Between Lake Louise and The Columbia Icefield
One of the biggest problems in the Rockies is knowing what to see and where to walk among the dozens of possible trails and viewpoints. The Parkway is no exception. The following are the must-sees and must-dos along the 122-kilometre stretch of the Parkway from Lake Louise to the Columbia Icefield: best view - Peyto Lake (unmissable); best lake walk - Bow Lake; best waterfalls - Panther-Bridal Falls; best quick stroll - Mistaya Canyon; best short walk - Parker Ridge; best walk if you do no other - Wilcox Pass. Temptations for longer walks are numerous, and the difficulty, as ever, is knowing which to choose. The first youth hostel north of Lake Louise is Mosquito Creek (28km), four log cabins which sleep 38 and have basic food supplies, a kitchen, large common room and a wood-fired sauna (no phone, reservations tel 762-4122; $13 members, $17 nonmembers; year-round, but closure dates may apply; check-in 5-11pm). Slightly beyond is the first park campsite , Mosquito Creek ($10: mid-June to mid-Sept; 32 sites; water and dry toilets, but no other facilities) and one of the Parkway's two winter campsites (free after mid-Sept; 32 walk-in sites only). You're near the Bow River flats here, and the mosquitoes, as the campsite name suggests, can be a torment. Two hikes start from close to the site: Molar Pass (9.8km; 535m ascent; 3hr), a manageable day-trip with good views, and Upper Fish Lake (14.8km; 760m ascent; 5hr), which follows the Molar Pass trail for 7km before branching off and crossing the superb alpine meadows of North Molar Pass (2590m). On the Num-Ti-Jah Lodge access road just beyond (37km), a great short trail sets off from beside the lodge to Bow Lake and Bow Glacier Falls (4.3km; 155m ascent; 1-2hr), taking in the flats around Bow Lake - one of the Rockies' most beautiful - and climbing to some immense cliffs and several huge waterfalls beyond (the trail proper ends at the edge of the moraine after 3.4km, but it's possible to pick your way through the boulders to reach the foot of the falls 900m beyond). If you don't want to walk, take a break instead at the picnic area on the waterfront at the southeast end of the lake. The Num-Ti-Jah Lodge itself, just off the road, is one of the most famous old-fashioned lodges in the Rockies, built in 1920 by legendary guide and outfitter Jimmy Simpson (who lived here until 1972). It's the only privately owned freehold in the park - all other land and property is federally owned and leased; be sure to book well in advance to have any chance of securing a room (tel 522-2167; $125-175; May-Sept). There's a coffee shop here if you need a break, or want to admire the Lodge 's strange octagonal structure, forced on Jimmy because he wanted a large building but only had access locally to short timbers. You aren't allowed in the lodge (so guests can enjoy their privacy), but you can take dinner here, or sign up for horse riding with Timberline Tours (tel 522-3743), available to residents and nonresidents alike: rides include a one-hour trip to Bow Lake; a three-hour ride to Peyto Lake ; and a full-day excursion to Helen Lake. Another 3km up the Parkway comes the pass at Bow Summit, source of the Bow River, the waterway that flows through Banff, Lake Louise and Calgary. (At 2069m, this is the highest point crossed by any Canadian highway.) Just beyond is the unmissable twenty-minute stroll to Peyto Lake Lookout (1.4km; elevation loss 100m) one of the finest vistas in the Rockies (signed from the road). The quite beautiful panorama only unfolds in the last few seconds, giving a genuinely breathtaking view of the vivid emerald lake far below; mountains and forest stretch away as far as you can see. Another 3km along the Parkway lies a viewpoint for the Peyto Glacier, part of the much larger Wapta Icefield. After 57km you reach the Waterfowl Lakes campsite (116 sites; $13; mid-June to mid-Sept) and the Chephren Lake Trail (3.5km; 80m ascent; 1hr), which leads to quietly spectacular scenery with a minimum of effort. The next pause, 14km further on, is the Mistaya Canyon Trail , a short but interesting 300-metre breather of a stroll along a river-gouged "slot" canyon: mistaya , incidentally, is a Cree word meaning "grizzly bear". SASKATCHEWAN CROSSING (77km) is the lowest point on the road before the icefields; the 700-metre descent from Bow Summit brings you from the high subalpine ecoregion into a montane environment with its own vegetation and wildlife. Largely free of snow, the area is a favourite winter range for mountain goats, bighorn sheep and members of the deer family. The bleak settlement itself offers expensive food (restaurant and cafeteria), petrol, a spectacularly tacky gift shop and a 66-room hotel-restaurant , Crossing , that is surprisingly comfy (tel 761-7000; $100-125; early March to mid-Nov). Twelve kilometres north are the Rampart Creek thirty-bed youth hostel , with two cabins and the "best sauna in the Rockies" (tel 439-3139 or through Banff, Lake Louise or Calgary hostels; $13 members, $17 nonmembers; June-Oct open daily all day, check-in 5-11pm; Nov-May Sat & Sun only with reservations), with a basic food store, and a fifty-pitch park-run campsite ($10; late June to early Sept). Apparently this area is one of the best black-bear habitats close to the road anywhere in the park. The last of the Banff National Park campsites is the tiny sixteen-pitch Cirrus Mountain site at the 103-kilometre mark ($10; late June to early Sept), but its position is precarious, so check it's open before planning a stay (tel 762-1550). Shortly before the spectacular Panther Falls (113.5km) the road makes a huge hairpin climb (the so-called "Big Hill"), to open up yet more panoramic angles on the vast mountain spine stretching back towards Lake Louise. The unmarked and often slippery one-kilometre trail to the falls starts from the lower end of the second of two car parks on the right. Beyond it (117km) is the trailhead to Parker Ridge (2.4km one-way; elevation gain 210m; allow 1hr one-way, less for the return), which, at 2130m, commands fantastic views from the summit ridge of the Saskatchewan Glacier (at 9km, the Rockies' longest). If you're only going to do one walk after the Peyto Lake Lookout , make it this one: it gets cold and windy up here, so bring extra clothing. Ideally placed for this area and the Columbia Icefield 9km north is the busy Hilda Creek youth hostel (tel 439-3139 or 762-4122; $12 members, $16 nonmembers; check-in 5-11pm) 1km beyond. The setting is stunning, and accommodation (for 21) is in cosy log cabins. Nearby Sunwapta Pass (2023m) marks the border between Banff and Jasper national parks and the watershed of the North Saskatchewan and Sunwapta rivers: the former flows into the Atlantic, the latter into the Arctic Ocean. From here it's another 108km to Jasper.
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