National Parks in British Columbia

British Columbia has seven national parks. Kootenay and Yoho National Parks are located on the western edge of the Rocky Mountains, and border Alberta parks. Mt. Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks are located in the sub-alpine interior of the province.

Pacific Rim National Park is situated on the western coast of Vancouver Island, while Gulf Islands Park covers the islands in the Straight of Georgia, between Vancouver Island and the mainland. The remote Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site lies within the Queen Charlotte Islands.

Glacier National Park - Lush interior rainforest and permanent glaciers

Glacier National Park of Canada protects, for all time, a portion of the Columbia Mountains Natural Region, in the interior wet belt of British Columbia. The steep, rugged mountains, warm, moist climate and wide variety of plant and animal life are typical of this natural region. The park protects unique stands of old-growth cedar and hemlock and critical habitat for threatened and endangered wildlife species such as the mountain caribou, mountain goat and grizzly bear.

Mount Revelstoke National Park - Rainforest of 1,000-year-old cedars

Mount Revelstoke National Park is a place of contrasts. From dense old-growth rainforest of giant cedar and pine, travel up through subalpine forest, and finally alpine meadows and tundra. Marvel at the spectacular view of the ice-clad peaks of the Monashee Mountains and, to the east, the Selkirk Mountains. The Giant Cedars hiking trail takes you through a stand of ancient Western Red Cedars, and the Skunk Cabbage trail introduces you to jungle-like wetland, a birder's paradise.

Kootenay National Park - UNESCO World Heritage Site, Radium Hot Springs

Established in 1920, Kootenay National Park is one of 41 national parks in Canada. Together, they celebrate and protect the diversity of the nation's great landscapes. Kootenay National Park represents the south-western region of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. From glacier-clad peaks along the Continental Divide to semi-arid grasslands of the Rocky Mountain Trench, where cactus grows, this is a park rich in diversity of landscapes and ecology.

Yoho National Park - UNESCO World Heritage Site

Established in 1886, Yoho National Park is one of 41 national parks in Canada. Yoho represents the western slopes of the Rocky Mountains region, and is also a Cree expression of awe and wonder for this place of rock walls, spectacular waterfalls and soaring peaks. In the shadow of the Great Divide, Yoho holds the secrets of ancient ocean life, the power of ice and water, and unique plant and animal communities that continue to evolve today.

Gulf Islands National Park Reserve- Coastal landscape in the Strait of Georgia

Established in 2003, Gulf Islands National Park Reserve safeguards a portion of British Columbia’s beautiful southern Gulf Islands archipelago. These islands are representative of the Strait of Georgia Lowlands, one of the most ecologically at risk natural regions in southern Canada. The first new national park reserve of the twenty-first century includes thirty-five square kilometres of land and intertidal area on fifteen islands, numerous islets and reefs, and approximately twenty-six square kilometres of marine areas.

Pacific Rim National Park -Pacific Coast Mountains and temperate rainforest

Backed by the Insular Mountain Range of Vancouver Island and facing the open Pacific Ocean, Pacific Rim presents the rich natural and cultural heritage of Canada's west coast. Its cool and wet maritime climate produces an abundance of life in the water and on land. Lush coastal temperate rainforest gives way to bountiful and diverse intertidal and subtidal areas.

Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site -Haïda culture and coastal rainforest on Queen Charlotte Islands

Together, the Government of Canada and the Council of the Haida Nation manage the special place called Gwaii Haanas through a unique agreement signed in 1993. The two parties strongly agree on the need to protect Gwaii Haanas, even though the question of ownership is unresolved. Gwaii Haanas embodies the essence of the rugged beauty and rich ecology of the Pacific coast. It is a celebration of more than ten thousand years of Haida connection with the land and sea.

Gwaii Haanas lies in the southern part of Haida Gwaii/Queen Charlotte Islands, 130 kilometres off the British Columbia coast and 640 kilometres north of Vancouver. It is a wild and remote area made up of some 138 islands that stretch 90 kilometres from north to south.

Species At Risk in British Columbia Parks

• Northern Abalone – Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve 
• American badger – Kootenay National Park  
• Seaside Centipede Lichen – Pacific Rim National Park  
• The Redstreak Restoration Project – Kootenay National Park