Synopsis

The Canadian Rockies are a legendary display of natural wonders. They span the entire border shared by the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta.

Ancestors Path – The Ancient Route of the Monkman Pass

(Estimated run time of 45-60 min)

The Canadian Rockies are a legendary display of natural wonders. They span the entire border

shared by the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. This vast mountain range is home to

glaciers, alpine lakes, waterfalls, and various species of wildlife. They are also an ultimate

resource for numerous outdoor activities such as hiking, climbing, skiing, snowmobiling, and

camping just to name a few.

Although the mountains are mapped with significant amounts of trails and roads there are very

few prevalent routes that allow travelers to pass entirely through its natural ruggedness by

vehicle.

One particular route now known as the Monkman Memorial Trail had been proposed as a viable

means to transport goods from Northwestern Alberta to British Columbia back in the 1930's.

Previous to that era the pass was also a known trading route for the aboriginal’s native to the

area and used as a war path between feuding clans. Unfortunately, the route was never

permanently established despite the efforts of Alex Monkman and many other settlers of the

prairies who volunteered their time to construct the path. Over time mother nature has since

reclaimed portions of the trail leaving very little to no trace of its existence.

To commemorate Alex Monkman’s vision and efforts a 67 km hiking trail has been established

in place of the road. It remains to be a hidden gem and rivals trails found in the Jasper and

Banff National Parks.

Its rich history and pristine backcountry have captivated the curiosity of Travis Fowler, who is a

filmmaker, aspiring musician, father and of aboriginal descent. Travis believes this documentary

is important for various reasons. Not only will it share a positive historical perception of First

Nations people, but it can also provide a way for healing for all people. It will show a part of the

aboriginal world that requires extra effort to attain, but in return it will gift so much to any willing

adventurers.

To further commemorate the trail, refresh its historical relevance and present a more intimate

perspective of this natural wonder to the world, Travis, and a small group of adventurers of

diverse hiking experience will attempt to travel the trail in its entirety. They will be transporting a

bag of grain like Monkman had done decades ago along with a roll of pulp paper, a container of

crude oil, era appropriate tractor parts and a replica model T diecast car. The diecast car is to

represent the real-life version that Alex Monkman used to help prove his proposed route through

the pass was indeed a viable option. All commodities are intended to be delivered to the Prince

George Train Museum in the city of Prince George.

The first 25 km of the trail is well established and presents hikers of all ages and experience

levels the opportunity to observe 10 waterfalls, a mountain summit, a suspension bridge, and an

alpine lake. These divine elements of nature are connected by the pristine mountain headwaters

of both the Murray and Monkman Rivers. There are recreational campsites located

approximately 5 - 7 km apart along the trail to allow for an adequate amount of rest and

replenishment.

Once Travis and the group of hikers reach the end of the marked trail at Monkman Lake they

will have the opportunity to determine who has the ambition, stamina, and courage to hike the

remaining 42 km of trail that’s mostly been reclaimed by mother nature. The end of the

backcountry trail ends at a place that's known as Hobi’s Cabin. It played a significant role and

served as a much-needed retreat for Monkman and the trailblazers. From there the remainder

of the journey to Prince George can either be made by river boat or helicopter.

A hand cart to cross the nearby river at Hobi’s cabin was constructed in 2008 but its operational

status is currently unknown. Without proper planning and precautions hikers could potentially

find themselves stranded here.

Despite the natural beauty of the area the trail in its entirety offers a broad range of challenges

that Travis and the group of hikers may encounter. Wildlife and insects can be quite formidable

in the backcountry. Bears, wolves, moose, and cougars can all prove to be deadly threats and

should never be underestimated. The trail has been temporarily closed a few times due to bear

sightings and encounters. Weather conditions in the mountains can change quickly where all

four seasons can be experienced in a short amount of time, causing floods, slides, blow downs

and fires. All of which can be deadly forces of nature if not prepared for and handled properly

when they occur. The trail is lush with diverse vegetation; it ranges from standard forest to rain

forest, to subalpine and alpine type ecosystems. Some portions of the trail will be camouflaged

by large ferns, dead fall, and devils club.

To this day very few hikers have successfully completed the entire trail. In mid-July of 2024

Travis and his team of hikers will attempt to find their way to Prince George via the Monkman

Pass.

We start by meeting the group of hikers in their homes as they prepare for the impending

journey into the backcountry.

• Each hiker will share their knowledge of the trail, reasons for participating, risks,

experience, roles, projections, and the tasks they intend to carry out in preparation of

their expedition.

• They will be making visits to the GLAM (Cultural Institutions: galleries, libraries,

archives, and museums) institutions in the Grande Prairie area to discover and acquire

any relevant information about the Monkman Memorial Trail. The Grande Prairie

Museum has the original Model-T Ford that Monkman had used to transport the grain. A

few books have been written about the Monkman Pass giving readers a few different

perspectives of its history. There are at least two known photo diaries that have been

carried forward by family descendants of the original trailblazers, we have one in our

possession. The museums in Grande Prairie, Beaverlodge and Tumbler Ridge have

photo archives. The info centers in Grande Prairie, Dawson Creek and Tumbler Ridge

have books, photos and maps.

• We follow the hikers as they collect commodities, they intend to transport via the

Monkman Pass.

• Each interaction will include interviews and supporting visual content to help convey its

relevance to the past, present and or future, why it’s important to acknowledge and

commemorate the Monkman Memorial Trail. The story will evolve into the hikers’ journey

westward towards the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

• Information gathered by the hikers will lead them to specific landmarks, people of great

interest and more GLAM institutions along the entire Monkman Memorial Trail. People of

great interest will be but not limited to: Kreg Alde (Established the trail that’s present

today), Dr. Charles Helm (A Family Physician, author of 9 books about the Tumbler

Ridge area and its history going all the way back to the dinosaurs, numerous other

achievements and accolades), Stan Monkman (Alex Monkman’s great grandson who is

now 82 years old and has never seen the Monkman Pass in person), Thomas Clark

(Representative of the Geopark, maintains trails including the Monkman Trail), Ken

Cameron (Former Chief of the Saulteau First Nations), Charles Taws (Grande Prairie

Museum Curator).

• The starting point will be just west of Grande Prairie at Alex Monkman’s original

homestead near Cutbank Lake. Here they’ll meet with Alex’s 82-year-old great grandson

Stan Monkman from Panoka Alberta, who visits his family’s cemetery plot annually.

Stan’s story in combination with a photo album journal from the 1930’s will be visually

intertwined with that of the hikers from this point forward. The team of hikers will travel

the established road portion of the Monkman Memorial Trail by passenger vehicle from

Cutbank Lake via the small towns of Beaverlodge, Rio Grande, Elmworth and Tumbler

Ridge to the trailhead at the Kinuso Falls Campground.

• Interactions with the people of great interest, material points of interest and iconic

landmarks will all be captured on film to help convey just how integral the history of the

trail is to their existence. We follow the hikers as they embark on a man verses nature

and man verses himself journey into the vast backcountry of the Canadian Rockies.

• The hike will be divided into daily set goals determined amongst the group of hikers

and based on the trail conditions, weather and any other factors that may affect their end

goals.

• In addition to the many spectacular view points the trail has to offer the hikers will also

be on the lookout for any evidence that was left behind from the trailblazers of the

1930’s, aboriginals native to the area, and even the dinosaurs.

• At each camping location through the journey there will be interviews with the hikers on

their progress, status, and goals for the next day. These breaks will also allow for

cutaways in the story to explore and continue Stan Monkman’s story along with key

interviews from the people of great interest. Once the hikers reach the end of the marked

main trail at Monkman Lake the challenges and risks drastically increase for the whole

team. The remaining 42 km of the trail to Hobi’s Cabin is mostly unmarked and

overgrown by mother nature.

• From Hobi’s Cabin to Prince George a plan will need to be developed since this portion

of the original trail that Monkman blazed back in the 1930’s has never been defined to

the extent to that of the first 25 km.

• Our research suggests that the two best options to complete this leg of their journey is

either by helicopter or river boat. Both options can be quite costly without adequate

sponsorship but very necessary to have in place. The ideal scenario would be to have

both, where the helicopter is mainly for backup safety support, emergency extraction,

aerial camera footage, and moving of support crew and film equipment.

If the hikers are successful in meeting the river boat near Hobi’s Cabin, they’ll lay witness to the

breathtaking water ways and canyons of the Fontiniko Creek, Herrick River, McGregor River

and finally the mighty Fraser River; all of which will be captured on film. The Fraser River flows

right through the heart of Prince George and has been used as a main artery of support for its

local economy for decades. The hikers will have a passenger vehicle waiting for them at a

central boat launch. From there they’ll deliver the commodities that they transported through the

Monkman Pass. Each interaction will be filmed and include interviews with supporting footage.

In conclusion all the stories and intersecting paths will converge.

• Acknowledgment, knowledge, and history of the Monkman Memorial Trail will be

carried forward.

• Correlations between past, present and future ways of our trade and transportation

industries will be highlighted.

• Demonstrations of how fulfilling the acts of adventuring can have on the human spirit

will be prevalent.

• Identify the importance of preserving our natural wonders. If Monkman had succeeded

what would the Monkman Pass look like now and what impacts would it have had on all

levels of society in the Peace Region.

Ultimately, we’d love to see our hikers succeed in their journey and overcome as many of the

challenges they face as possible. Their success means that the audience gets to experience an

area of wilderness that not many have seen before, plus all the historical value and knowledge

that is learned along the way. The personal challenges that the hikers experience and overcome

will be more relatable and perhaps inspire others to do the same.

Crew:

Travis Fowler – Director, Writer (Saulteau First Nations)

Wade Whibley – Writer, Producer, Assistant Editor (Project Lead & Primary Contact)

Jared Matlock – Camera Op, Drone Op, Editor

Geo Rawlins – Camera Op

Leanne Bausman – Camera Op, Assistant Editor

T.J. Kennedy – Camera Op

Hikers:

Travis Fowler, Wade Whibley, Phil Troyer, Nicole Troyer, Stefanie Clarke, Daryl Hudak