TOP OF THE WORLD PROVINCIAL PARK

This wild and remote 8,790-hectare (21,720-acre) park lies beyond Whiteswan Lake Provincial Park, a rough 52 km (32 miles) from Highway 93/95 (turn off the Whiteswan Lake access road at Alces Lake). You can’t drive into the park, but it’s a fairly easy six-km (3.7-mile) walk from the end of the road to picturesque Fish Lake, the park’s largest body of water. The trail climbs alongside the pretty Lussier River to the lake, which is encircled with Engelmann spruce and surrounded by peaks up to 2,500 meters (8,200 feet) high. The hike to the lake gains just over 200 vertical meters (660 vertical feet) and makes a good day trip. Trails from the lake lead to other alpine lakes and to a viewpoint that allows a good overall perspective on the high plateau for which the park is named. Fish Lake is productive for cutthroat trout and Dolly Varden.