Explore the South-Central Interior of British Columbia
Camping at Marble Canyon
Camping is all the rage with families looking for a quick summer getaway or individuals looking to find some solace from a busy workplace. Sitting back, enjoying the view, maybe roasting some marshmallows over a campfire with some loved ones. Camping enthusiasts and families are all welcome to explore and adventure the beautiful karst formed canyon. Become one with nature and experience Beautiful British Columbia's outdoors. The canyon is home to a diverse ecosystem with surrounding lakes and ecosystem of animals. With so much to do and explore the mountain range that has everything expected and more in a camping trip.
Hiking the Trails with your Family and Pets
When it comes to easy going past times – Hiking should be on everyone’s list of things to do. Taking a stroll around nature rejuvenates the body and mind and allows us to connect with nature. Being on a trip with family or by yourself in the mountains always ends up with walking, so what better way to you’re your steps in but to go on a nice nature walk. Here is some information on the hiking trail at The Kootenay National Park: Marble Canyon Trail is 1.4km long with an elevation gain of 42 meters. The trail is an out and back trail. Some additional information about the trail is that it: is pet friendly, paved, snowshoe accessible in the winter. The hike is estimated to only take about 30 minutes to complete and is considered easy.
Canoe, Swim, and Scuba Dive at the Canyon
Hiking is not the only great pastime while out in the mountains. Kootenay National Park is home to surrounding lakes. The lakes are all very accessible and offer the same opportunities for all vacationers. Additional activities at the lake include but are not limited to canoeing and fishing. These activities can be done at Pavilion, Crown, and Turquoise Lakes. Scuba Diving is also available as BC Parks has installed mooring buoys in recreational scuba diving areas. It should be noted that scuba diving is only allowed in three locations at Marble Canyon. Please check the BC Parks website for more information.
Climbing the Canyon
Indoor and outdoor rock climbing has become more of a hobby and sport that everyone is participating in in recent years. Thankfully the Rocky Mountains are home to a great many climbing routes and features some beginner to expert level routes. Marble Canyon, the "Cinderella of BC Rock", houses many climbing routes at all levels of experience. The Canyon features breathtaking views of Turquoise, Crown, and pavilion lakes. Additionally, because the routes are on a canyon the views of nature at the top of the climbs are breathtaking. Sightseeing is a must at marble Canyon but when you and some friends climb it will make for endless memories.
Interested in another amazing spot in the rocky mountains? Check out Kootenay Plains for more beautiful and luscious Canadain nature.
What's New And Exciting!
The Alberta-BC Border is home to fossil beds that were discovered in 2012 by a team of Canadian, U.S. and Swedish researchers in Kootenay National Park. Our very own Marble Canyon was home to a good majority of those fossils! The petrif ied remains were found by Caron and Colleagues in 2014 were of fossilized Cambrian soft-bodied organisms and that 22 percent of the findings were new to science. One geologist mentioned that they had a hunch that if they followed the mountain topography into new areas they might get lucky.
“Marble Canyon is proving to be a rich trove of fossilized arthropods, a group that today represents more than 80 per cent of all living animals including insects, spiders and lobsters, Parks Canada said.”
Marble Canyon’s fossils would not have been found had it not been for Burgess Shale. Burgess Shale is a fossil-bearing excavation site founded in 1909 and that is famous for finding exceptional preservation of the soft parts of the remains. These remains were discovered by late paleontologist Charles Walcott, who with his family, established a quarry on the flanks of Fossil Ridge. Walcott found 65,000 specimens during his time at the fossil quarry and committed his life to finding, preserving and documenting the deposit. The fossils that have been found at Marble Canyon are similar to the ones being found in Burgess Shale; however, researchers are finding that the fossils in Marble Canyon are better preserved at the new Kootenay site. The impressions are high in detail, allowing researchers to see never-before-seen anatomical details. An interesting tidbit from these excavations saw that some of the species previously known only from deposits in China were also found here.
If you are interested in reading more about Marble Canyon and the excavation, you can do so here. We would also recommend coming to Marble Canyon!
