Athabasca Pass

Athabasca Pass, 5,736 ft (1,748 m) high, W Alta. and E British Columbia, Canada, leading from the headwaters of the Athabasca River across the Continental Divide to the Columbia River. It was discovered by David Thompson, a Canadian fur trader, or one of his agents c.1811, and for the next 50 years it was the chief route of the Hudson's Bay men on their journeys to and from the Columbia River country.

Athabasca Pass (el. ) is a high mountain pass in the Canadian Rockies. The headwaters of the Whirlpool River, a tributary of the Athabasca River, eventually flow into the Arctic Ocean.

The pass lies between Mount Brown and McGillivray Ridge. It is south of Yellowhead Pass and north of Howse Pass.

Since the first documented crossing by David Thompson and his Native American guide in 1811, the pass became a major point on the fur trade route between Upper Canada and the Oregon Territory, used by the York Factory Express.

References

• Peakfinder page for Athabasca Pass
• Athabasca Pass National Historic Site from Parks Canada.