Bow Glacier Falls is totally what we expected from Banff National Park – glacial blue water, high peaks, a thundering waterfall, and of course – glaciers.
Not a bad way to start our Banff trip!
Banff National Park has been on our Go-See-Do list for years, along with nearby Kootenay National Park and Jasper National Park.
Three of Canada’s thirty-seven National Parks, they continue up the spine of the Rocky Mountains north of Glacier National Park in Montana and are relatively easy to get to from there.
Since we were already doing Glacier this summer, we broke away for a week to make the trek north to hit Kootenay and Banff.
The smoke from the Canadian wildfires has been horrendous down in Glacier, smoking up the valleys and stinking up the air.
We were concerned about how bad this will be up in Canada and even had a wildfire pop up along our route from Glacier to Banff on the hotspot map.
We shall see.
Four nights in the Lake Louise area, three nights in Banff proper, and then back across the border to West Glacier.
Speaking of the border – we have read horror story after story on the internet about hassles at the border crossing and RVs and vehicles being completely torn apart looking for contraband.
With this in mind, we calculated our food and drinks to bring less than the maximum allotment of alcohol and no fresh fruits, vegetables, or meats. We decided that their customs laws are driven by the grocer and gas station consortium – everything in Canada is way more expensive than in the States, and they’re making a killing from cross-border traffic!
All that planning – and we breezed right through Canadian Customs in 30 seconds.
Goes to show that luck favors the well-prepared.
By Morning Light
The reflection on Bow Lake in the morning is incredible!
Bow Glacier Falls
You really have to have a person in the photo to get the perspective of the size of Bow Glacier Falls.
Blowing Around
The spray from Bow Glacier Falls flies everywhere, even without any wind.
Watching The Flow
Taking a break to watch the glacial flour flowing towards Bow Lake
Heading East
This view of Bow Lake is pretty amazing.
Bow Glacier
From this viewpoint you can see the Bow Glacier high above Iceberg Lake and Bow Glacier Falls
Marble Canyon in Kootenay National Park is an easy hike on your way through to Banff National Park.
The trail is a simple out-and-back along a narrow deep canyon flowing with brilliant blue water tinted by glacial flour.
Marble Canyon
Marble Canyon in Kootenay National Park is an easy walk from Highway 93 and should be on everyone’s list as they’re passing through.
Bow Glacier Falls
Have to see the falls to appreciate the scale!
