Columbia Icefield, Ice field in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada
Columbia Icefield is an ice field in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada, spreading along the continental divide of the Rocky Mountains. Six large glaciers flow down from this high-elevation ice sheet and have carved deep valleys into the surrounding mountains.
Scottish botanist David Douglas became the first European to reach the area in 1827 when he explored Athabasca Pass. In the 1890s, surveyors mapped the ice field completely and named many of its glaciers after European mountains.
The ice field takes its name from the Columbia River, one of North America's longest rivers that receives meltwater from this region. Hikers on the glacier path often see small meltwater streams flowing slowly through the ice landscape, later reaching three different oceans.
Specialized vehicles bring visitors onto the surface of Athabasca Glacier between May and October, where you can walk on the ice. The Icefields Parkway runs directly past the ice field and offers several viewpoints with views of glacier tongues and mountain peaks.
The ice at this triple continental divide splits and flows simultaneously toward the Arctic Ocean, Hudson Bay, and Pacific Ocean. Snowflakes falling here could theoretically end up in three completely separate seas after decades.
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