-Canadian Rockies-

Road Trip from Calgary to Jasper

WHAT WE SAW

Day 1
Flight into Calgary.
Calgary is the nearest airport to Banff National Park. It takes roughly 1 hr 20 min drive to reach Banff.

Day 2
Columbia Icefields - Peyto Lake - Bow Lake
1. Drive to Columbia Icefields
It takes little more than 2 hours to drive to Columbia Icefields from Banff. This is one of the most scenic routes in the world. The clear blue lakes, snow capped mountains, the yellow wildflowers, numerous wildlife will make you stop every 10 minutes on the way and admire their beauty. So keep your camera ready, take extra batteries and start atleast 4 hours early or you will never reach Colunbia Icefield in time for your tour.

A little lake on the Icefield Parkway

Perfect reflection of the nearby mountains

2. Columbia Icefields - Glacier Adventure and Glacier Skywalk
We bought the Glacier Adventure and Skywalk combo package for $85 CAD. Saved 10% when we booked online in advance. It is recommended to book in advance and reserve your tour times as these get filled up pretty fast.

Brewster Co operated the monstrous Ice Explorer truck which takes visitor upto the Athabasca Glacier. The drive itself is sort of an adventure where the truck travels on thick ice at 18-20 mph speed on a 32% grade road.

Ice Explorer

Athabasca Glacier recedes at a rate of 5 meters every year. Global warming and climate change is happening people!!!

Athabasca Glacier

Bright Red Canadian chairs placed at most attractions in the Rockies

We were given 20 minutes to explore the glacier on your own. There are marked boundaries and you are not allowed to venture out of the boundary for your own safety. The glacier is known to create crevices which can easily swallow a human if he takes a wrong step.

20 minutes is not enough time to appreciate the glacier. Soon we are taken back in the same ice explorer truck to the shuttle parking lot. From there we head on to the Glacier Skywalk.

Glacier Skywalk and the surrounding mountains

Skywalk

Tip: Book your tickets in advance

3. Peyto Lake

Tip: Go in the morning when the sun is facing the mountains around the lake and not creating a shadow

4. Bow Lake
Bow Lake is formed from the melted water of the Bow Glacier. It is one of the many lakes that lines the Icefield Parkway highway and one of the prettiest. It was frozen when we went in May 2017 but the view of the surrounding mountains was gorgeous.

Day 2
5. Lake Louise
This lake is probably one of the most famous lakes in the world. No wonder there was so much crowd even during off-peak season. The parking lots usually get filled up by 9 AM so be there early.

We could not see the "famous" emerald color of the lake. So could not fully appreciate the beauty of the lake. This is reason enough to come back for another visit in summer.

Tip: Go in the morning to get parking near the lake

6. Moraine Lake and Valley of Ten Peaks
In my view, this lake is definitely more beautiful than Lake Louise. The road to the lake opened on May 23rd (2017) and we were there just 5 days later. The ten snow capped peaks surrounds the gorgeous lake which was still semi-frozen during our visit. But the turquoise color of the lake peaked through the ice sheet layer.

View from Constellation Lakes Trail

Tip: Go early or late in the evening.
You will see people climbing the rocks surrounding the lake to get a better view of the lake. Skip that and instead go on the Constellation Lake Trail. A short hike will get you to a viewing point higher than the rocks vantage point.

7. Johnston Canyon
Hiking!!! What we love to do. Johnston Canyon.....though very crowded, is one of the interesting hikes we have been on. The trail to lower falls is about 1.1 km one way and to upper falls is 2.7 km with the elevation gain of about 400 ft.

Johnston Canyon trail

Lower Falls

Upper Falls

Tip: If the crowd is too much during summers, you can go to the Marble Canyon in Kooteney National Park. It is smaller than Johnston Canyon but has the same vibe and spectacular waterfall at the end of the trail.

8. Sulphur Mountain Gondola
Gondola ride up the Sulphur Mountain is definitely a must do in the Banff area. The ride costs about $62 CAD. The 8-minute ride up the Sulphur Mountain offers a beautiful view of the Banff town with the famous Banff Springs Hotel looking like a castle in the forest.

The observation deck at the top offers a 360 deg panoramic view of the Canadian Rockies.

Tip: Buy the combo ticket with the Glacier Adventure to save or buy online in advance to get 10% off.

9. Lake Minnewanka Scenic Drive
Wish we had dedicated more time for the Lake Minnewanka and Two Jacks Lake. But we reached there at sunset and only spent half an hour at these gorgeous lakes. We had missed the gorgeous display of Northern Lights the previous night and heard that this was one of the places where display was quite bright.

10. Morant's Curve
A vista point on the Bow Valley Parkway. Beautiful panoramic view of the Bow river and the Rockies. The spiral railway tracks adds fun to the view. We did not wait for the famous Canadian Rockies train to pass by....next time.

Day 3
11. Cave and Basin
We were a bit underwhelmed by the small cave and the hot spring. Well, there will be atleast one tourist trap anywhere you visit.

12. Emerald Lake
It was overcast and rainy the day we were at Emerald Lake. Couldn't do much except have lunch at the lake side restaurant admiring this view.