10 Best Hikes In Canada: Traversing The Canadian Rockies

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The Canadian Rockies are a hiker’s paradise. Whether you similar alpine lakes, upland tops, canyons with waterfalls, oregon glaciers, the Rockie’s person it.

If you’re wondering what are the champion hikes successful Canada, past you’re going to privation to look to this upland range.

The champion hikes successful the Canadian Rockies are decidedly the champion successful the country, since they span crossed aggregate provinces and regions.

people sitting connected upland looking astatine presumption of Athabasca Glacier

The Canadian Rockies encompass Kananaskis Country, Banff National Park, Jasper National Park, Yoho National Park, and Kootenay National Park, each of which are celebrated for their jaw-dropping landscapes.

However, each hike tin alteration successful difficulty, from casual to strenuous, arsenic good arsenic person varying lengths and times to complete, not to notation your fittingness level.

So if you’re reasoning of hiking successful the Canadian Rockies and not definite which way is close for you, beneath are the champion of the best, successful bid of easiest to hardest!

Get acceptable to beryllium mesmerized by the scenery and colours of the Canadian Rockies!

Best Hikes successful the Canadian Rockies

1. Galatea Lakes Hike

A assemblage of h2o with a upland successful the background

Distance: 16.4km (10.1 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: retired and back
Time to complete: 6 hours
Trail map

Galatea Lakes successful Kananaskis Country is conscionable an hr from Calgary, the closest large city. It’s the cleanable trek connected a blistery summertime time arsenic you mostly hike sheltered successful the wood and sojourn 3 stunning lakes.

The way starts flat, crossing a fewer woody bridges wherever you tin chill disconnected successful the Galatea Creek. After an casual 6.2 kilometres, you scope Lilian Lake, a quiescent emerald water with a backcountry campground.

Only 1.5km (900 metres) of uphill with 1 steep rocky section, and you scope Lower Galatea Lake. Most hikers bask the view, person a snack and return, but I highly urge hiking a spot further.

Hike astir the water and crossed the tiny hill, astir 1.5 km (0.9 mile) more, and you get astatine Upper Galatea Lake, different stunning water which you volition astir apt person each to yourself. Swimming successful the alpine lakes successful the Rockies is ever precise refreshing, and I highly urge it.

Overall it’s an 18 km (11 mile) roundtrip hike with mean trouble and rugged terrain. If you’d similar an easier water hike that is family-friendly, Grassi Lakes adjacent Canmore is amazing, featuring 2 emerald lakes, and it’s lone 4 km (2.5 mile) roundtrip.

2. Sulphur Mountain Trail

person sanding connected borderline of lookout looking astatine Banff and snowfall capped Sulphur Mountain

Distance: 10.8 km (6.7 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: retired and back
Time to complete: 4 hours 30 minutes
Trail map

Sulphur Mountain is simply a classical hike successful Banff National Park. If you ever saw immoderate pictures of Banff, chances are you saw Sulphur Mountain.

It’s mostly fashionable owed to Gondola starring to the summit, but you tin besides instrumentality the much adventurous way and hike up the slopes.

The trailhead is located astatine the Upper Hot Springs. Through a bid of switchbacks with continual incline and an occasional presumption of Rundle Mountain, you scope the apical of Sulphur Mountain successful astir 2 hours.

The 5.5 km agelong way ends astatine the precocious gondola terminal astatine 2,300 meters.

You tin sojourn a café, restaurant, acquisition shop, oregon an interpretative show wrong the terminal. There’s an reflection platform providing a breathtaking panoramic presumption of the peaks astir the municipality of Banff and Bow Valley. If you’d similar to spell a spot further, you tin instrumentality the 1 km agelong boardwalk to Sanson’s Peak, an aged upwind station.

The large happening astir Sulphur Mountain is that you tin hike up the upland year-round; deterioration microspikes successful wintertime owed to imaginable icy conditions.

But the way is usually successful bully information and well-trodden; it’s a favourite among locals looking for a day hike adjacent Calgary.

TOUR IDEA: Sulphur Mountain Highline trek

A guided hike on a small known way offering a 360 grade panorama of the surrounding mountains. Click to larn much here.

3. Johnston Canyon to Lower Falls

Lower Falls Johnston Canyon Banff National Park

Distance: 2.3 km (1.4 miles)
Difficulty: Moderate
Trail type: retired and back
Time to complete: 45 minutes
Trail map

A large family-friendly hike successful Banff National Park is Johnston Canyon. It features respective cascading waterfalls portion walking done a heavy canyon.

The trailhead is located on the Bow Valley Parkway, a large roadworthy for wildlife watching.

Johnston Canyon is an highly fashionable hike, truthful purpose to get successful the morning, truthful you extremity up waiting successful enactment to spot the waterfalls.

A abbreviated paved 1.2 km (0.7 mile) way leads to Lower Falls, pursuing the Johnston Creek with tiny cascading waterfalls. Once you get astatine Lower Falls, instrumentality the way done a stone passageway to spot the falls up close.

Then, proceed 1.5 km (0.9 mile) connected the somewhat uphill ungraded way to Upper Falls. You tin spot the elephantine falls from 2 viewpoints: from the catwalk connected the bottommost oregon viewpoint from the top.

Only a fewer radical proceed beyond the falls. 3.3 km (2 miles) further up, the way leads to large alpine meadows with wildflowers, and 5 bubbling and colourful mineral pools called Ink Pots surrounded by upland peaks.

The Johnston Canyon hike to Ink Pots and backmost is 12 km (7.5 miles) roundtrip and precise overmuch worthy it.

TOUR IDEA: Johnston Canyon Icewalk
Join a nonrecreational usher connected a hike on the canyon’s alloy walkways, to sojourn the beauteous little and precocious waterfalls, and larn however this majestic canyon was formed. Click to larn much and spot availability here.

4. Wilcox Pass

Distance: 11.6 km (7.2 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: constituent to point
Time to complete: 4 hours
Trail map

Wilcox Pass Hike successful Jasper National Park is 1 of the highlights erstwhile travelling connected Icefields Parkway. Icefields Parkway connects Banff and Jasper National Parks, and it’s considered 1 of the astir beauteous roads successful the world.

Apart from galore lakes, waterfalls, and glaciers, determination are galore hikes on the Icefields Parkway. My favourite 1 is Wilcox Pass owed to its magnitude and unthinkable views.

While the full hike is 11 km one-way going from A to B, you request to self-organize a shuttle to prime you up; you don’t person to bash it all.

The opening of the way climbs done the trees, but erstwhile you wide the histrion line, the views unfastened up successful each direction.

You spot the Icefields Parkway cutting done the Canadian Rockies with the elephantine Athabasca Glacier crossed the road. I lone went astir 4 km (2.5 miles) one-way and past returned the aforesaid way.

If that’s not enough, you tin chill successful the celebrated reddish chairs and ticker bighorn sheep that similar to predominant the area.

TOUR IDEA: Athabasca Glacier Half-Day Tour
A unsocial exploration of the Athabasca Glacier connected this 4 hr hike crossed rock, snowfall and crystal with an experienced guide. Click to larn much and spot availability here.

5. Iceline Trail (Little Yoho Valley and Yoho Valley Trail Loop)

A idiosyncratic lasting successful beforehand of a mountain, connected a rocky path

Distance: 21.7km (13.4 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: loop
Time to complete: 7 hours 15 minutes
Trail map

Iceline Trail successful British Columbia is my implicit favourite hike successful the Rockies. While Yoho National Park is small, it has a batch of earthy wonders, similar the Takakkaw Falls, the 2nd highest waterfall successful Canada.

Iceline Trail hike starts by the Whiskey Jack Hostel and climbs steeply done the trees until you scope the treeline. The hardest portion is over, and from present on, you person the astir beauteous views successful each direction.

On your close is Takakkaw Falls, 254 meters (833 ft) high, and arsenic a reward for hiking the steep trail, you get a unsocial presumption of the glacier feeding the falls.

The somewhat inclined way continues to a tiny pristine water surrounded by glaciers. Some hikers proceed to Stanley Mitchell Hut overnight, but we proceed towards Celeste Lake Trail instead.

You permission the rocky way down and participate a lush greenish wood with galore mushrooms growing.

With a presumption of Yoho Glacier successful the distance, you hike downhill until you scope emerald lakes. The way flattens, you walk the monolithic Laughing Falls, and past spot the Takakkaw Falls again.

The full Iceline Trail loop is 21.7 km (13.4 miles) long, and owed to the distance, I would complaint it difficult, but determination are nary unsafe parts connected the trail.

6. Floe Lake

Distance: 20.3 km (12.6 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: retired and back
Time to complete: 7 hours
Trail map

Kootenay National Park is the slightest visited successful the Rockies due to the fact that astir of it is inaccessible, promising adventure. However, Floe Lake is simply a little-known hike with a well-trodden trail.

You astir apt find the slightest radical present from each hikes successful this post. The trailhead is on the Banff-Windermere Highway, and the parking batch is intelligibly signed.

The Floe Lake hike starts with crossing the turquoise Kootenay River.

Due to the wildfires years ago, galore trees burnt out, but the way is dilatory gaining immoderate elevation connected an casual ungraded trail. Shortly earlier reaching the lake, the way steepens significantly, and you cognize you’re nearing the end.

After 11 km (6.8 miles), you spot the gorgeous Floe Lake with the elephantine partition successful the background.

7. West Coast Trail, Vancouver Island

Girl wearing a agleam reddish overgarment is walking the the beauteous woods during a vibrant wintertime morning. Taken successful Ucluelet, Vancouver Island, BC, Canada.

Distance: 75 km (45 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: constituent to point
Time to complete: 6-8 days
Trail map

The West Coast Trail is challenging multi-day hike that’s not for the faint hearted. It has implicit 100 ladders to ascent and has immoderate sections that necessitate hiking done heavy mud, crossing accelerated flowing rivers, and bracing fierce weather.

However, experienced hikers who similar a situation volition emotion the escapade this provides.

The way forms portion of past paths utilized for commercialized by the Huu-ay-aht, Ditidaht, and Pacheedaht villages much than 200 years ago.

As such, the way is protected and hikers indispensable unafraid a hiking licence earlier embarking connected this venture.

8. Garibaldi Lake to Panorama Ridge

man looking retired implicit Garibaldi Lake

Distance: 13.4 km (8.3 miles)
Difficulty: moderate
Trail type: retired to back
Time to complete: 5 hours
Trail map

Garibaldi Provincial Park is conscionable a 1.5 hr thrust from Vancouver and is known for its wilderness, carnivore population, and earthy beauty.

Framed by the Coast Mountains, Garibaldi Lake is simply a glacial gem successful the bosom of the park. This turquoise bluish water is surrounded by glaciers, conifer forests and chaotic meadows, and is besides often visited by grizzly and achromatic bears.

The way is reasonably strenuous astatine the start, arsenic it winds done the forest, but soon flattens retired crossed the meadows which it remains until the past 2 kilometers to the acme wherever the water sits.

The way is good marked and popular, truthful you’ll apt brushwood different hikers connected this route.

9. East Coast Trail, Newfoundland

view from a greenish abstraction with trees looking retired to ocean, connected newfoundland's eastbound seashore trail

Distance: 270 km (167 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: constituent to point
Time to complete: implicit 30 days
Trail map

The East Coast way is simply a multi-day self-guided hike successful Newfoundland, which uncover’s North America’s astir rugged wilderness.

The way hugs the East seashore shoreline, passing craggy cliffs, rocky headlands, and overlooking oversea stacks and fjords.

Some highlights connected the way are the historical abandoned settlements, the world’s southernmost caribou herd, whale sightings, and a earthy wave-driven geyser called the Spout.

Most radical don’t effort the East Coast Trail successful 1 go, and alternatively divided it up done a bid of shorter time hikes.

10. Bruce Trail, Ontario

Sherman Falls successful Hamilton Ontario connected the Bruce Trail

Distance: 890 km (553 miles)
Difficulty: Hard
Trail type: constituent to point
Time to complete: implicit 30 days
Trail map

The Bruce Trail is Canada’s oldest and longest marked footpath and extends from Tobermory to the Niagara Peninsula successful Queenston, and vice versa.

The full way is astir 900 km long, and truthful it’s not expected to implicit each of the way successful 1 sitting. Instead, you tin take a abbreviated conception of it, and research the chaotic meadows, cobble beaches and rocky cliffs, past forests, and plethora of scenic views.

The way is each astir protecting the Niagara Escarpment which is known for its unsocial geology and biologic wonders. It was built by volunteers, and is marked by achromatic rectangular blazes – a azygous achromatic rectangle means spell consecutive ahead, whereas 2 achromatic rectangles amusement a alteration successful direction.

Tips for Hiking successful the Canadian Rockies

For visiting nationalist parks successful Canada, you request to purchase a parkland pass, either regular oregon yearly. And for Kananaskis Country, wherever Galatea Lakes hike is located, you request a Kananaskis Conservation Pass. Visiting Kananaskis Country is escaped if you sojourn connected Wilderness Wednesdays, the archetypal Wednesday of each month.
Before heading out, marque definite to cheque retired way conditions. Some hiking trails mightiness adjacent owed to avalanche information oregon carnivore presence. For trails successful nationalist parks, spot Parks Canada, and for Kananaskis Country, spot Alberta Parks.
When hiking successful the Canadian Rockies, you’re successful carnivore habitat. Parks Canada and Alberta Parks powerfully urge carrying a carnivore spray wrong arm’s reach, learn however to usage it, and marque sound portion hiking, truthful you don’t astonishment immoderate bears.

Final Thoughts

What bash you deliberation astir hiking successful the Canadian Rockies? Which hike would you take first?

If you lone person clip for a fewer hikes, I urge Galatea Lakes, Sulphur Mountain, and Iceline Trail, and you cheque each the boxes – alpine lakes, upland top, glaciers, and waterfalls.

Have amusive and blessed hiking!