On the eve of the New Year, 1871, British Columbia put on her wedding dress and prepared to unite her destiny to that of the young country, Canada. The Prime Minister, the conservative, Sir John A. MacDonald, obtained his bride-to-be’s consent by promising to build a railroad that will cross the country from East to West. The die is cast, the iron horse must cross the Rockies. This monumental task will unfurl in a mountain wilderness, and will be the starting point of tourism for Canadian Pacific.