The Northern Rocky Mountains, usually referred to as the Northern Rockies, are a subdivision of the
Canadian Rockies
The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part ...
comprising the northern half of the Canadian segment of the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...
. While their northward limit is easily defined as the
Liard River
The Liard River of the North American boreal forest flows through Yukon, British Columbia and the Northwest Territories, Canada. Rising in the Saint Cyr Range of the Pelly Mountains in southeastern Yukon, it flows southeast through British C ...
, which is the northward terminus of the whole Rockies, the southward limit is debatable, although the area of
Mount Ovington and
Monkman Pass
Monkman Pass, in the Canadian Rockies, is southwest of Tumbler Ridge and northeast of Hansard. Found in the Hart Ranges, some consider this mountain pass as the southern limit of the informal grouping known as the Northern Rockies, although those ...
is mentioned in some sources, as south from there are the
Continental Ranges, which are the main spine of the Rockies forming the boundary between
British Columbia and
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Terri ...
.
[''Landforms of British Columbia'', S. Holland, BC Govt, Bulletin 50, reprinted 1976.] Some use the term to mean only the area north of the Peace Arm of the
Williston Reservoir, and in reference to
Northern Rocky Mountains Provincial Park
Northern Rocky Mountains Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. It is located in the north-eastern part of the province, 90 km south-west from Fort Nelson and it is bordered to the north by the Alaska Highway. ...
, while others consider the term to extend all the way south, beyond the limit of the
Hart Ranges at Mount Ovington, to include the
McBride area, the Sir Alexander Group and
Mount Robson
Mount Robson is the most prominent mountain in North America's Rocky Mountain range; it is also the highest point in the Canadian Rockies.
The mountain is located entirely within Mount Robson Provincial Park of British Columbia, and is part of ...
.
The area south of the
Williston Reservoir, the Hart Ranges, is much more accessible and better known, while north of Lake Williston the Northern Rockies are extremely remote and rarely visited or photographed. The Hart Ranges are traversed by
B.C. Highway 97 (the John Hart Highway) and the Peace River extension of the former
BC Rail
BC Rail is a railway in the Canadian province of British Columbia.
Chartered as a private company in 1912 as the Pacific Great Eastern Railway (PGE), it was acquired by the provincial government in 1918. In 1972 it was renamed to the British ...
line (now part of
Canadian National Railways
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
CN i ...
), which use the
Pine Pass
The Pine Pass, in the Hart Ranges of the Northern Rockies of British Columbia, connects the Peace Country of the province's Northeastern Interior. Highway 97 and the Canadian National Railway (CNR) (formerly BC Rail network) traverse this mou ...
, and also by the
Tumbler Ridge
Tumbler Ridge is a district municipality in the foothills of the B.C. Rockies in northeastern British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Peace River Regional District. With a population of 2,399 (2021) living in a townsite, th ...
spur line to the
Sukunka River coalmines. The