This documentary from the Shining Mountains series explores the discovery of the Rockies by retracing the footsteps of its earliest European visitors. At first nothing more than an obstacle to fur trading, the Rockies became, with the arrival of the first CPR train, an all-too accessible Shangri-La, a playground for Easterners armed with easels, cameras and climbing gear. Here, the filmmaker joins modern-day adventurers and historians to relive these early explorations. It's a journey by dog team, locomotive, canoe and climbing party to the roof of the Canadian Rockies. From there, one can almost see forever, and that's the problem. The future is cause for concern.
Ages 12 to 17
Arts Education - Visual Arts
History - Early Canadian Exploration (1600s-1800s)
History and Citizenship Education - Imperialism and Colonization (1800s-1900s)
Physical Education - Outdoor Education
Topics: 1) Historic importance of Saskatchewan River? 2) What were some of the solutions for the Rogers Pass avalanche problem? Have they been effective? 3) How did Group of Seven artists relate to commercially purposed art? Activity: Instruct class groups to represent a site in your community using maps, poems, storytelling, advertising, tweets, stills, video, skits. Ask students to compare these informational techniques, considering the best purpose for each.