Valemount Community Album

Mount Robson Provincial Park is as old as Valemount itself. Created by a special act of the Legislature of B.C. in 1913, the 515,000 acre park includes, at 12,972 feet, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies – Mount Robson.

Standing alone the peak dominates the landscape and imposes itself on every traveler through the Yellowhead Pass. And it does attract interest. King George VI and Queen Elizabeth stopped on their 1939 Royal Tour. The Alpine Club of Canada has visited several times. Groups of climbers from all over North America came in early, such as the St. Paul, Minnesota group in 1914.

The Hargeaves brothers came into the Mount Robson area early. Roy Hargreaves was into Berg Lake with Curly Phillips in 1913. In 1921 Frank and Jack filed on two quarters of land and that was the beginning of the Mount Robson Ranch.

The Hargeaves and others made their living ranching and guiding. They took out climbing parties, hunting parties, photographers, fishermen and those simply interested in seeing the natural wonders. The hunters were often very successful, with several Boone and Crocket heads coming out of the region. On one 1942 hunting trip by the Hargreaves brothers they harvested moose, deer, goat, grizzly bear, caribou and sheep. No wonder the region was popular.

Although not at Valemount proper, Mount Robson stands as a symbol for the whole region. Vast, rugged and dramatically natural the mountain helps to form the spirit of the people of Valemount and the whole Yellowhead Pass region.