Rail revival

July/August 2011

Where do you get the best view of the country? Riding the train from Fernie, B.C. to Halifax is a start—if you want to see it at eye-level, at least. Now try changing altitude. This month, we cruise above Mount Logan, Canada’s highest peak and dig for a new perspective on pre-settlement history along the Fraser River.

• Learn how debris flows — rocks, logs and water raging down mountain slopes — can remake a landscape —and people’s lives

• Zoom in on the chemicals that pollute the Athabasca River

• Ever visit an art exhibit about art? This one explores how artists’ surroundings affect their craft.

• Check out photos from the railway’s early days and other animations with the Canadian Atlas Online.

Railway revival Monte Paulsen’s cross-country journey shows the past, present and future of train travel
By Monte Paulsen with photography by Tobin Grimshaw

PLUS: Watch train rides from around the world and learn about Canada’s green trains

Mount Logan from above Anatomy of an aerial shoot over Yukon’s Mount Logan, Canada’s highest peak
Photography by Fritz Mueller with text by Teresa Earle

West coast raiders Archaeology and traditional knowledge show that B.C.’s Fraser River saw years of raiding and warfare among coastal tribes long before European settlers joined the fray
By Heather Pringle with photography by David Campion

PLUS: Learn more about the Stó:lo people.

Art

Sense of place

Writers and artists explore how geography shapes their work
By Nino Ricci

Archaeology

Protecting Petun lands

Development projects near Craigleith, Ontario threaten Petun Nation historical sites
By Ned Morgan

Geology

Flow problem

When rain storms, snowmelt, and geology collide, debris flow can get deadly
By Darlene West

Environment

Eco-friendly cemeteries

How natural burials are ‘greening’ funerals
By Meribeth Deen

The inside story
News from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society

Editor’s notebook
Whistle stop

À la carte
Follow the toxic trail of 13 pollutants in the Athabasca watershed
By Steven Fick and Adam Shoalts

Contributors
Meet our writers and photographers

Reverberations
Into the water, Rouge park, On the waterfront

Reviews
Following the Last Wild Wolves; Our Way Out: First Principles for a Post-Apocalyptic World; The Chimps of Fauna Sanctuary; Historical Atlas of the North American Railroad; One Story, One Song

In habitat
Google’s visual maps take us into uncharted dimensions
By Rick Boychuk

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