Sumas Mountain (British Columbia) facts for kids
Sumas Mountain is a cool mountain in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. People sometimes call it Canadian Sumas to tell it apart from another mountain with the same name in Washington state, just south of the border. This mountain rises up from the flat lands near the Fraser River.
Its western part is in the city of Abbotsford. Many neighborhoods of Abbotsford, like Clayburn, are built on this side. In the middle of the mountain, you'll find the old community of Straiton. It was named in 1904 after Thomas Bell Straiton, who started a farm and a store there in 1893. The higher eastern parts of the mountain look over Greendale, a community in the City of Chilliwack. This area is mostly wild. The very top of the mountain, called Sumas Peak, is here, along with Chadsey Lake.
Sumas Mountain is separated from the Cascade Mountains by a flat area called Sumas Prairie. This used to be a lake! South of Sumas Prairie is the American Sumas Mountain. To the west of Sumas Mountain is another flat area called Matsqui Prairie. North of the mountain is the Fraser River, and beyond it are more flat areas like Nicomen Island and Hatzic Prairie.
You can find Sumas Mountain Provincial Park on the higher, northern parts of the mountain. For a long time, people have used the mountain for farming animals and crops, cutting down trees (logging), and digging for minerals (mining). Clayburn, for example, was a mining town known for its brick-clay. Today, farming, gravel mining, and logging still happen on the mountain. There's also a Canadian Forces naval base at the northern base of the mountain, right by the Fraser River. On the south side, you'll find the land of the Sumas First Nation.
Sumas Mountain also helps protect McDonald Park, which is a special "dark-sky preserve." This means the mountain blocks the bright lights from nearby cities like Abbotsford, Chilliwack, and Mission. This helps people see the stars better at night!
What's in a Name?
The name "Sumas" comes from a Halqemeylem word. It means "a big level opening." This name refers to the Sumas Prairie area, which is south of the mountain. This prairie used to be a large lake called Sumas Lake. In the 1800s, people often spelled Sumas as "Smess." When explorer Simon Fraser wrote in his journal, he called the area "shemotch."
