In 1911 Scotty Wright, a member of the National Park’s Warden Service, was dispatched to the Panther River twenty-six miles north of Banff to build a cabin of logs. The third cabin to be constructed, it was part of a string of cabins meant for the use of back country patrols. Park superintendents had noted severe poaching activity on the frontiers of the park, and back country patrols were a method of policing the extensive regions.

“Windy,” the affectionate name for the cabin, became headquarters for the Panther River District, and it was used by year ‘round patrols.

The completion of the Cascade Fire Road resulted in greater demands on the cabin, and eventually it was discovered to be too small. A larger Panther River Cabin was built as a new residence and office. Windy, used only for occasional winter patrols, “soon began to feel the ravages of time.”

By the early 1970s Windy had obtained a more glorious status. Parks Canada, concerned about its importance, arranged with the Whyte Foundation to save the cabin. The government branch undertook the delicate task of lifting and moving the cabin down the Cascade Fire Road and depositing it on the grounds. In 1985 the Banff National Park Warden Service furnished Windy with artifacts appropriate to its use as a patrol cabin.

Jon Whyte