B.C.’s Joffre Lakes Park will close again on Tuesday

Access to Joffre Lakes Provincial Park will close again on Tuesday as negotiations between the provincial government and the Líl̓wat and N’Quatqua First Nations continue, the B.C. government says.

The closure was to allow the two First Nations, based north of Whistler, to harvest traditional foods and carry out spiritual ceremonies in privacy.

Dean Nelson, the Líl̓wat political chief, said there had been long conversations with the province over their desire to have an “equal voice” on closures of the park when they want and need them. However, recent requests to provincial parks officials to talk to the First Nations about their values and needs hadn’t been answered, leading to the sudden closure.

The provincial government issues around 1,000 passes a day for hikers to access the park.