LAKE HEAVEN IN THE CANADIAN ROCKIES
Dozens of stunning clear turquoise glacier lakes in the Canadian Rockies look a bit like the Carribean Sea, albeit with much colder waters. Surrounded by dense pine forests, this lake country offers some of the best, most beautiful opportunities to restore, recharge and refresh your body, mind and spirit. Put it on your travel bucket list
You can find many of these unique lakes along the Icefields Parkway, considered by many to be one of the most beautiful drives in the world. It traverses the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage site, 227 kilometers (143 miles), from Jasper to Banff, paralleling the Continental Divide (the watershed that divides rivers flowing east from those flowing west). It is recognized as one of “National Geographic’s “Drives of a Lifetime.”
More than 100 ancient glaciers, towering mountains, cascading waterfalls, dramatic rock spires, and jewel-like lakes punctuate the thick pine and larch forests that surround the parkway. Here, you can enjoy some of the most spectacular hiking landscapes on Earth. It’s a wonderful place for Forest Bathing.
Elk, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, deer, pika, pine marten, grizzly bears and black bears are plentiful and easy to see even right from the road. Trout and whitefish flourish in the lake waters.
Summer is a glorious time to book campsites in Banff or Jasper National Parks, so you can have a home base as you explore the lakes and wilderness, as you hike, bike, and/or paddle through. More info and resources can be found at Parks Canada.
Bow Lake, at the foot of Crowfoot Mountain, is one of the most beautiful lakes in the region. It is the closest lake to the headwaters of Bow River. It is fed by meltwater from the Bow Glacier. The blue ice of Crowfoot Glacier hangs suspended over the turquoise water.
The lake lies south of the Bow Summit, east of the Waputik Range, offering views of the Wapta Icefield, Bow Glacier, Bow Peak, Mount Thompson, Crowfoot Glacier and Crowfoot Mountain. It is west of the Dolomite Pass, Dolomite Peak and Cirque Peak.
The lake spans 3.21 km². While motorized vessels are not permitted, this spot makes for a most peaceful day in a kayak, canoe or on a paddle board.
Num-Ti-Jah Lodge overlooks Bow Lake, offering one of the most dramatic views in the Canadian Rockies, with towering steep rugged mountains reflecting in the clear water. It’s especially amazing at sunrise.
Check out Bow Glacier Falls, an impressive cascade at the head of the Bow River, tumbling through an incredible natural amphitheater, with breathtaking views in every direction.
Lake Louise is a vast turquoise lake bordered by lush pine forest, surrounded by jagged snow-capped Rocky Mountain peaks.
Lake Louise, aka “Lake of the Little Fishes,” named by the Stoney Nakoda First Nations people, is more emerald green, than turquoise. Its color comes from rock flour, or glacial flour, which consists of fine-grained, silt-sized particles of rock that has been pulverized by glacial erosion and carried into the lake by meltwater from the glaciers that overlook the lake.
Spanning 0.8 km2 (0.31 sq mi), with a depth of 70 m (230 ft), Lake Louise is fed by the Lefroy Glacier and is drained through the 3 km long Louise Creek into the Bow River.
In winter, the alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, heli-skiing and snowboarding at the nearby Lake Louise Ski Area are all world-class.. The lake can be used for ice fishing and ice skating, with snowmobiling, dog sledding, snowshoeing and ice climbing nearby.
While it’s easy to navigate your own lake adventure, Sightseeing & Tours are also available.
Lake Louise is named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta (1848 –1939), daughter of Queen Victoria, and wife of the Marquess of Lorne, who served as Governor General of Canada from 1878 to 1883.
One of the most beautiful places to stay at the lakes is Fairmont's Chateau Lake Louise, one of Canada's grand railway hotels, is located on Lake Louise's eastern shore. It is a luxury resort hotel built in the early decades of the 20th century by the Canadian Pacific Railway. This world-renowned mountain resort and UNESCO World Heritage Site, known as the “Diamond in the Wilderness.”
Built in the late 1800s, Chateau Lake Louise sits in an idyllic mountain setting, on the eastern shore of Lake Louise, facing the Victoria Glacier, encircled by mountains, including Mount Victoria, Mount Lefroy, Mount Aberdeen, Mount Temple, Mount Beehive, Mount Whyte and Mount St. Piran.
Another Canadian Railway Hotel of note is Mount Assiniboine Lodge, south of Banff in the backcountry, located in Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park. Built in 1928, it was the Rockies’ first ski lodge. You can hike, cross-country ski or take a helicopter to reach this remote lodge.
If you are up for a more rustic accommodation, yet don’t want to pitch a tent, check out Rampart Creek Wilderness Hostel near Graveyard Flats on the Icefields Parkway. Your bathtub/shower? It’s the glacial stream behind the boulder. Warm up afterwards in the funky log sauna.
Be sure to treat yourself to some fabulous local fare at The Primrose dining room at Banff’s chic Rimrock Resort and the Grizzly Paw.
Want more info before you plan your beautiful Canadian lakes trip? Check out renowned Rockies natural history guide Ben Gadd’s Handbook of the Canadian Rockies, for excellent info on everything from geology, botany, and bears to human history and backpacking in this magnificent part of the world.
Read more about Fresh Water. And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Wellness, Impact, Nature/Science, Food, Arts/Design, and Travel, Daily Fix posts.
Do you have amazing photos? Enter them in this week’s BN Photo Competition.
- Photo: by Mariano Mantel. “Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Appalachian dreamer. “Dawn in the Canadian Rockies.” Jasper National Park. Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Julien Mattei. “Lake Louise 2k12.” Lake Louise. Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Mariano Mantel. “Morning glory.” Bow Lake. Alberta, Canada.
- Bow Lake. Banff National Park. Alberta, Canada. Courtesy of Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.
- Photo: by Mariano Mantel. “Finding the way.” Bow Lake. Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Paul Zizka. Num-ti-Jah Lodge at Bow Lake. Alberta, Canada. Courtesy of Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.
- Photo: by Maureen Le Piane. “Row, row, row, ya boat.” Lake Louise. Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Garen Meguerian. “Lake Louise.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Steve Bittinger. “Lake Louise, Banff National Park.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Alessandro Grussu. “Lake Louise.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Chris Phan. “Chateau Lake Louise.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Jeff P. “Magog Lake Sunrise.” Magog Lake. Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park. Alberta. Canada.
- Photo: by Bastian Sander. “Lake Louise.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Jeff Wallace. “Better Than Watching TV.” Elk Island. Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Steve Grant. “Lake Louise morning reflection.” Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: Num-ti-Jah Lodge at Bow Lake. Alberta, Canada. Courtesy of Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.
- Photo: by Steve Grant. “Bow Lake calm.” Bow Lake. Alberta, Canada.
- Photo: by Paul Zizka. The dock at Num-ti-Jah Lodge at Bow Lake. Alberta, Canada. Courtesy of Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.