Parks Canada Announces New Explora App for Waterton Lakes National Park
News Release
New mobile application guides visitors along Waterton’s most popular hike, the Bear’s Hump trail
May 20, 2016 Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta Parks Canada Agency
Waterton Lakes National Park is ready to welcome visitors for the 2016 season. This year, Parks Canada is continuing to improve its visitor offer with even more innovative and educational events and activities as well as new investments in visitor facilities. At Waterton Lakes National Park, Parks Canada is introducing a new mobile application, offering rewarding volunteer opportunities, and providing interpretive hikes. 2016 is a great time to experience the outdoors and learn more about our environment.
New this year, the Explora app is available to guide visitors along the iconic Bear’s Hump trail. It’s the perfect travel companion for the short but steep adventure. This free, family-friendly app includes pictures, text, maps, audio, video and quizzes. The Waterton Lakes National Park Explora app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play.
Volunteer opportunities abound for those looking to get behind the scenes and make a difference in protecting the ecological and cultural integrity of this World Heritage Site. With activities ranging from spring flowering counts, a knapweed rodeo, and five-needle pine monitoring, there are volunteer opportunities for everyone.
This year, Parks Canada interpreters will lead exciting hikes in Waterton’s prairie region to teach visitors about bears, science-based conservation and prescribed fires. These guided weekend hikes are free with park entry. For more information on new experiences and annual events taking place this year, please visit our website.
Parks Canada is investing an unprecedented $3 billion dollars over 5 years to support infrastructure work to heritage, visitor, waterway and highway assets located within national historic sites, national parks and national marine conservation areas across Canada. As part of this program, more than $107 million dollars will be invested in infrastructure assets within Waterton Lakes National Park. This includes paving projects, campground rejuvenations, and day use area upgrades that will ensure visitors have safe and reliable infrastructure, while protecting the ecological and cultural integrity of the park. When visiting Waterton Lakes National Park, you may encounter construction zones or reduced services while we complete this important work. For up-to-date information, please visit http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/waterton/visit/infrastructure.aspx
National parks, national historic sites and national marine conservation areas represent the very best that Canada has to offer. Developing new and innovative programs and services is one way that Parks Canada helps more Canadians, including youth and newcomers, discover and enjoy one of the finest and most extensive systems of protected areas in the world.
As we near the 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017, the Government of Canada invites Canadians to experience Canada’s remarkable natural heritage and rich history at national parks and national historic sites this summer.
Quick facts
- The Bear’s Hump app is part of Parks Canada’s Explora suite of apps that provide alternate gateways to nature, adventure and discovery for visitors to Canada’s national parks.
- Waterton Lakes National Park was Canada’s 4th designated national park, and is the smallest in the Canadian Rockies. At only 505 km2, the park contains an impressive 45 different vegetation types, including grasslands, shrublands, wetlands, lakes, spruce-fir, pine and aspen forests, and alpine areas.
Associated links
Contacts
John Stoesser
Communications Officer, Waterton Lakes Field Unit
403-859-5127
John.stoesser@pc.gc.ca
Media Relations
Parks Canada
1-855-862-1812
pc.media@pc.gc.ca
There are opportunities for fun and adventure for everyone in Waterton Lakes National Park in 2016. Left: Hikers head out with a Parks Canada interpreter on a guided walk (Parks Canada/Nicholas Alexander photo). Right: Volunteers pitch in to collect seeds in the park’s prairie region (Parks Canada/Dianne Pachal photo).
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Hon. Catherine McKenna Parks Canada Information and Communications