Environment

Glacier National Park is situated in the Columbia Mountain Range, and is part of the Interior Wetbelt region of British Columbia. It is characterized by heavy annual precipitation, abundant snowfall and relatively moderate winter temperatures.

Glacier National Park has steep mountains, narrow valleys, and temperate rainforest with heavy rain and snowfall, making it prime avalanche terrain. Each winter, Parks Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces work together to release avalanches in a controlled manner before they become a threat to the transportation corridor.

The Columbia Mountain ranges (Purcells, Selkirks, Cariboos, Monashees) form the first tall mountain barrier east of the Coast Mountains. Glacier National Park lies within both the Selkirk and Purcell Ranges of the Columbia Mountains.

Glacier National Park’s jagged peaks soar overhead, but there is an equally impressive world beneath your feet! Home to unusual animals, extreme bacteria, and delicate geological sculptures formed over centuries, these cave systems represent a new frontier in research and exploration.

British Columbia has the world's only temperate inland rainforest, all of which is found in the Columbia Mountains. Mount Revelstoke and Glacier national parks are part of a band of old growth forests that extend from the US border north to Wells Gray Provincial Park.