yoho covers 1,313 km˛ (507 mi˛) and it is the smallest of the four
contiguous national parks (NP). Yoho, together with Jasper NP, Kootenay
NP and Banff NP, along with three British Columbia provincial parks—Hamber
Provincial Park, Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park, and Mount Robson
Provincial Park—form the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage
Site.
The park's administrative offices and visitor centre are located in the
town of Field, British Columbia, beside the Trans-Canada Highway.
Contents
[hide]
* 1 World Heritage Site
* 2 Geology
* 3 See also
* 4 External links
World Heritage Site
This park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, together
with the other national and provincial parks that form the Canadian
Rocky Mountain Parks, for the mountain landscapes containing mountain
peaks, glaciers, lakes, waterfalls, canyons and limestone caves as well
as fossils found here.
Geology
The Kicking Horse River, a Canadian Heritage river, originates in the
Wapta and Waputik icefields in the park. This mighty river has created a
Natural Bridge through solid rock. This formation is located 3 km west
of Field, accessible from the road to Emerald Lake.
The Canadian Rockies consist of sedimentary rock, with numerous fossil
deposits. In particular, the Burgess Shale, located in Yoho National
Park, has among the world's richest deposits of rare fossils. The
Burgess Shale was discovered in 1909 by Charles Doolittle Walcott.
There are many wildflowers in this park. If you go to the mountainous
side of it, you will find a great quantity of mountain wildflowers. The
two main animals found in this park are grizzly bears and moose.
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