Rogers Pass and Glacier National Park

The Selkirks catch enormous snowfall, and Rogers Pass sits in the middle of it, which is why the highway and railway through here are protected by what is generally described as the largest mobile avalanche control programme anywhere: snow sheds over the road, permanent gun positions, and howitzers fired at the slopes to bring slides down deliberately. The railway gave up on the surface entirely and runs in a spiral tunnel and the Connaught and Macdonald tunnels beneath. Above the pass, glaciers hang in the cirques and the Illecillewaet trails climb toward them. On the western side, Mount Revelstoke protects a rare inland temperate rainforest of ancient cedars and a road climbing to alpine meadows.

What you actually see

• The avalanche defences - snow sheds, gun positions and control work.
• The Illecillewaet trails - climbing toward the glaciers above the pass.
• Meadows in the Sky Parkway - the road up Mount Revelstoke to alpine flowers.
• The inland rainforest - ancient cedar and hemlock far from the coast.

When to go

July to September for hiking, with the Mount Revelstoke meadows flowering from late July into August. Winter is for experienced ski tourers only and requires a winter permit and avalanche training, with large areas closed for control work.

Honest expectations

The pass gets among the heaviest snowfall in Canada and the highway closes for avalanche control regularly in winter, sometimes for hours at a time with no warning. Backcountry travel in winter here demands real avalanche skills and a permit. Summer trails climb hard from the valley floor, and bears are common. Facilities at the pass itself are limited.

Nearby

Revelstoke is an hour west; Golden and Yoho are east.