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 Cavell
Meadows Restoration Project
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Can you find the main trail in this photo?
Neither could thousands of visitors.
The Friends of JNP
and Parks Canada teamed up with volunteers in 2002 - 2004 to actively restore the Cavell
Meadows - a popular but damaged area of Jasper National Park. |
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Trail braiding and
vegetation damage like this
were common in Cavell Meadows. |
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Spectacular sub-alpine area
Sitting below the face of Mt. Edith Cavell, the Cavell Meadows explode with
wildflowers every summer and offer the hiker an opportunity to explore
sub-alpine and alpine life in Jasper National Park.
Views of the dramatic peak and the Angel Glacier descending from it's
shoulder are an added treat along the way.
Thousands of regional and international visitors hike this 7
km trail between June and September every year. That's a lot of footsteps in
a short amount of time. |
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Clouds below Angel Glacier from Cavell Meadows |
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Many misplaced
footsteps
The extraordinary foot
traffic along this trail, concentrated in a short amount of time each year,
has caused serious damage to the trail and meadow vegetation.
Poor water
drainage and a lack of trail marking along the Cavell Meadows Trail has
meant that hikers often left the trail to avoid mud and snow, to look for a
viewpoint, or simply to find the way through the meadows. With so many
people in the area, these patterns repeat. Shortcuts, braided trails, and
trampled sections form quickly.
The short growing season
at and above treeline
means the vegetation has very little time to recover from damage. One
misplaced footstep can mean decades of regrowth. |
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Off-trail
hiking made this trail,
in two
days in September 2002. |
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Working together to repair the damage |
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In 2002, the Friends of Jasper
National Park teamed up with Parks Canada to restore and protect the
sensitive habitat at Cavell Meadows. Working with many
volunteers, the Friends and Parks Canada have repaired the trail,
camouflaged and revegetated damaged sections of meadow, and established
well-defined markers, maps and signs. |
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Project Goals
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Repair and mark main trail
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Rehabilitate network of unofficial trails
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Educate visitors about the area and how our actions affect it.
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Monitor restoration success
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Involve visitors and residents in the above activities
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Accomplishments
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We are pleased to report that through the Cavell
Meadows Restoration Project we successfully...
Involved over 150 park residents and visitors who
have contributed over 2100 hours towards restoration efforts
Rerouted 200 m of trail to improve drainage
Camouflaged, rehabilitated, or blocked access to
over 50 shortcuts and unofficial trails
Dug 30 water drainage structures
and delineated 3 viewpoints along 6km of trail
Installed trail markers and 10 map/interpretive
panels
Created a trailhead kiosk to inform and orient
visitors
Completed 7 sets of repeat photographs at 28 monitoring points
Surveyed 216 hikers in Cavell Meadows and
installed a comment book on site
Reduced vehicle traffic to the trailhead by
renting a van for shuttling project volunteers
Installed our expandable Donor Recognition
Plaque at the trailhead
Raised $145,000 in financial and in-kind
support.
From our Trail Book:
It is wonderful to see the meadows restoring
themselves as people become more aware - through your campaign, hard work
and care - of the fragility of this beautiful mountain habitat.
Thank you for your efforts.
-Janet, Tuscon, AZ July 20, 2004
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Before and After Images
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These photos have been taking through our
volunteer photo monitoring program.
If you'd like to help add to this important
collection, check out our volunteer schedule below.
Click on the thumbnail images for a closer look. |
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September 2002
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July,
August 2003 |
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September 2002
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July,
August 2003 |
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