Banff National Park

Halfway down the Icefields Highway you enter Banff National Park. Probably the most famous of the Canadian National Parks, especially if you consider the number of foreign visitors.

I camped at Waterfowl Lakes. I had a great spot, right next to the river and as it turned out, right at the start of hikes to a couple of lakes. The more interesting hike was to Cirque Lake. Typically for me on this trip, it was cloudy. Un-typically, it was raining. The trail was a mess. About half way, the trail starts climbing and turns to mud and tree roots which made for some difficult travel. The lake was pretty cool though.

I saw on a map a trail to some falls called Stanley Falls. Driving up and down the highway in the vicinity of where they were, I couldn't find the trailhead. All the trails in both Jasper and Banff have large highway signs at the trailheads along the Icefields Highway. Stopping at a visitors centre (notice I'm speaking Canadian) the ranger gave me directions. “Drive back down the highway to Beauty Creek, (big 8'x10' or larger sign), turn around there and drive back 2km to a small turnout. Back it the trees there will be a small (5”x7” maybe) trail marker.

What a hike! The trail goes along an old roadbed for a short distance then turns put a valley. Right away, Stanley Creek is deep in, what can only be described as, a slot canyon. So deep that there was no point in trying to take a picture, it was too dark down there. A little ways farther, maybe 50 yards, the creek enters the canyon via waterfall. Then another slot canyon and a waterfall, and it just continues that way for a mile or so. I spent the better part of a day there and only met one other couple coming in as I was heading out.

Now I know why it isn't marked. It would cost a fortune to develop it for the masses which would destroy the place.

Not far south from Stanley Falls is the Parker Ridge Trail. It's a bit of a climb but well worth it.

Along the Icefields highway there are several lakes. This one is called Hecter Lake.

I spent one night in the Yoho National Park, just west of Jasper and Banff National Parks. Takakkaw Falls is the main attraction. It is one of the largest waterfalls in the Canadian Rockies. This picture doesn't really show how spectacular it is. Water pours out the top, falls hundreds of feet, hits this ledge and is blasted out horizontally, falls hundreds of feet to another ledge and does the same thing. Wow!

The required Lake Louise Picture to show that I was there. If you were brought here blindfolded and turned around looking the other direction when the blindfold was removed, you would have guessed you were in Disneyland.

The most popular hike in Banff is Johnson Falls. I can see why.

The hike is so popular that about half the trail is on catwalks built into the canyon walls.