Along the Icefields Parkway

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Crowfoot Glacier and Bow Lake

From Glacier, we headed north to Jasper along the Icefields Parkway. A few days later, we drove back down the same road to Lake Louise (there really isn’t any other way). We made several stops each time which I’ve combined into one south to north sequence, starting with the Crowfoot Glacier viewpoint (above).

Peyto Lake and Bow Lake Lookout

This was a day of very poor visibility due to smoke blowing over from the fires in BC. From the parking lot at Bow Summit, a short, steep, paved trail leads to a viewing platform over Peyto Lake (first picture). It was thronged with people so we only got one photograph but, as is often the case, we carried on a bit further and lost most of them. The trail to Bow Lake Lookout goes through forest, moraine and snow, some of which is not terribly solid. Guess who went in to thigh level? Still, to make up for that we met a cute marmot. The view of Bow Lake was pretty enough but nothing like it could have been in other circumstances. The picture near the end of the gallery, slightly enhanced, is the best we have.

Peyto Lake
Forest and wildflowers
Bow Lake Lookout trail
Bow Lake Lookout trail
Bow Lake Lookout trail
Marmot
Marmot

Parker’s Ridge

The trail to Parker’s Ridge, overlooking the Saskatchewan Glacier, is about half way between Lake Louise and Jasper. We hiked here in 2007 too – the weather wasn’t great then, but better than it was in 2017 with a squall of hail at the top. The panoramas below are just before the storm and just after.

Bears!

On the drive down from Jasper, we saw a mother with two cubs! Much zoomed and a bit blurry, but still – bears!

Bears on the Icefield Parkway
Bears on the Icefield Parkway
Bear on the Icefield Parkway
Bear cub on the Icefield Parkway

Sunwapta Falls

We stopped here on the way down and had lunch at the nearby Sunwapta Falls Resort. It wasn’t amazing, but it was a lot better than the meal we had at the resort at Saskatchewan River Crossing on the way up – although, to be fair, there are three places to eat on site. We chose the Parkway Pub for the views from its deck – I’d recommend you to forego the view and try one of the other options.

Sunwapta Falls
Sunwapta Falls

Athabasca Falls

We spent about an hour here exploring the various trails round the Falls. Such awesome power in the water – we were reminded of this by the plaques to those who thought it would be fun to hop over the fence and never came back.

Athabasca Falls
Athabasca Falls
Athabasca Falls
Athabasca Falls
Athabasca River at Athabasca Falls

Three busy days in Jasper coming up next.

Alberta, Canada , , ,

60 Comments »

  1. The falls are beautiful. But then I have athing with water 😉
    So impressing that a fire can have that impact on the environment even so far away. I didn’t imagine that.

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  4. The Icefields Parkway is one of those roads I would love to visit again with more time – the first time I did it, I was on the way to a wedding and only had a limited amount of time. It was still one of the most beautiful roads I have ever been on.

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  6. I love this post — especially the panoramic storm views, the bears…and your honesty about the food! I look forward to reading your upcoming posts about Jasper.

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  11. Those are beautiful photos! Even with the smoke from the fires (which I hear have finally been put out), that area looks well worth visiting. I keep saying I want to head up to the Northwest, but haven’t done it yet. Time for me to quit talking and start packing…..

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  12. I had hoped to see a bear when I was in Canada but no such luck. Your black beauties are great and the zoom worked well.

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    • Yes, the path went over the bridge but I think it looks more exciting from that angle than it actually was! Food on main routes isn’t always that great anywhere, but Jasper itself certainly made up for it.

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  16. Wow, so many great things in this post, Anabel. The marmot, the bears, those spectacular views, those waterfalls. I love your view of Peyto Lake and Athabasca Falls. Too bad none of your meals were very good. 🙂

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  18. Anabel, I have travelled the Icefields Parkway many times, but I hardly have any photos of it. One reason is that we have usually been in a big fat hurry to get to our destination, either in BC or Alberta. But the other is that the views are so awe inspiring that I think photos could never do it justice, so then I don’t take any!

    Jude

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  20. Beautiful! This is an area I only got to scratch the surface of a few years back so it’s wonderful (and tantalizing!) to see the landscape and animals – especially love the marmot!

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  21. Hi Anabel – pity about the views … but it is a stunning area to visit – I loved it … even though we had snow etc … this journey you’re on – we slid along … but Mum didn’t walk – so we didn’t get out of the car except for brief moments. We did see bear though … but not marmots! Cheers Hilary

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  23. Because of the fires, the less than wonderful food and the inclement weather at times, I think the wildlife is the winner in this post. Love the marmot and the bears. The photos still show spectacular scenery!

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