Banff, Jasper National Parks this summer

[Sartorius78]

Heading up to Banff and Jasper National Parks this summer, wondering if anyone has any recommendations on good hikes/climbs to do that are family friendly?? (class 2)
Also looking for any recommendations on places to stay more so on the bed and breakfast/hotel side of things?? Any info is appreciated!!
Thanks!!

[specmiata37]

I'll be in Banff and Jasper from July 6 through Jul 13th. I already have accommodations. Will be tough because of the free parks pass this year. Try AirBNB.
Hiking Sunshine Meadows, Plain of Six Glaciers, and maybe Cascade Mountain if conditions are good, all near Banff and Lake Louise. On the Icefields Parkway, Wilcox Pass. Near Jasper, Edith Cavell Meadows and Sulphur Skyline. These are all pretty easy hikes except Cascade Mountain which is 13 miles and 5100 ft elevation gain, maybe parts class 3.

Enjoy.

[Jon Frohlich]

Heading up to Banff and Jasper National Parks this summer, wondering if anyone has any recommendations on good hikes/climbs to do that are family friendly?? (class 2)
Also looking for any recommendations on places to stay more so on the bed and breakfast/hotel side of things?? Any info is appreciated!!
Thanks!!

I spent 2 weeks up there a few years ago. No real recommendations on a B&B type place but there are tons of things like AirBNB up there. We stayed in someone's house a few nights in Jasper which was really nice.

Sunshine Meadows is a good hike recommendation but you will have to take the shuttle otherwise you are walking the road a few kilometers to the base of the ski hill. The Angel Glacier Loop would be a good choice in Jasper. Plain Of Six Glaciers is amazing but it's not all that short so it depends on what kind of length you had in mind. Sentinel Pass would be great if you have enough people (you have to have a group of 6 I think). You can wait around at the visitor's center to join a group sometimes for that. You could hike up to Ptarmigan Lake near Lake Louise but unless you can get a ride up the road you have to walk a few kilometers to the actual start of the hike there too. It's gorgeous though. There are quite a few short waterfall hikes around as well. The Peyto Lake viewpoint is a must but it's not a hike. Do not enter the Tonquin Valley. Just don't. You will regret all your life decisions if you hike in there.

My biggest advice is be prepared for bugs. And by be prepared I mean more protection than you ever thought necessary. A head net is a good idea. Long sleeve clothing is almost a requirement. The mosquitoes are insane and will eat you alive if you aren't careful. The black flies also aren't very nice. Nothing in Colorado comes close to the amount of bugs in Canada. Nothing.

If you have more questions on a specific hike I might be able to recall some more info.

[jrbren_vt]

I loved this one ...
http://www.summitpost.org/mount-fairview/151994
I stayed at the Lake Louise hostel, you need to be an Alpine Club of Canada member, which is easy to join. Not sure how well hostels work with families, I will leave that to you.

Edited to add we scrambled high on Wilcox peak, the views were incredible. We did not summit, it turned into a rock climb (so it seemed to us), so we turned back, but we were high on the ridge with great views of Athabasca (which we climbed a couple of days later) and the Columbia Icefield. The description here does not mention the summit being difficult, so we likely zigged when we should have zagged some where. Most of it was a walk up though.
http://www.summitpost.org/se-ridge/223952

[CorduroyCalves]

Aren't the parks free for Canadian residents this year? I contemplated taking my family up there but it sounds like the crowds will be crazy. 2018, maybe.

[seano]

Near Jasper, Geraldine Lakes is a nice easy hike, as is the main trail in Robson Provincial Park. It might be a bit of a stretch, but the standard route on Mount Temple (Banff) is almost all class 2, with only one little bit of class 3, and nice views even if you don't make the summit.

[Prairie Dog]

I've been there many times. For accommodations, you will find that the majority of accommodations are private home stay / bed & breakfast type situations. Here are a couple websites that I have found useful for finding accommodations:

https://www.banfflakelouise.com/accommodation

http://www.stayinjasper.com/

I suggest booking ASAP as accommodations seem to fill up early, especially for the high season.

For hiking, I recommend these maps:

http://www.gemtrek.com/

They are not the greatest or most detailed maps in the world, but they show most of the established hiking trails and are good enough to keep you from getting lost.

Specific family friendly hikes that I can think of:

Plain of Six Glaciers near Lake Louise (there is also a back country tea house near there which makes for an interesting although not cheap lunch spot)
Sulfur Skyline near Jasper (the trail leaves from the parking lot of Miette Hot Springs - which is something else you may wish to check out)
Maligne Canyon near the turnoff to Maligne Lake
Opal Hills near Maligne Lake
Jacques Lakes leaves from Medicine Lake on the Maligne Road
Valley of Five Lakes right outside of Jasper (nice tame stroll through the woods around some small lakes)

If you wish to try some scrambling above Class 2 - check out this guide:

https://www.amazon.com/Scrambles-Canadi ... an+rockies

Stop at the Glacier Center on the Icefields Parkway about halfway between Lake Louise and Jasper - the center has nice information about the Colombia Icefield and across the road you can walk out to the toe of the glacier.

You should be prepared to see a lot of bears. I have seen bears occasionally in Colorado, frequently in Yellowstone, Tetons, and Glacier NPs - but I don't think I've ever been on a hike of any length in the Canadian Rockies where I DIDN'T see a bear. No worries - just be prepared that you will likely see bears.

If you like good pastries, check out The Bear Paw Bakery in Jasper - go early in the morning to avoid the long lines of tourists.

It is a beautiful area with lots of stuff to see and do. I've noticed over the years that I've been going there that it is getting more crowded - just like every place else in the world, but you can still find places to get away from the crowds. I think you will thoroughly enjoy it and find yourself wanting to go back again and again.

[mountainrev]

Aren't the parks free for Canadian residents this year? I contemplated taking my family up there but it sounds like the crowds will be crazy. 2018, maybe.

Anyone, not just Canadians, can get a free pass to get into Canadian National Parks this year. Here's a link: http://www.commandesparcs-parksorders.c ... n/parksb2c. I applied for ours last month, but am still waiting for it to come.

I don't know if this will mean crazy crowds or not. It's just free admission into the parks, which is normally something like $7.50 per person. You still have to pay for camping, etc. US National Parks offer free days regularly, but I don't know if they're swamped with people on those days. I'm hoping not, since we're planning to camp in Yoho and Jasper this July.

[CCU_Jim]

We went this last summer as it was incredible! We stayed at a AirBNB type condo in Canmore, which is a quieter town and less touristy than Banff, but it does add 30 minutes round trip to pretty much any drive (15 each way from Banff). We did not make it all the way up to Jasper, so now we have an excuse to go back.

I'd highly recommend Lake O'Hara and area in Yoho NP. To get there, you have to hike the road (~10km one way) or reserve a shuttle, but the shuttles fill up months in advance, so I'd check availability now. If you hike up, you can at least take the shuttle back without a reservation - I think it's $10 per person for the return trip. Once up there, there's a ton of lakes you can hike to. After this trip, Lake MacArthur become my new favorite place on planet earth. While you are up there, Takakkaw Falls is worth the side trip. Not much of a hike to just see the falls, though I have also heard good things about the Iceline Trail in that area (didn't have time to do it myself). Pictures of Emerald Lake in that area also look amazing, but sadly we missed that too.

Nearer to Banff, I enjoyed Johnston Canyon and the Ink Pots. It is a super popular hike, so don't expect solitude, and doing it right at dawn or dusk might help. The crowd really thins after the upper falls, so the last half to the Ink Pots was pretty quiet. We tried Sunshine Meadows, but didn't realize the logistics involved (again, need shuttle or can take the ski lift if operational). Neither were running while we were there, so we started hiking up the road but eventually had to turn around due to a rainstorm before reaching the Meadows.

Of those mentioned above, we also did Wilcox Pass and the Plain of Six Glaciers. The views of Athabasca Glacier from Wilcox were cool, but I do feel like that was the most underwhelming hike of the trip. That's not to say Wilcox was bad, so much as how awesome everything else was. But I will second the recommendation of the Lake Peyto overview while on the way. Spectacular views! And Tangle Falls, just north of the Glacier visitor center was a fun pull-off on the road.

We did Lake Agnes and that teahouse first, then the Beehives and down to the Plain of Six Glaciers, all on the same hike. The Plain of Six Glaciers was neat, but I felt like Lake Agnes and the Beehives was the better part of that day.

We didn't go up to Sentinel Pass proper, but did hike to the Giant Steps waterfall nearby, and that was a fantastic trip. I wish we had done Sentinel, but we were tuckered out at that point from all the hiking earlier in the week. As noted, that area does have a 6-person group minimum due to grizzly activity starting in early July. We went a week before the size limit became effective so it wasn't a problem for us.

There's so much to see and do up there, and it's hard to go wrong with any of it. I've got pics if you need help deciding and happy to answer any questions!

-Jim

[mtnview]

How old are your kids?

[ChrisG]

Check out Mt. Snowdome (11,322'): it is the hydrological apex of North America: it is the only mountain on the continent whose waters flow into 3 different oceans -- the Pacific, Arctic, & Atlantic (via the Hudson Bay). It is located on the Banff/Jasper NP border & is also very close to Mt. Columbia, which is the high point of AB (12,293'). Don't forget to take a 360 pano when you're up there.

[seano]

Check out Mt. Snowdome (11,322'): it is the hydrological apex of North America: it is the only mountain on the continent whose waters flow into 3 different oceans -- the Pacific, Arctic, & Atlantic (via the Hudson Bay). It is located on the Banff/Jasper NP border & is also very close to Mt. Columbia, which is the high point of AB (12,293'). Don't forget to take a 360 pano when you're up there.

That sounds a bit ambitious. IIRC to get to Snowdome, you first have to get up the crevassed and sadly diminished Athabasca Glacier to reach the Columbia Icefield, then tromp across that. People have done Columbia in a day, but I think that was on skis in spring. That said, the Columbia Icefield is unique and amazing, and you should try to see it if you can.