The Nahanni National Park Reserve, also called "Headless Valley" or "Valley of the Headless Men" (named after mysterious deaths that happened in the area long ago), is located in the Dehcho Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada, about 500 km (310 mi) west of Yellowknife. It protects part of the Mackenzie Mountains Natural Region. The main feature of the park is the South Nahanni River, known as Naha Dehé in the local Dene language. Four notable canyons—called First, Second, Third, and Fourth Canyon—line the fast-moving river. Each canyon has walls that are about 1,000 m (3,300 ft) tall. The word "Nahanni" comes from the Dene name for the area, Nahʔa Dehé, which means "river of the land of the Nahʔa people." The park is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Geography

The park has many different landforms that took millions of years to form, creating a variety of landscapes not found in any other national park in Canada. Sediments from an ancient inland sea, which existed about 500 to 200 million years ago, have turned into colored rock layers over time. These layers, stacked about 6 km (3.7 mi) deep, contain fossilized remains of ancient sea creatures that lived long before the time of the dinosaurs. As Earth's continents moved, the North American and Pacific Plates collided, pushing rock layers upward. This movement caused ridges of rock to bend and break, forming the mountain ranges seen today. The same movement also caused volcanic activity, sending magma into but not through the sedimentary rock. Although there are no active volcanoes in the park, heated rock formations called igneous batholiths rose upward, lifting the sedimentary rock higher. Over time, the top layer of sedimentary rock wore away, leaving behind granite towers that make up the Ragged Range.

Over the last two million years, glaciers covered most of North America, shaping many of the landforms seen today. Earlier ice ages affected the park, but the most recent, the Wisconsin Ice Age (85,000–10,000 years ago), only covered the western and eastern parts of the park. This left many geological features in the park more time to develop than most of North America had.

The central feature of the park is the South Nahanni River, which flows through the park from Moose Ponds to where it meets the Liard River near Nahanni Butte. The South Nahanni River is an example of an antecedent river, meaning it kept its path even as the mountains rose because it was strong enough to do so. As the river flowed, it carved canyons that also meandered. Most visitors see only the section of the river from Virginia Falls (Nailicho) downstream.

Four main canyons line the South Nahanni River, named by explorers as they traveled upriver. The fourth canyon, also called Painted Canyon or Five Mile Canyon because of its length, begins at Virginia Falls. This canyon formed as the falls eroded the limestone around the river, moving upstream. The third canyon runs through the Funeral Range and is about 40 km (25 mi) long. Its walls are made of layers of shale, sandstone, and limestone, giving it gentle slopes instead of steep, flat walls found in lower canyons. Big Bend, where the river turns 45 degrees, marks the end of the third canyon and the start of the second canyon. The second canyon is 15 km (9.3 mi) long and runs through the Headless Range. The first canyon, considered the most beautiful, begins after Deadmen Valley. It has the highest, most vertical walls, cutting through very resistant limestone. The first canyon ends near Kraus Hot Springs and is about 30 km (19 mi) long. After this, the river slows and splits into smaller channels before rejoining near Nahanni Butte. Soon after the town, the South Nahanni River meets the Liard River.

Notable mountains in the park include Mount Nirvana (61°52′29″N 127°40′49″W / 61.87472°N 127.68028°W / 61.87472; -127.68028), which is the highest mountain in the Northwest Territories at 2,773 m (9,098 ft). Slightly north of this is Mount Sir James MacBrien (62°07′23″N 127°40′47″W / 62.12306°N 127.67972°W / 62.12306; -127.67972), the second-highest peak in the territory at 2,759 m (9,052 ft). Lotus Flower Tower (2,570 m (8,430 ft), 62°06′51.6″N 127°41′50.4″W / 62.114333°N 127.697333°W / 62.114333; -127.697333) is another notable mountain. These peaks are part of the Cirque of the Unclimbables (62°06′06″N 127°40′15″W / 62.10167°N 127.67083°W / 62.10167; -127.6

Virginia Falls

At Virginia Falls, also known as Nailicho in the Dene language (61°36′26″N 125°44′12″W / 61.60722°N 125.73667°W / 61.60722; -125.73667 (Virginia Falls)), the river drops 90 meters (300 feet) into a loud splash. In the middle of the falls is a tall, strong rock called "Mason's Rock," named after Bill Mason, a famous Canadian canoeist, author, and filmmaker. The falls were originally located downstream at the east end of Fourth Canyon, but over time, they moved backward through the limestone along the river. This ongoing erosion shifted the falls upstream and formed the Fourth Canyon. The constant mist from the waterfalls and the protective cliff walls create a special climate near the falls that supports many plant species, including several boreal orchids such as Calypso bulbosa, Cypripedium parviflorum and passerinum, Galearis rotundifolia, and Platanthera aquilonis, huronensis, and obtusata. Downstream from the falls are many well-known river rapids, including "Figure Eight," "George's Riffle," and "Lafferty's Riffle," which adventurers visit each year.

Rabbitkettle Hotsprings

The Rabbitkettle (Gahnîhthah) Hotsprings and tufa mounds (61°56′36″N 127°10′49″W / 61.94333°N 127.18028°W / 61.94333; -127.18028 (Rabbitkettle Hotsprings and tufa mounds)) are the largest tufa mounds in Canada. The largest mound, called the North Mound, is 27 meters (89 feet) tall and 74 meters (243 feet) wide. The hot spring water comes from deep inside Earth’s crust, near the bottom of granite rock formations in the Ragged Range. Volcanic activity that formed the mountains still heats the water far below Earth’s surface. The heated water moves upward, dissolving calcium carbonate from limestone layers along the way. When the water reaches the surface, it cools, and the calcium carbonate particles are released. These tiny particles settle and form porous calcite rings around the water pools. The pools vary in size, from as small as a fingernail to as large as a bathtub. This process takes thousands of years, and scientists believe the mounds are about 10,000 years old, forming after the last ice age ended.

These rare and delicate features are protected as a Zone 1, Special Preservation Area. All visitors must be accompanied by Parks Canada staff to reduce impact. Visitors to the North Mound are required to walk barefoot.

Flora and fauna

The park's sulphur hot springs, alpine tundra, mountain ranges, and forests of spruce and aspen are home to many species of birds, fish, and mammals. The park is part of three ecozones in Canada: the Taiga Cordillera in the west, the Taiga Plains in the east, and a small southern portion in the Boreal Cordillera.

According to Parks Canada, there are about 42 mammal species in the park, in addition to around 180 types of birds, 16 kinds of fish, and a few hardy amphibians, with the wood frog being the most commonly found in the region. In the State of the Park Report 2009, the NWT government identified ten special-concern, threatened, or endangered species that the Nahanni National Park Reserve provides suitable habitat for throughout the year or during certain seasons, as noted by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). These species include the common nighthawk, grizzly bear, olive-sided flycatcher, peregrine falcon, rusty blackbird, short-eared owl, wood bison, woodland caribou, wolverine, and yellow rail. In addition, the bull trout and Nahanni aster are listed, but without a specific status; the Canada warbler and western toad are listed as possibly existing in the park.

Mammal species found in the park include the American black bear, American mink, beaver, Arctic ground squirrel, Canada lynx, collared pika, Dall sheep, fisher, grey wolf, hoary bat, hoary marmot, least chipmunk, least weasel, moose, muskrat, northern myotis, mule deer, pine marten, red fox, red squirrel, river otter, Rocky Mountain goat, snowshoe hare, white-tailed deer, and several types of shrew and vole.

Birds are numerous and include species such as the American kestrel, bald and golden eagles, barred owl, belted kingfisher, boreal owl, black-capped and boreal chickadees, Canada goose, Canada jay, eared grebe, great grey owl, great horned owl, grouse, gulls, gyrfalcon, harlequin ducks, horned grebe, loons (common, Pacific, red-throated, and yellow-billed), mallards, northern harrier, northern shrike, osprey, pied-billed grebe, ptarmigan, redpoll, red-necked grebe, red phalarope, sandpipers and plovers, sharp-shinned hawk, snow goose, surf scoter, swallows, woodpeckers and sapsuckers, and trumpeter and tundra swans. The park is also the only known nesting site for the whooping crane.

Fish found in the park include Arctic grayling, burbot, inconnu, lake trout, lake chub, lake whitefish, longnose dace, longnose sucker, mountain whitefish, northern pike, round whitefish, slimy sculpin, spoonhead sculpin, spottail shiner, and trout-perch.

The variety of soils creates many unique and uncommon habitats. More than 700 species of vascular plants and 300 species of both bryophytes and lichen can be found in the park, giving it a richer variety than any other area in the NWT. Nahanni aster is a very rare species of aster found only in the park.

History

The Dene people, sometimes called the Slavey peoples, have lived in the area around Nahanni National Park Reserve for thousands of years. The first people to live there are believed to have arrived about 9,000 to 10,000 years ago. Signs of early human life have been found at Yohin Lake and other places in the park. Oral stories from the local people mention the Naha tribe, a group that lived in the mountains and sometimes attacked settlements in nearby lowlands. These people are said to have disappeared suddenly and without explanation.

European fur traders first met the Dene people in the 1700s. This contact increased when explorer Alexander Mackenzie traveled along the Mackenzie River (Deh Cho) and built trading posts at Fort Simpson and Fort Liard. John McLeod, a Scottish explorer, managed both forts. In the 1800s, many Dene families stopped traveling and instead settled near the trading posts. Permanent homes were built in places like Nahanni Butte, Fort Liard, and Fort Simpson.

In the late 1800s, the Mountain Indians of the Nahanni region traveled down the Nahanni River each spring in mooseskin boats to trade furs. These boats, similar to those used by the Hudson’s Bay Company, were up to 20 meters (66 feet) long. Made from six to ten moose hides sewn together and stretched over a wooden frame, the boats carried families, dogs, and furs during high water. After trading, the hides were sold, and the families returned to the mountains with only what they could carry on their dogs.

Stories about the Naha tribe and the dangerous land they lived in became more famous during the Klondike Gold Rush. Some explorers tried to use the Nahanni River as a route to the Yukon gold fields or to find gold in the Flat and South Nahanni Rivers. No gold was found, but legends of haunted valleys and lost gold grew after the bodies of two Métis prospectors, Willie and Frank McLeod, were discovered in 1908. A legendary lost mine, called the Lost McLeod Mine, is said to be where the brothers found gold. Later, other prospectors died under mysterious circumstances, and the park was given names like Deadmen Valley and Headless Creek.

In 1946, geologist Frank M. W. Henderson returned from the Nahanni Valley and reported that his partner, John Patterson, had disappeared. Henderson and Patterson had agreed to meet near Virginia Falls. Henderson arrived first and left a message on a tree, but when he returned weeks later, no message from Patterson was found. Later, Henderson’s group saw strange white figures in the valley, which they thought might be reflections of the northern lights, but the group left anyway.

In 1947, writer Pierre Berton traveled to the area with pilot Russ Baker. Berton wrote that Frank Henderson described the valley as having a "sinister atmosphere" and a "weird, continual wailing of the wind."

In 1964, explorer Jean Poirel from Montreal jumped into the park from 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of Yellowknife. He later traveled down the Nahanni River in inflatable boats and discovered over 250 caves. One cave, named "Valerie Cavern" after his daughter, contained the bones of 116 Dall sheep that were 2,500 years old. Poirel mapped the area, which helped create the park. In 1972, he guided Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau through the region.

Nahanni National Park Reserve was created in 1972 by Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. It covered 4,766 square kilometers (1,840 square miles). The park was in "reserve" status until Aboriginal land claims were settled. In 2003, an agreement with the Dehcho First Nations gave temporary protection to 23,000 square kilometers (8,900 square miles). In 2007, the federal government added 5,400 square kilometers (2,100 square miles) to the park.

In 2000, the Naha Dehe Consensus Team was formed by Canada and the Dehcho First Nations to work together on park management. Their tasks included preparing an ecological report, reviewing the park’s management plan, and creating agreements for park expansion. By 2003, these tasks were completed, and the team focused on cooperative management until land claims were resolved.

In 2009, the government and Dehcho First Nations announced plans to expand the park to cover 30,050 square kilometers (11,600 square miles). This area includes 91% of the Greater Nahanni ecosystem and most of the South Nahanni River watershed. The expanded park is home to about 500 grizzly bears, two herds of woodland caribou, and other animals. The new boundary includes the highest mountains and largest ice fields in the Northwest Territories.

More landing sites for aircraft have been added to the park. Before expansion, only Virginia Falls and Rabbitkettle Lake were available. Now, five more sites—Bunny Bar, Island Lake, Honeymoon Lake, Glacier Lake, and Seaplane Lake—are open. Only Virginia Falls and Glacier Lake allow day visits; others require overnight stays.

A visitor center in Fort Simpson displays information about the park’s history, culture, and geography. The park was one of the first four natural heritage sites named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978. The South Nahanni River was recognized as a Canadian Heritage River in 1987. About 800 to 1,000 people visit the park each year, mostly during summer months. Virginia Falls requires advance reservations to avoid overcrowding. All visitors must register with park officials when entering and leave within 24 hours. A park office in Nahanni Butte helps visitors with check-ins and check-outs.

Recognition

• 1978 – Nahanni National Park Reserve became the first place in the world to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was recognized for its wild areas, many rivers, waterfalls, and deep canyons made of limestone.

• 1987 – The protected part of the South Nahanni River was named a Canadian Heritage River. This honor was given because of the area’s important natural features and its value for outdoor activities.

• 2007 – The park was chosen as one of the Seven Wonders of Canada in a competition organized by CBC Television’s The National and CBC Radio One’s Sounds Like Canada.

• 1962 – Nahanni, a film made by the National Film Board of Canada, explored the history of the South Nahanni River. The film was praised both in Canada and around the world after it was released.

• 2011 – The park appeared in The National Parks Project, a short film directed by Kevin McMahon and scored by Shad, Jace Lasek, and Olga Goreas.

• 2019 – Nahanni: River of Forgiveness, a Canadian documentary about a traditional Dene journey down the Nahanni River, was considered for the Best Cinematography award at the Canadian Screen Awards.

• 1937 – The area inspired Sick Heart River, a novel by John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir. The book includes a fictional river set in the Nahanni region.

• 1973 – The Nahanni River and its surroundings were included in La Vallée sans homme, a French novel by Roger Frison-Roche.