Athabasca Pass

Athabasca Pass (el. 1,753 m or 5,751 ft) is a high mountain pass in the Canadian Rockies on the border between Alberta and British Columbia.[1] In fur trade days it connected Jasper House on the Athabasca River with Boat Encampment on the Columbia River.[2]

Athabasca Pass
Elevation	1,753 m (5,751 ft)
Location	Alberta–British Columbia border, Canada
Range	Rocky Mountains
Coordinates	52°22′35″N 118°11′00″W
National Historic Site of Canada
Official name	Athabasca Pass National Historic Site of Canada
Designated	1971

The pass lies between Mount Brown and McGillivray Ridge. It is south of Yellowhead Pass and north of Howse Pass. The Committee's Punch Bowl, a glacial lake on the continental divide at the summit of the pass, is the headwaters of the Whirlpool River, a tributary of the Athabasca River. It also has an outlet to Pacific Creek, a tributary of the Columbia River to the south.

Athabasca Pass is first mentioned in the historical record in the papers of British explorer David Thompson, who was shown the route in 1811 by an Iroquois man named Thomas.[3] It became a major point on the fur trade route between Rupert's Land and the Columbia District, used by the York Factory Express.[4][5] and in recognition of that usage was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1971.[6]