Ktunaxa Range

The Rocky Mountains rise along the eastern side of Ktunaxa country, separating the valleys of the upper Columbia and Kootenay from the plains. Ktunaxa hunting parties crossed these ranges in search of bison, maintaining connections with peoples east of the mountains. In 1807 the fur trader David Thompson crossed the Rockies by Howse Pass and reached the upper Columbia. His journey brought him into a mountain landscape whose rivers and passes were already familiar to Ktunaxa travellers.