abstract:The Tonquin was an American merchant ship involved with the Maritime Fur Trade of the early 19th Century. The ship was used by John Jacob Astor's Pacific Fur Company to establish fur trading outposts on the Northwest Coast of North America, including Fort Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia River.
Though a step up from the groomed cross-country ski trails that lie closer to the town of Jasper (population 4, 000), 23km to the northeast, the technical challenges of the Tonquin Valley are not extreme.
Beyond Maccarib Pass lies frozen Amethyst Lake and its two backcountry lodges: the Tonquin-Amethyst Lake Lodge and Tonquin Valley Backcountry Lodge, both of which provide accommodation in simple cabins with views of the lake and the Ramparts.