Cardinal Divide Ridge

Whitehorse is located in the northern front ranges of the Rocky Mountains. It shares a portion of its west boundary with Jasper National Park and its east boundary with a coal mine. The majority of the park is located above tree line with extensive alpine meadows and subalpine slopes.

The view of the mountains from the top of the Cardinal Divide is spectacular. The viewpoint at the top of the Gravel Flats road provides a stunning 360 panoramic view of the Rocky Mountains.

To get to the park, from Hinton travel west on Hwy 16 for 2 km, then south on Hwy 40 for 47 km until you reach a T intersection. Turn right onto the Gravel Flats Road travel through the town of Cadomin. From there continue following the gravel road for 20 km until you reach the Divide. If you are interested, you will pass a place called Mountain Park, which is a ghost town and cemetery from the coal mining in 1950. Most of the drive is on gravel roads that will take you through several active coal mines, so make sure you don’t trespass on the active coal mine leases. In most places, the public road is separated by a large berm from the coal haul road, make sure you stay on the public road the entire way to the parking lot at the top of the mountain. The road itself is gravel and is not maintained throughout the year, so travel with caution. The viewpoint and parking area is located at 52.895250, -117.247829, at an elevation of 1981 meters.

From the viewpoint there is a short 1.5 km hike to the top of the mountain that provides an awesome panoramic view of the Rocky Mountains. You can also hike the many unmarked trails in this alpine area.