Wood's Douglas Fir Tree Sanctuary also known as the Douglas Fir Trail is a nature sanctuary and park in southwest Calgary, Alberta. It preserves one of the oldest stands of Rocky Mountain Douglas Fir still remaining in the province.[1]
Description
The Douglas Fir Trail is treated as part of Edworthy Park by Calgary Parks, who maintains the sanctuary.[2] It is located in the Bow River Valley, with the neighbourhoods of Spruce Cliff and Wildwood to its south and with Edworthy Park and Lawrey Gardens to its west and north respectively. The trail can be accessed by the Quarry Road Trail, a path from Cedar Crescent SW, the Bow River Pathway in Lawrey Gardens, an entrance path in the Wildwood neighbourhood and the west entrance in Edworthy Park. The sanctuary itself features boardwalks and trails in an area of large stands of Douglas Firs.
History
Douglas Fir trees are known to have been used by the Indigenous peoples for bows due to its elastic quality. Due to this the area was known as man-a-cha-pan which translates to "the place they go for bows", which is what gave the Bow River its name.[1] The sanctuary is named after Reverend George Wood, a Scottish immigrant who founded the Wood's Christian Homes and whose property the sanctuary used to be part of.[3] In 1962 the area that is now the Douglas Fir Trail was purchased along with Edworthy Park by the City of Calgary to be developed into a park.[2] In 1990 it was recognised as a Provincial Historical Resource by the provincial government.[4] After damage to the area by the 2013 floods, the sanctuary was closed for four years for restoration efforts until being reopened in 2017.[5] After its reopening it was made to be closed during the winter, due to water damage from the rain and floods making it a more difficult and steeper hike.[6]
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