With David Thompson through the Canadian Rockies

On the Trail of the Famous Surveyor Through Canada's Rocky Mountains

Apr 21, 2009

David Thompson has surveyed more than 3,9 million square kilometers of land in western Canada. The David Thompson's Trail follows in his footsteps.

David Thompson was born in Westminster, England, in 1770 and made his way to Canada at the young age of fourteen years. He had just started to work for the Canadian fur trading company, the Hudson Bay Company. During the course of his life he was to travel through Canada on foot, on the back of a horse and by canoe and thus surveyed a huge region in the west of the country. While doing this he filled 77 books with detailed descriptions and information on the regions he travelled through.

As an enthusiastic friend of nature he described the scenery but also the flora and fauna he encountered during his journeys. The Natives called him "Koo, Koo, Sint", meaning "stargazer". At the end of each day he noted the exact position of the stars and thus produced an extensive collection of astronomical observations.

In 1799 he married Charlotte Small, a Métis woman. Métis are the descendants of mixed marriages between Cree, Inuit, Ojibway, Algonquin, Saulteaux, Menomine and other First Nation peoples of Canada with Europeans and other immigrants from all over the world. Charlotte supported her husband in 57 years of common travels as diplomat in exchanges with different native peoples and in research. She also bore him 13 children, all during their travels.

On the Trail of David Thompson through the Rocky Mountains

The David Thompson Trail follows Highway 11 through the prairies, the front ranges and the spectacular mountain wilderness of the Rocky Mountains to the Icefields Parkway, which connects Banff with Jasper. On this route todays visitors can travel along the route the famous discoverer and surveyor has taken through the mountains of western Canada - a route which is more remote and less travelled than the wellknown Trans-Canada Highway further south.

The David Thompson Explorer Trail (349 km) – In the Footsteps of the Surveyor of the Mountains of Canada

Between 1806 and 1808 the famous surveyor discovered the route between the modern prairie town Stettler via Red Deer to the fur trading station Rocky Mountain House and on into the region of today's Banff and Jasper National Parks. Everybody who wants to enjoy the Rocky Mountains on less travelled paths can do this along the David Thompson Trail. It is best done in three days which leaves ample time to savour the beauty and the interesting sights along this route:

Leading through farmland and the front ranges the route starts in Stettler, a small village about 72 km east of Highway 2. Here visitors can travel through the Great Plains in old steam trains and thus feel transported into past times.

After a sightseeing tour of Red Deer that includes Waskasoo Park, Fort Normandeau, the Heritage Ranch, the Kerry Wood Nature Center, the Red Deer & District Museum and the Riverbend Golf Club Sylvan Lake about 20 kilometers west of the town invites travellers to a refreshing bath along its sandy beaches, before the tour follows the route to Rocky Mountain House. Originally this was a fur trading post at the confluence of the Clearwater with the North Saskatchewan River. Today it is a modern town. The history of the fur traders and discoverers can be traced in the excellent Visitor Center of the Rocky Mountain House National Historic Park.

Highway 11 climbs into the front ranges from Rocky Mountain House and passes the small village of Nordegg, a former mining town. In the local museum visitors find information on the time when coal was mined in the area.

Along the further trail scenic highlights await the traveller like Crescent Falls, Bighorn Canyon or turquoise colored Abraham Lake. Worth a side trip are Siffleur Falls and the gorge as well as Whirlpool Point Lookout with impressive views of the North Saskatchewan River. Along the way hikers will find many good opportunities for hiking tours to remote lakes or mountain passes.

At the crossing of the David Thompson Trail with the Icefields Parkway (Highway 93) in Banff National Park the traveller has to decide, whether to follow it south to Lake Louise or north to Jasper National Park.

The copyright of the article With David Thompson through the Canadian Rockies in Alberta Travel is owned by Monika Fuchs. Permission to republish With David Thompson through the Canadian Rockies in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.