This very famous lake in Banff National Park also gives its name to the historic Chateau Lake Louise hotel as well as to the hamlet where many park and hotel employees live.
Known for its milky green colour – caused by glacial run-off – and nearby hiking trails, Lake Louise is an example of iconic, must-see Canadiana.
And, to all our American family and friends, Happy Thanksgiving Day. However you choose to spend it, I hope you enjoy it.
All photos taken on May 23, 2025. Wow, just wow. We knew we loved this place, but this day of departure showed us why. Up at 5 and down to the lake …
Time to Say Goodbye
A gorgeous collection of photos taken at Jasper National Park by Allan at Photos and Stories. To see the entire set, please click the link above.
Some of my favourite photos from September.
Happy Sunday.
One of the trails we took at Waterton Lakes National Park was from Lower Waterton Lake to Middle Waterton Lake and then through to Upper Waterton Lake.
Much of the trail was through prairie grasslands with increasing forest density as we came closer to the mountains.
In the photo above you can spot the iconic Prince of Wales hotel in the far distance. It is an historic building that was erected in honour of Prince Edward’s – he later became King Edward VIII and then abdicated a few months later – extended visit to Canada in 1927. Unfortunately he never made it to his namesake hotel.
We saw a couple of bears on the other side of the lake above and immediately changed our route. We admired them from afar. They were play fighting and in and out of the water but I wasn’t able to get a picture of them because they strolled among the bushes and shadows and I couldn’t seem to get a good capture.
We sat in the Parks Canada red muskoka chairs to admire the Middle Waterton Lake. Every national park has at least one set of these red chairs placed at advantageous viewpoints.
The photo above shows the little channel – very quaintly called “the Bosphorus” – that connects Middle and Upper Waterton Lakes.
In some of the pictures I’ve posted you can see evidence of a forest fire. The fire was started by lightning in 2017 and destroyed huge swaths of forest in the park. It is recovering well though and there are many small pine, spruce and aspen trees growing among the remains of the previous forest.
Happy Wednesday.
Blakiston Creek Valley is part of Waterton Lakes National Park and is home to Red Rock Canyon.
The creek passes through formations comprised of red argillite, an iron-rich rock that is present throughout the valley.
The canyon is quite popular with visitors, many of whom climb to the canyon floor to paddle in the water or to walk along the creek bed.
There is a kilometre-long trail around the creek that passes over two bridges but alternatively there is a trail further downstream …
… that is particularly beautiful …
… as the valley opens into a stunning panorama.
Happy Tuesday.
… in Waterton Lakes National Park …
… through sunny trees …
… and comfortably warm temperatures …
… was a marvellous autumnal experience but we did have watch for bears!
Happy Sunday.
A picture of Lower Waterton Lake at Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta.
Happy Saturday.
The area encompassed by Waterton National Park not only contains part of the Rocky Mountains but also some prairie grasslands.
One of the interesting things about this meeting point is that there are no foothills. The mountains end abruptly and for the most part, the prairie grasslands start.
In some areas the mountains end and some forest land starts, but there still aren’t any foothills.
In the picture above you can see both prairie grasslands and forest.
The amazing topographical diversity is yet another reason to visit this park.
Happy Thursday.
One of the wonderful things about visiting a Rocky Mountain National Park is that you get to see the most crystal clear waters.
We were captivated by the stunningly clean water of Cameron Lake, one the many mountain lakes in Waterton National Park.
It’s a magnificently beautiful lake and on the day we visited, we had blue skies and warm but not hot temperatures.
We hiked a short (3 km/1.9 mi) section of the lake and were surprised to learn that three borders converge at the lake’s southern end: Alberta’s, British Columbia’s and Montana’s.
The chances of seeing a grizzly are fairly high in this area and precautions must always be taken when hiking here; we were keen to stay out of their way!
We were in complete awe of the beauty surrounding us and enjoyed every second we were there.
Waterton National Park is in the southwest corner of Alberta between the Rocky Mountains and the prairies. Named after conservationist Charles Waterton, it borders Glacier National Park in the United States and is part of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Often overshadowed by its more famous sibling parks Banff and Jasper, it contains 505 square kilometres (195 sq. miles) of wilderness and mountains with stunning scenery and fantastic hiking trails among its many mountain lakes.
The lakes frequently display the intense blue, green or greenish-blue colours of glacial run-off that is often found in the Rocky Mountains.
We had beautiful weather for our first day of hikes and although it was quite windy at times we didn’t mind.
Nevertheless we’re not used to hiking at 1800 metres (6000 ft) or pushing in windy conditions and by mid-afternoon we were ready to return to our hotel to recuperate before dinner!
Happy Tuesday.
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