All around was lake, mountain and forest - the biggest temperate rainforest in the world.

The subalpine (cold) temperate rainforest are dominated by tsuga and fir.

Covered in dense temperate rainforest on its western exposures, the range rises to heavily glaciated peaks, including the largest temperate-latitude icefields in the world.

This led to a landscape which was long dominated by temperate rainforest, although human activity has since cleared the vast majority of forest cover.

Included in the park are glaciers, scenic lakes and dense temperate rainforest, as well as remains of old gold mining towns along the coast.