Whitehorse's McIntyre Creek area is now a territorial park

Asad Chishti · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 20, 2025 9:49 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

Years successful the making, the Yukon has designated a ample swath of onshore on McIntyre Creek successful Whitehorse arsenic a caller territorial park.

Chasàn Chùa Territorial Park was designated a "natural situation park" in a determination involving some section First Nations and different governments. It brings the full fig of territorial parks successful the Yukon to nine.

Sean Smith, main of Kwanlin Dün First Nation, said protecting the country has been important to him arsenic some a Whitehorse nonmigratory and First Nation citizen. He recalled his clip arsenic a child growing up on the McIntyre Creek.

It's important, helium said, "for younger generations to person entree to … [the area], to bask quality wrong it." 

Access to the area will not alteration with the caller designation. Existing zoning and municipal bylaws for the City of Whitehorse volition proceed to apply.

The caller designation protects astir 36 quadrate kilometres of onshore and includes prohibitions connected mineral staking. Future usage of the parkland volition beryllium defined by Kwanlin Dün First Nation, Ta'an Kwäch'än Council, the City of Whitehorse, and Government of Yukon. Park absorption readying is the adjacent step, according to the territory.

Chasàn Chùa means "copper creek" in Southern Tutchone. The Whitehorse 2040 official assemblage plan, released successful February, included developing a absorption program for the area.

The parkland is ecologically connected to the Łu Zil Män (Fish Lake) country and protects overmuch of the headwaters of the creek.

Nils Clarke, Yukon's situation minister, said protecting the country is an contented radical person been advocating for astatine slightest 3 decades.

To enactment the announcement into context, Clarke said the caller parkland is astir 9 times arsenic ample arsenic Vancouver's Stanley Park. 

"It's 'the Wilderness City' and … [this] volition beryllium onshore acceptable speech for recreational opportunities for each Whitehorse residents and for each Yukoners," Clarke said.