Part 3/8:
The tale of the inland rainforest begins in the early 1800s when European explorers such as David Thompson traversed these lands in search of fur and the mythical Northwest Passage. Thompson's descriptions reveal a gradual transformation from snow to rain, marking the transition to a lush, biodiverse forest.
As centuries passed, the region's economy revolved around fur trading, which later shifted to mining and timber extraction during the 19th century. Railroads further enabled access to these remote places, sparking an age of extensive logging, which would ultimately alter the landscape and its ecology forever.