Cathedral Park is home to teal sub-alpine lakes, vast ridges and jarred peaks, old-growth forests, and rock formations of siltstone, granodiorite, and basalt.

Tourists flock to Smokey the Bear and Stone City because of their unique formations with incredible views formed by millennia of erosion, volcanic and tectonic activity, and glacial recession.

[3] The park has a mixed history of use from Indigenous Peoples and a variety of endemic species, as well as resource extraction, including forestry and recreational use such as hiking, camping, and fishing.

[4] The peak was named in 1901 by Carl and George Smith on a United States Geological Survey expedition, who are believed to be the first to have ascended the summit.

[6] This park ran in a narrow north–south corridor along Lakeview Creek from the Ashnola River in the North to the international boundary.

[11] The park was established by Europeans in the late 1960s, but evidence from the Ministry of Forests reveals horseback trails dating back to the 1930s.

The historic resource extraction and its ecological consequences presumably influenced the decision to protect Cathedral Provincial Park, aiming to preserve its natural beauty from further degradation.

In the Ashnola River area which includes Cathedral Lakes Provincial Park only 51 individuals were observed during the time of 1906 to 2012.

The threats can be natural such as fire and flooding and unnatural causes such as destruction of habitat or invasive species introduction.

[citation needed] Mountain goats are a species that like to live in high alpine areas, capable of climbing vertical rocks.

Mountain goats have numerous threats which include, historical over harvest, climate change causing reduced habitat, and negative impacts from recreation.

[16] In Cathedral Provincial Park they are of special concern because of the large amounts of people in the area, leading to human-goat conflict.

[17] In other words with the consistent flying of helicopters above the park, many mountain goats may have been displaced from their habitat which is why the population is so low in the area.

[18] Other animals that can be found in the park that are not at risk include California Bighorn sheep, mule deer, porcupines, and Columbia ground squirrels.

[4] California Bighorn sheep have a compact body that is muscular, with brown fur with white on the muzzle and belly.

[19] In order to stay alive from predators, bighorn sheep have abilities to climb the vertical rocks akin to mountain goats.

[20] Some plants that are commonly found in Cathedral Provincial Park include Douglas firs and Black Cottonwood trees.

[23] Cathedral Park is a unique environment in British Columbia as it is a part of the Okanagan Range, in a distinct section of the Cascade Mountains.

While specific predictions for this park may vary, some general trends associated with climate change include temperature increase, altered precipitation patterns, heightened wildfire risks, changes in snowpack and glacier melt, and shifts in the timing of biological events for plants and wildfire.

[3] Forest fires have played a key role in creating a diverse mosaic of vegetation over the park's landscape.

In contrast, forest health issues have also affected ecosystem dynamics with significant tree die-offs in specific proportions of the park.

[27] While resource development has been allowed in the past and the use of the area has an impact on the local ecology, the natural beauty of the overall park persists.