Which national park is Canada's largest by area?

Which national park is Canada’s largest by area? The answer is Wood Buffalo National Park.

Wood Buffalo National Park spans roughly 44,741 square kilometres across northeastern Alberta and the southern Northwest Territories, making it Canada’s largest national park. It is larger than Switzerland and is also one of the world’s largest national parks. Fort Smith serves as its headquarters, with Fort Chipewyan another important nearby community.

Canada established the park in 1922 to protect wood bison. It now safeguards an enormous boreal and Great Plains transition zone, including the Peace–Athabasca Delta, one of the world’s largest inland freshwater deltas. The landscape also contains wetlands, rivers, forests, salt plains and karst sinkholes.

Wood Buffalo became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for its ecological importance and wild bison population. It contains the only natural nesting habitat for the endangered whooping crane. The park is also recognized for its exceptionally dark skies, which make it a notable place to observe the northern lights.

A frequent mix-up is choosing Banff or Jasper because they are more famous, but both are far smaller by total area.