Our Inland Rainforest

For those of you who have been lucky enough to spend time in and around Quesnel Lake the surrounding forests are only too familiar. Our focus is usually on the shimmering lake in the summer and the allure of fishing, but we don’t usually spend too much time appreciating the surrounding trees.

BC is home to one of the rarest ecosystems on the planet- The Temperate Inland Rainforest. It covers 40 million acres and stretches from central Idaho to Prince George BC. It is full of ancient red cedars and western hemlocks, some of them are more than 1000 years old.

There are now only 2 other rainforests like ours found in Russia’s far east and southern Siberia. Many scientists believe that these Inland Rainforest are something of a miracle, due the massive diversity of plants and animals. Oceanic lichen can be found almost 1000 kilometers from the BC coast, a preferred food source of the mountain caribou.

Quesnel Lake is in the central region of this forest and is yet another reasons why this area is so special. Next time you take in drive through the central interior of BC, I hope that the forests are a little less tedious, as you try to spot those ancient trees.