Canadian Pacific Railway engine near Sawback siding in 1885 (O. B. Buell, Glenbow Museum NA-4967-015) and in 2004 (CW-2004-06D-09).
Ignitions from wood and then coal burning steam engines maintained the original Indigenous human lit burns along the bottom of the Bow Valley up until ~1910 when spark arrestors were installed. Today, these riparian zones are transitioning into dense spruce forests which reduce habitat diversity and provide a serious wildfire threat.
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