Trip Banff Canada

[anita.gugulski]

Hello All,

I am planning a trip to Banff, Canada for late August and I was hoping to get some advice about the must-see spots and best hikes of a moderate difficulty.

I would also love to learn about less crowded / visited trails that may be overlooked.

Thank you so much for your help!

 

[jholmes01]

Thanks for posing this question Anita. I'm going to be in Banff/Canmore starting on Saturday and have the same questions.

Gillean Daffern's "Kananaskis Country Trail Guide" was highly recommended, so I picked up a copy but haven't had time to dive into it yet. I'll try to post some details/impressions once I'm back, in late July.

 

[angeedraper]

Hello All,

I am planning a trip to Banff, Canada for late August and I was hoping to get some advice about the must-see spots and best hikes of a moderate difficulty.

I would also love to learn about less crowded / visited trails that may be overlooked.

Thank you so much for your help!

When I went 6 years ago, one of my favorite hikes was Sentinel Pass from Moraine Lake. I'm not sure what the logistics are now to park there but the hike was fantastic. Worth the effort (and it was a long hike with elevation). We wanted to add on Eiffel Lake but thunder and lightning rushed us off the mountain. I thought Johnston Canyon was over-rated but at the same time I was glad we stopped so I could say I've done it . We hit it in the afternoon since parking there is also a problem. We hiked down to the shore of Peyto Lake that was in one of my guide books and that was nice to miss some of the crowds. It wasn't a marked trailhead.

 

[canadug]

National Parks in Canada will be the most crowded they have ever been this summer. The government has made it free for all people to enter the parks and friends that have gone said it is a full on zoo of people. Also, for obvious reasons Canadians are boycotting the USA en masse and staying in their own country to vacation so us Canucks are exploring Canada full on. Euros and everyone else are also coming to Canada.

Make sure you have reservations or you will likely be out of luck. The parks are beautiful but will be very very busy!

 

[Janice]

In 2011, we did day hikes in Banff and other national parks in that area and made great use of Kathy & Craig Copeland's book Don't Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies: An Opinionated Hiking Guide... Our edition looked different from this one on Amazon. Perhaps it's available from your library, or if you want me to send you photos of the Table of Contents (with the ratings - boots not stars) send me a message separately. There are lots of highly rated hikes in the book, way more than we had time to do, but these are the ones we did. I have no idea how crowded they are now, though:

1) Wilcox Pass in southernmost part of Jasper across from Columbia Icefield - 4 boots - excellent
2) Bow Hut in Banff - 3 boots
3) Iceline in Yoho National Park - 4 boots - excellent
4) Crypt Lake in Waterton - 3 boots - you take a boat to the trailhead, which was cool, but that means everyone is starting together so there are a lot of people
5) Akamina Ridge in Waterton - 4 boots - we only had time for out and back but scenery was great
6) Plain of Six Glaciers at Lake Louise - the book recommends this only during shoulder season due to crowds, but we wanted to take our kids to Lake Louise so we contended with the crowds anyway. Due to a mudslide which had earlier closed the road, we arrived early afternoon and parked really far down the road. At the beginning of the hike, we were with a million people and that was a bummer. But we went past the teahouse and loved that part, and by the time we got back to the teahouse there was almost nobody around and we got to enjoy the way down with no crowds. So if you decide to give Lake Louise a try, consider going very early in the morning or later in the day after the tourbuses hopefully will have left.

We didn't hike Sentinel Pass that @angeedraper recommends, but the book gives it 4 boots.

 

[priz1234]

Was there a couple of years ago and did some backpacking and day hikes my favorite day hikes we did while there were these

• Iceline Trail in Yoho
• Ptarmigan lake, Baker lake, Redoubt Lake and Packer's Pass from Lake Louise Ski Resort
• Cory Pass
• Rockbound Lake. If you do this one, make sure to hike past the lake and go to the overlook above the lake as well.

Plain of Six Glaciers and Lake Agnes was a very cool hikes but it was a very crowded trail. We definitely saw people on our other trails but that one was worse than the others.

 

[SteveR]

A few thoughts from Calgary:
As @canadug mentions, the already overcrowded Lake Louise area will be a zoo due to free admission this summer. Moraine Lake hikes will require booking a shuttle bus, and the parking at Lake Louise is congested and expensive from what I hear (we only go there in winter now). A shame as hikes such as Valley of The Ten Peaks, Sentinel Pass, Saddleback/Mount Fairview, Mount St. Piran and Plain of the Six are iconic hikes if you want to deal with the potential hassles of getting to the trailheads.
Some other hikes to consider:
-Helen Lake/Cirque Peak (busy but not to be missed on a nice day)
-Iceline in Yoho as already mentioned. We like it as an out and back to the highpoint.
-Paget Peak
-Taylor Lake to Panorama Ridge. A long forest slog in and out, though, so maximise by also exploring the tarns and basin below the ridge)
-For an easier day hiking in vast alpine meadows, you could pay to take the gondola up to Sunshine ski area (disclaimer- I've never done that)
-Wilcox Pass is great, but a long drive if staying near Banff town. If doing as a day trip from Banff, I'd also do nearby Parker Ridge for a full day.
I would second the mention of "Don't Waste Your Time In The Canadian Rockies" as the book to have for first timers. They don't mention many of the shorter hikes/walks to spots with canyons or waterfalls that may be an option for a weather day.
Kananaskis Country is mentioned above by @jholmes01 That is where we spend much of our time as it is closer to Calgary and generally less crowded, although the most popular spots are getting increasingly busy. The book you want is Volume 1 which covers the core area. A $ 90 pass is now required for Kananaskis. A sampling of K-Country hikes would be:
-Galatea Lakes/Guinns Pass. Make sure you at least go to the upper one.
-Mount Allan. great but strenuous ridgewalk.
-Rawson Lake/Sarrail Ridge. Hot on the Insta right now but worthwhile.
-Pocaterra Cirque and ridge (closed right now due to construction, maybe open by late this summer.
-Burstall Pass
-Tent Ridge (expect some short sections of hands on scrambling)
-Chester Lake/Three Lakes Valley. Add in the Fortress if up for a longer day and mild scrambling.
-Sparrowhawk Tarns, but many of the tarns will be dry by August.
-Headwall Lakes. We were there this week:
Lower Headwall from above. A favourite, but as typical for many Kananaskis hikes, expect some sections of rough unofficial trail and/or mild routefinding.

Upper Headwall with the Fortress looming at the back. An often used, somewhat rugged route connects to Chester Lake valley over a col below the Fortress, with an easy scramble to the summit as an option.

Hope all that helps!

 

[Janice]

A few thoughts from Calgary:
As @canadug mentions, the already overcrowded Lake Louise area will be a zoo due to free admission this summer. Moraine Lake hikes will require booking a shuttle bus, and the parking at Lake Louise is congested and expensive from what I hear (we only go there in winter now). A shame as hikes such as Valley of The Ten Peaks, Sentinel Pass, Saddleback/Mount Fairview, Mount St. Piran and Plain of the Six are iconic hikes if you want to deal with the potential hassles of getting to the trailheads.
Some other hikes to consider:
-Helen Lake/Cirque Peak (busy but not to be missed on a nice day)
-Iceline in Yoho as already mentioned. We like it as an out and back to the highpoint.
-Paget Peak
-Taylor Lake to Panorama Ridge. A long forest slog in and out, though, so maximise by also exploring the tarns and basin below the ridge)
-For an easier day hiking in vast alpine meadows, you could pay to take the gondola up to Sunshine ski area (disclaimer- I've never done that)
-Wilcox Pass is great, but a long drive if staying near Banff town. If doing as a day trip from Banff, I'd also do nearby Parker Ridge for a full day.
I would second the mention of "Don't Waste Your Time In The Canadian Rockies" as the book to have for first timers. They don't mention many of the shorter hikes/walks to spots with canyons or waterfalls that may be an option for a weather day.
Kananaskis Country is mentioned above by @jholmes01 That is where we spend much of our time as it is closer to Calgary and generally less crowded, although the most popular spots are getting increasingly busy. The book you want is Volume 1 which covers the core area. A $ 90 pass is now required for Kananaskis. A sampling of K-Country hikes would be:
-Galatea Lakes/Guinns Pass. Make sure you at least go to the upper one.
-Mount Allan. great but strenuous ridgewalk.
-Rawson Lake/Sarrail Ridge. Hot on the Insta right now but worthwhile.
-Pocaterra Cirque and ridge (closed right now due to construction, maybe open by late this summer.
-Burstall Pass
-Tent Ridge (expect some short sections of hands on scrambling)
-Chester Lake/Three Lakes Valley. Add in the Fortress if up for a longer day and mild scrambling.
-Sparrowhawk Tarns, but many of the tarns will be dry by August.
-Headwall Lakes. We were there this week:
Lower Headwall from above. A favourite, but as typical for many Kananaskis hikes, expect some sections of rough unofficial trail and/or mild routefinding.
View attachment 143000
Upper Headwall with the Fortress looming at the back. An often used, somewhat rugged route connects to Chester Lake valley over a col below the Fortress, with an easy scramble to the summit as an option.
View attachment 143001
Hope all that helps!

Wow - I'm going to hold onto this for whenever we get back to the Canadian Rockies. Great info!

 

[Diane Greer]

Hello All,

I am planning a trip to Banff, Canada for late August and I was hoping to get some advice about the must-see spots and best hikes of a moderate difficulty.

I would also love to learn about less crowded / visited trails that may be overlooked.

Thank you so much for your help!

Hi Anita-

Banff is a very busy place. My advice is to look at the hikes along the ice field parkway. I also find that getting an early start lets you beat the crowds and have the trails to yourself in the mornings.

Here is my list of favorite hikes in the Canadian Rockies --https://www.hikingwalking.com/destinations/ab/ab_rockies/

Have fun planning your trip!

 

[Janice]

Hi Anita-

Banff is a very busy place. My advice is to look at the hikes along the ice field parkway. I also find that getting an early start lets you beat the crowds and have the trails to yourself in the mornings.

Here is my list of favorite hikes in the Canadian Rockies --https://www.hikingwalking.com/destinations/ab/ab_rockies/

Have fun planning your trip!

I have made great use of Diane's website and highly recommend you take a look!

 

[Rockskipper]

See if you can get up to the site of the Burgess Shale dig in Yoho. You may have to go with a guided group, but it’s an awesome place.

 

[travel2walk]

A little bit of self promotion here (with link to my post in my webpage at the end - a lot is similar to what others say like hikes in Yoho NP, Kootenay, glacier - the Canada one), but really think backpacking out there is better than day hikes since the permits actually limits the crowds with their permit system. A lot of times, you can find last minute spots if you keep checking a couple weeks out. For example, I’m on a trip out there to Assiniboine as we found 3 nights in a row a couple days before my flight and on my last trip I was able to pull a permit for Berg Lake.



If no backpacking, I would stay away from Lake Louise and just go to the other parks around there.

travel 2 walk

On our road trip through the Canadian Rockies, we completed a total of 12 hikes that spand 4 national parks and 3 provincial parks. I can confidently say I’ve seen very little of the canadian…

travel2walk.com

 

[Janice]

See if you can get up to the site of the Burgess Shale dig in Yoho. You may have to go with a guided group, but it’s an awesome place.

Just looked it up and it seems great. We're not heading to Canadian Rockies this year but I'm making a list for the future... Thanks!