100 years of patrolling the park
Celebrations honour wardens’ legacy
Posted By Larissa Barlow/Canmore Leader
Posted 5 months ago
The mere mention of the park warden name conjures up images of rustic mountain men patrolling the wild backcountry on the backs of horses.
It’s an image built through 100 years of wardens surveying the seemingly endless wild of national parks, protecting and preserving it for future generations.
It was far more than a job, but a way of life for the brave few who took up the cause.
Known as Fire and Game Guardians in 1909, they later became the National Park Warden Service. A century later, the legacy of the warden from the mountain man on horseback to the men and women who protect our parks today is being celebrated in Banff this weekend.
There will be no focus on the controversy that has struck park wardens in recent years — having their titles changed to resources conservation specialist as only those who have law enforcement duties retain the warden moniker.
Because this weekend is about honouring the legacy of the men and women of the warden service.
“We want to celebrate 100 years of the past and keep it a really positive memory,” said retired park warden Don Mickle. “We’ve got people coming from all over Canada and we want this to just be a celebration of 100 years of really important history.”
Preparations for the celebration have been over a year in the making to honour past and present wardens and give the public a glimpse into the life of the protectors of parks.
“There’s always been a really strong bond in the warden service, it’s a family,” Mickle said. “It’s always been seen more of a lifestyle and not a job.”
Celebrations will kick off on Sept. 11 at around 2 p.m. when resource conservation specialists and former wardens ride into town from the Ya Ha Tinda ranch. They’ll ride down Banff Avenue and end at the Parks Canada administration building.
“It’s interesting, someone kind of organized it on the side and it’s a great start to the celebrations,” Mickle said. “Hopefully someone will be walking ahead of them in period uniforms.”
From 6-8 p.m. on Friday there will be a wine and cheese meet and greet on the back lawn of the Whyte Museum. Mickle is expecting more than 400 people to attend.
On Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. there will be horse packing and rescue dog demonstrations as well as skits, stories and songs about the warden service behind the Whyte Museum.
From 7-9 p.m. is the opening reception of the Whyte Museum’s new exhibit, A Way of Life, A Legacy to Protect: 100 Years of the Warden Service.
They worked with the Jasper Yellowhead Museum to put together the exhibit that looks at the history of wardens.
“Certainly we’ve created more of a focus on Banff but there is still some information on wardens in other areas,” said chief curator Michale Lang. “We’ve had to be pretty selective because we don’t have a huge space.”
The exhibit will have old uniforms on display, poems and images of a 1933 wardens conference.
“It was really easy to chose artifacts to go with it,” she said. “I had a great time putting it together. It just kept growing and growing.”
The Whyte Museum is also opening up the old Windy Lodge warden cabin, one of the first one-room warden cabins, which was built in 1911 and later moved to the museum grounds in 1977.
On Sunday, celebrations will wrap up from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. with a pancake breakfast and closing ceremonies.
