[Crevasse Formation in Illecillwaet Glacier, Selkirk Mountains, Alberta, Canada]

The transcontinental Canadian Pacific Railway and the great hotels the firm built changed how people saw the mountains. Once considered a barrier to progress, the mountains were now viewed by many as a major tourist attraction. Canadian Pacific Railway’s Glacier House Hotel opened near the glacier’s terminus in 1885. The mountains were widely promoted after Glacier National Park opened in 1886 by Swiss guides working at the hotel and in exhibits and books. The glacier’s name means “big water” in the Okangan language.