The Lake
Before you see Lake Louise you see the hotel: Chateau Lake Louise , a monstrosity that would surely never get planning permission today. Yet even so intrusive an eyesore fades into insignificance beside the immense beauty of its surroundings. The lake is Kodachrome turquoise, the mountains sheer, the glaciers vast; the whole ensemble is utter natural perfection. Outfitter Tom Wilson, the first white Canadian to see Lake Louise when he was led here by a local native in 1882, wrote, "I never, in all my explorations of these five chains of mountains throughout western Canada, saw such a matchless scene ? I felt puny in body, but glorified in spirit and soul." You can't help wishing you could have been Tom Wilson, and seen the spot unsullied by the hotel and before the arrival of the tourists and general clutter. Around 10,000 daily in peak season come here to gawp (car parks often fill by noon), while notice boards on the waterfront seem obsessed with the profoundly dull account of how the lake came by its name - it was named in honour of the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. The native name translates as the "Lake of the Little Fishes". Wilson, showing precious little wit, originally called it Emerald Lake, for obvious reasons (clearly lacking in any imagination, he coined exactly the same name for the lake he discovered in Yoho ). More interesting is the account of Hollywood's discovery of the lake in the 1920s, when it was used to suggest "exotic European locations". After Wilson's "discovery" all access was by rail or trail - the station, then known as Laggan, was 6km away. The first hotel appeared in 1890, a simple two-bedroom affair which replaced a tumbledown cabin on the shore. Numerous fires, false starts and additions followed until the present structure made its unwelcome appearance (the final wings were added as recently as 1988). The first road was built in 1926. Be sure to walk here, despite the paths' popularity . Alternatively, escape the throng - two million people come here each year - by renting an old-style canoe from the office to the left as you face the lake (June-Sept daily 10am-8pm; $30 per hour; maximum of three adults per boat). Don't think about swimming: the water's deep and cold - top temperature in summer is a numbing 4°C.
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