Pacific Rim National Park
| Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | |
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IUCN category II (national park)
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| Location | British Columbia, Canada |
| Nearest city | Victoria |
| Coordinates | 48°38′10″N 124°46′09″W / 48.63611°N 124.76917°WCoordinates: 48°38′10″N 124°46′09″W / 48.63611°N 124.76917°W |
| Area | 511 km2 (197 sq mi) marine: 221 km2 (85 sq mi) terrestrial: 290 km2 (110 sq mi) |
| Established | 1970 |
| Governing body | Parks Canada |
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve is a Canadian national park reserve in British Columbia comprising three separate regions: Long Beach, the Broken Group Islands, and the West Coast Trail. The entire reserve encompasses 511 km2 (197 sq mi) of land and ocean. It is characterized by rugged coasts and lush temperate rainforests. The reserve is open from mid-March until mid-October. It was created in 1970 as the first national park reserve, and remains the oldest, having yet to fulfill its promise of becoming a national park after more than 45 years. The reserve was opened in 1971 in a ceremony attended by Princess Anne of England, who was presented with a driftwood abstract sculpture by Jean Chretien, the minister responsible for Parks Canada. The sculpture was the work of local artist Godfrey Stephens.
The park encompasses a thin strip of land located on the south-west coast Irel Island. To the east of the park lies the Vancouver Island Ranges of the Insular Mountains and to the west is the Pacific Ocean.
During fall and winter, the area is continually subjected to moist air masses from the Pacific Ocean. The presence of the mountain ranges causes the air masses to rise and deposit large quantities of precipitation, a phenomenon known as orographic precipitation. The area averages over 3,000 mm (118 in) of precipitation per year, a key factor in producing temperate rainforests. During the drier summer months the area is sometimes covered in fog.
Long Beach is the most visited and most accessible of the three regions. It is made up of the coastal region from Tofino to Ucluelet.
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Wikipedia