I'm planning a trip to the Banff area next summer, primarily for hiking. I was thinking of adding Jasper, but then I read about the horrible forest fires. What other area to explore besides Banff? Yoho? Kootenay?

Yes, Yoho and Kootenay are options if you're hiking, but don't just limit yourself to the national parks (parks managed by Parks Canada). Expand beyond to the adjacent provincial parks (operated by BC Parks and Alberta Parks) and then there becomes hundreds of alternatives in the general vicinity.

• Home | BC Parks
• AlbertaParks.ca | Alberta Parks

Look up Kananaskis, south of Banff. Kananaskis is the umbrella term used to describe a vast part of the Rockies just outside of the Banff National Park boundary, and includes a lot of different Alberta parks, including Peter Lougheed Park:

• Nature & Parks | Canmore Kananaskis
• Peter Lougheed PP - Peter Lougheed Provincial Park | Alberta Parks

Look up Fernie in the Lizard range of the Rockies, southwest of Banff, including Island Lake Lodge:

• Hiking Trails in Fernie BC | Tourism Fernie
• Hiking In Fernie BC at Island Lake Lodge

Look up Mount Assiniboine Park, for backcountry hiking:

• Mount Assiniboine Park | BC Parks

West of Jasper is Mount Robson Provincial Park, which is famous for having the tallest peak in the Rockies:

• Mount Robson Park | BC Parks

Look up the Kootenays (the vast mountainous region west of Banff in British Columbia), specifically the Slocan Valley, Rossland, and Nelson:

• Hiking Trails and Groups for Nelson, Kaslo and Area | NKLT
• Hiking | Slocan Valley, British Columbia
• Hiking and Trail Running Archives - Tourism Rossland
• Kootenay Columbia Trails Society - Home

If you're hikers, look up these sites for a taste of the hiking adjacent to Banff:

• Best Summit Hikes in the Kootenays – Kootenay Rockies
• Home - West Kootenay Hiking
• Adventure Meets Nature – Hiking in our National Parks – Kootenay Rockies

I'm not trying to overwhelm you with options, but just painting the picture that you could easily spend a lifetime hiking in this part of the world and never run out of options. Pick a few places this time, come back in the future to hike the others.

p.s. Snow can stay on the high alpine trails until late July, making them inaccessible, so if you're coming to the Rockies specifically to go alpine hiking (and not casual sightseeing steps from your car), make sure you're coming between late July and mid September, no later, no earlier.

Hi realgirl58

While certainly there are many amazing places elsewhere to see in that part of the world, I wouldn’t necessarily say Jasper is not an option, unless you had your heart set on certain spots such as the Maligne Lodge. About 1/3 of Jasper was destroyed during the heartbreaking and devastating fires this summer but businesses have reopened in the other 2/3. One challenge is that places are short-staffed as many employees lost their homes and had to move on. Listening to the owner of the stellar Andromeda Cafe in Jasper where I went this past June, business is down about 70% during the winter season but visitors are starting to return for example for skiing. Maybe I have a bias as I loved Jasper and want it to bounce back but I would encourage having a look at what’s available before ruling out a visit

Enjoy your trip whatever you decide! Daniel


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I also would encourage you to reconsider Jasper. It relies so much on tourism it needs all the help it can get to revive its economy. It can also be a learning experience to see first hand what climate change has done to the eco system. We have visited a burnt out area of Western Australia (where our daughter lived) a number of times and while it was very sobering to see the devastation it has been encouraging to see the new regrowth year by year. Of course that regeneration will happen much more slowly in the cooler climate of BC but given a chance Mother Nature will undo the damage.

OMG

Somebody mentioned adorable Fernie!


A place where tabloid publications in the supermarket checkout lines vastly undersell, because few supermarkets in the world have a better view from the checkout than what you’ll find in Fernie.


Jasper is greatly overpriced when it is going at full strength, so just imagine it when it’s limping along.

NOT that one shouldn’t drive the Icefields Parkway and STOP in Jasper…

Just don’t spend your vacation budget dwelling there for very long.


Definitely pause in Fernie if nearby!!