“Nearly midway between Bess Pass and Robson Pass is a pass of the watershed which is locally known as Wolverine Pass,” wrote boundary surveyor Arthur Wheeler [1860-1945 ]. The pass had been named by Donald Phillips [1884–1938]. “There is another Wolverine Pass in a more southerly part of the Canadian Rockies, so the pass under discussion is here referred to as Carcajou Pass, a synonym for Wolverine.”

Upon Trudeau’s death, then-Prime Minister Jean Chrétien floated the idea of renaming Mount Logan, Canada’s highest peak, for Trudeau; when this met with resistance, this formerly unnamed peak was given the designation on June 10, 2006, in a ceremony held at Valemount and attended by Trudeau’s eldest son, Justin.

Elsewhere in the Premier Range, mountains 10,000 feet (3000m) or higher have been named for former prime ministers; this particular mountain, while only 8661 feet elevation, is the most prominent feature on the near horizon overlooking Valemount, is accessible from the Yellowhead Highway, and offers climbing and exploring opportunities for outdoors enthusiasts.

“The stream here called McLennan River, its real source, is also known as Mica Creek,” wrote Walter Alfred Don Munday [1890–1950] in 1925.

Map of the Cariboo Mining District to illustrate the report of Amos Bowman
Cariboo Gold Rush

This former name for the Cariboo Mountains originally included all of that range, but early mountaineers restricted “Cariboo Range” to “that higher portion of the Cariboo Range which is E. of the Raush River and the headwaters of the Azure River, and E. and N. of the North Thompson River” (Zillmer 1944).

Amos Bowman’s 1887 map of the Cariboo Mining District labelled these mountains as “Cariboo Range,” but the name “Cariboo Mountains” was instead officially adopted in 1918. Neither “Cariboo Range” (nor “McLennan Range”) are official names.

Both Munday (1948) and Thorington (1949) state that “[the Cariboo range] is now officially the McLennan Range,” referring to the restricted area along the headwaters of the McLennan River. Zillmer (1950) contradicted that with reference to communications with the Canadian Board on Geographical Names and Chief Cartographer of British Columbia.

Ray Zillmer [1887–1960] was an American attorney, mountaineer, and conservationist who made a number of explorations in the Cariboo Mountains in the 1930s and 40s.

Origin of the name unknown.

The name was adopted in 1925 as labelled on BC-Alberta boundary sheet 39, 1924. Named in association with Kakwa River.

Names after the Kakwa River, the Kakwa Recreation Area was established in 1987, containing about 128,000 hectares. In 1999 the area was extended and status changed to a provincial park, to be known as Kakwa Park, now containing almost 171,000 hectares.

Kakwa Provincial Park showcases ice-clad mountains, extensive alpine meadows and a section of the Continental Divide. Main physical features include Mount Sir Alexander (3270 m), Mount Ida (3189 m), and Kakwa Lake.