The Charm of Canada

Lake Louise, Rocky Mountian Park The Charm of Canada By Frank C. Steele Canada, the land of the maple, and, as Kipling calls her, "our lady of the snows," with her great alternating stretches of plains, forests and mountains, intersected and beautified by innumerable rivers, lakes and glaciers, holds hidden charms to the tourist and sportsman to be found in no other part of the earth. Here the hunter finds all the species of big game in the northern realm, from the fierce grizzly of the mountains, the lordly caribou of the northeastern mainland to the graceful antelope that gambols freely over the western prairies and the alluring mountain sheep that scale the perilous crags and re- cesses of the Rockies. Millions of fur-bearing animals swarm in the great pine- forest belt enriching the trapper and hunter. The rivers and lakes are the homes of the industrious beaver, while the watch- ful otter follows the clear streams of the northland. Truly, the great lone land weaves a mystery about one. Here still may be found the wigwam of the redmen, nestled snugly among the firs and pines, and his birch canoe still cleaves the waters of the MacKenzie and the Saskatchewan, adding a delightful touch of romance. Canada is taking the necessary steps to preserve these natural beauty spots. Her system of national parks cannot be surpassed anywhere in the world. It is only in recent years that these natural parks have been improved. So busily engaged have the Canadian people been in the material development of their

THE CHARM OF CANADA 871 wonderful country, that they left without special notice the splendor of its mountains and valleys and rivers and glaciers, the endowments of a generous Creator. But the Canadian people are now fully alive to the possibil- ities of their country to tourist traffic. This year in spite of the war, the Dominion government has set aside several hundred thousand dollars for the development of this chain of national parks. Roads and bridges and hotels are being built, and every year sees the tourist traffic expanding by leaps and bounds. The Rocky Mountain or Bauff park, located on the main line of the Canadian Pacific railway, west of Calgary, Alberta, is the most highly improved of all the natural parks of the Dominion. Situated in the very heart of the Rockies, it is visited by thousands every year, its fame having spread through- .

A Bighorn in Jasper Park out America and Europe. The park consists of 640,000 acres, and ranges from ten to fifty miles in width. Within this area there is every inducement to draw the tourist from his trans- continental train to this wonderland of scenic beauty. Here he may breathe the keen, pure air wafted over snow-capped mountains and the sparkling waters of Lake Louise Exhilarated by this wonderful ozone he may climb mountains, row, paddle in real Indian canoes, fish, play golf or tennis, or ramble up

3 eq

S t • } • > fe*;4« . wBKSris JUL. * ■ *' / v ►... ■ **»....

Rocky Mountain Sheep, Rocky Mountain Park, Near Bauff valleys and canyons standing in wild grandeur fresh from the chisel of the Eternal Sculptor. Then, too, in many of the Canadian parks are to be found glaciers that rival those of the Alps. Here may be seen the sub- lime vastness, the awful remorselessness of Nature. Beautiful to the extreme, but terrible in the crushing strength of its mighty volition. And it is not only the seasoned Alpine climber who drinks in the seductive charm of the cool, clean solitudes where glaciers are born and perforin their wonderful work. Every healthy man or woman must yield to the exquisite delight of Maligne Lake, Jasper Park

874 IMPROVEMENT ERA these inspiring surroundings. It is well worth a visit to see how the glacial machinery works, machinery which some thou- sands of years ago shaped the whole surface of Canada, leav- ing the land of rivers and lakes and prairies as seen today. There are very few places in the world where fine glacial scenery can be found so close to a great railway as in Canada's mountain parks. If one steps from his Pullman at Bauff, the magnificent Victoria glacier is in full view, doubled by its reflection in lovely Lake Louise. "There is a cleanness and virginity, an exquisite loveliness, about many of the Rocky Mountain peaks and valleys that has a peculiar charm," exclaims an admirer. This is indeed true! One feels that Nature has been caught in the very act of crea- tion. He sees and feels God in the marvelous workings and transcendent beauty of his surroundings. Canadian parks are among the earth's beauty spots. Scarcely marked by the feet of white men as yet, they are being kept in reserve, preserved to delight and glorify the Canadian- born of the future generations and they who might be their guests. Atlanta, Georgia My