Dear Editor,
I was very concerned to read that Maligne Tours is proposing to build a 66-suite lodge and 15 tent cabins at Maligne Lake (“Overnight accommodation proposed for Maligne Lake”).
Maligne Lake is my favourite place in the world. Sitting by the shore at sunset—when the tour boats have stopped running, most of the other people have left, and all is again quiet—restores my soul.
I work at a community centre in Nogales, Mexico and I’ll be driving 3,000 kilometres in September to again visit Maligne Lake. This may be the last time that I’ll be able to experience that deep sense of peace that surpasses all understanding. The disturbance and noise of an overnight lodge would destroy those magical moments that sustain me during the rest of the year.
My feelings can best be described by a phrase I’ve heard here in Nogales: “Me parte el alma” (it breaks my soul). If Parks Canada approves this proposal, they will be tearing out a part of my soul.
Greg Fenton, superintendent of Jasper National Park, stated in the Fitzhugh that Parks Canada is willing to consider the proposal “on the basis of potential for enhancing visitor experiences and connecting people [to nature].”
I visited Maligne Lake for the first time in August 1979 and I fell in love with the incredible beauty of that place. Since then, I’ve made 20 trips to Jasper and Maligne Lake, and my love and appreciation for the lake has grown even deeper.
This visitor doesn’t need a 66-suite lodge to enhance my experience and connect me with nature at Maligne Lake. I just ask that Greg Fenton protect the beauty that nature has created so that I can continue to sit on the shore at sunset and have my soul restored.
Scott Nicholson
Nogales, Mexico
