The spectacular terrain of Jasper National Park and the Icefield Parkway is reason enough to visit this site. The popularity of this area and the highway access to the Athabasca Glacier makes it the most visited glacier on the North America continent. However, the Athabasca Glacier is a small part of the much larger Columbia Icefields which is the largest icefield south of Alaska in North America.
Still, the truly unique feature of this site is the fact that there is a single point near Snow Dome within the Columbia Icefields that is the only triple point in the world. That is, a drop of water that falls on this point may travel either north to the Arctic Ocean via the Athabasca River, west to the Pacific Ocean via the Columbia River, or east to the Atlantic Ocean via the North Saskatchewan River. So remember, when water or most other liquids for that matter, fall on the Earth they will likely find their way to one of the major oceans eventually.
Also to be seen near this site is the effects of the retreating Athabasca Glacier which has lost 1.5 km in the last 125 years leaving a moonscape of rocky moraines. Most people think that glaciers retreat when the weather gets warmer and blame Global Warming. However the retreating glacier is due to a combination of factors including the temperature, precipitation, and flow speed of the glacier. Most glaciers on Earth are currently retreating.
It will require ski-mountaineering to reach the peak of Snow Dome which is most often accomplished in the Spring. It is often true that Earth's natural features are not always easy to reach and this site is no exception. To log a find for this Earthcache, you will need to make a 2-3 day ski-mountaineering trip which is normally begun from the Athabasca Glacier. While a licensed guide is not required, it is strongly recommended unless your party are experienced mountain climbers and have traveled on glaciers before.
As of November 20, 2006 to log this Earthcache:
To Repeat, you must visit the peak of Snow Dome. Taking a bus tour to visit the bottom of the glacier does not qualify. You must also e-mail me some unique bit of information regarding the site that you learnt while there. This can be done by answering one of the following question: What was the temperature during your visit? or What was the wind velocity during your visit? Posting a photo is not required but appreciated. I will monitor logs and check my e-mails for appropriate information. Unfortunately, any log that does not meet the requirements will be deleted. Thanks for visiting an Earthcache!