Round Out Your Icefields Parkway Tour

Lake Louise — Thu, 14 May 2009 16:16:30 +0000

Peyto Lake © Just one of the side trips recommended by the editors along the Icefields Parkway.

Stop at the interpretive signs. Many of the viewpoints have displays that explain more about the area.

Stretch your legs at one of the short trails along the way. Not only does Bow Summit offer one of the most famous views in the Rockies (Peyto Lake), but also a short interpretive trail that meanders through high elevation meadows. In early summer, this is the only way to see alpine wildflowers without a serious hike. Mistaya Canyon is a 10-minute walk through forest to a stretch of deeply eroded canyon that features potholes worn into the rock. The beginning of the Glacier Lake trail allows you to poke around on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River.

Have an ice cream and stare in amazement at the postcard selection at The Crossing Resort’s gift shop.

Look for wildlife along the way. On a good day in May and June (while there is still a lot of snow high on the mountains), you can often spot every large mammal that the Rockies has to offer — right next to the road. During the rest of the summer, your chances are still good to see animals, especially early and late in the day. Drive carefully. A number of good, pocket-sized books are available about the mammals of the Canadian Rockies.

In winter, be sure to have a full tank of gas, food and water when you take this trip. All services are closed.

THE Picnic

Pack a delicious lunch to eat outdoors.
The parkway is the wildest part of banff National Park and features nature at its most intense and beautiful. You’ll be in a car for much of the trip and what better way to experience this place than to eat while fully immersed in it.

There are picnic areas at Herbert Lake, Bow Lake, Saskatchewan River Crossing, and below Mt. Coleman. Or, bring a blanket and find a quiet and secluded spot by driving into a campground or stopping at a trailhead where you can walk a short distance away.

STUFF TO DO FOR THOSE THAT DON’T HIKE OR SKI

Icefields Parkway

Lake Louise — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:55:38 +0000

Peyto Lake © Just one of the side trips recommended by the editors along the Icefields Parkway.

In winter on a crystal clear day, or in summer when the sun is high in the sky, there is no sight more breathtaking than the mountains and glaciers of the Icefields Parkway (#93 North). From Lake Louise, it is only a five minute drive west on the Trans-Canada Highway (#1) to the turnoff for jasper via this scenic route.

If you have any option at all, try to make this trip on a clear day, but sometimes cloudy days will still provide views of the tops of the mountains. Hanging glaciers adorn many of the peaks and, every once in a while, glaciers that spill from the icefields beyond come into view. Anytime you see thick white or blue, you are looking at a glacial ice.

In the course of a day trip from Lake Louise, you should be able to make it to the Columbia Icefield area and back again, which is the most scenic part of the parkway. Allow for 1½ hours of driving time each way, and add on for stops and winter driving conditions. For a trip all the way to jasper, budget three hours of driving time under good conditions.

The Lake Louise Visitor Centre (next to the Samson Mall) has an invaluable free pamphlet called “The Icefields Parkway” that outlines in detail the viewpoints and trailheads along the way. For even more information, with notes about history and nature included, pick up a copy of Brian Patton’s “Parkways of the Canadian Rockies: and Interpretive Guide to the Roads in the Mountain Parks.”

A River of Ice

The highlight of the parkway is, of course, the Athabasca Glacier which comes tumbling off the Columbia Icefield directly towards the road. Nowhere else in the Rockies is it possible to get a view that encompasses more ice.

The Icefield Visitor Centre has excellent exhibits that help you explore the exotic world of perpetual cold.

For a first-hand experience, you have the option of driving out to the parking lot at the glacier’s toe (we do not recommend walking on the ice for safety reasons), of taking a Brewster Snocoach ride (many departures daily), or, of participating in an Icewalk with a licensed mountain guide (one departure daily). Bring extra clothes as it is often cooler near the icefield (hmmm… no surprise, eh!!)

Click the logo for short side trips and stops on this tour

THE ICEFIELDS PARKWAY
FULL TOUR SECTION

STUFF TO DO FOR THOSE THAT DON’T HIKE OR SKI

Lake Louise - Banff National Park, Alberta Canada » Icefields Parkway

Round Out Your Icefields Parkway Tour

THE Picnic

Icefields Parkway

A River of Ice