I am planning a trip to the Banff/Lake Louise/Jasper areas for about 10 days in September and plan on camping with daily hikes. Am considering selecting 2 different camp locations, five days each. Plan to be with at least one other adult and spend the days on good hikes to see best scenery and wildlife but without alot of people congestion. Will have a vehicle to get around otherwise. Don't mind lengthy, strenuous, or elevated hikes. These help limit other travelers anyway. Looking for recommendations of camp sites, trails, etc. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. What are the best scenery areas that meet my objectives?

Hello JustDoIt,

There are some excellent hikes around Lake Louise / Moraine Lake and also in nearby Yoho National Park. There are some fabulous hikes off the Icefields Parkway (Hwy #93), the road that connects Lake Louise village and Jasper townsite. Finally, there is wonderful hiking in the Jasper area.

I think Lake Louise or Yoho National Park would make a good base for one part of your trip, and Jasper would make a good base for the other part.

A couple of other posters have asked similar questions in the last while, and you can follow the responses that were provided to them if you go to this thread. Sorry, you'll have to wade through information that is not relevant to your situation, e.g., train routes. However, in those other threads you will find information about temperatures, places where campers can stock up on groceries, etc.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34558614

I don't know if you appreciate how cold it can be at night in the Canadian Rockies in September. As I mentioned in one of those other threads, we found the ground frozen when we tented in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park one September, and that wasn't at as high an elevation as Lake Louise. Also, we kept our apple juice and various other food supplies in our cooler, not to keep them cold but in the hopes that that would prevent them from freezing. No such luck. We had to use our little camp stove to heat water and then stand the box of apple juice in a pan of warm water to thaw it to the point that we could drink it. If you embark on this trip I hope you'll have good sleeping bags. Ours are good down to -25 deg C.

As to wildlife, you might see it almost anywhere in the mountain national parks. We've had particularly good luck on the Icefields Parkway and around Jasper. The road from Jasper townsite to Maligne Lake has been especially lucky for us when it has come to wildlife viewing.

You need a hiking guidebook. The one that is considered to be &quot;The Bible&quot; is <i>The Canadian Rockies Trail Guide : A Hiker's Manual to the National Parks</i> by Brian Patton and Bart Robinson. It may not be that easy to get hold of where you live.

Another decent hiking book, which I think is available from Amazon, is <i>Walks and Easy Hikes in the Canadian Rockies</i> by Graeme Pole. This book covers everything from wheelchair-accessible paths up to hikes that can be accomplished in one day. Pole has another book called <i>Classic Hikes</i> that covers multi-day hikes.

We are also planning a trip similar to yours at the end of August or beginning of Sept-but we will camp and stay in other accomodations as well. I have recieved alot of info from Judy as well(thank you). They say the camp sites fill up very quickly July-beginning of Sept and that most are first come first serve. I just learned that some(in Jasper national Park) will be taking reservation in the 2005 season-which you might want to look into. I called the general NP line 1-888-773-8888 and they said to watch the NP website for updates and info regarding this or to just keep calling the line. The woman I spoke to seemed to think all of the reservation services would be available starting the end of March. The reservation line is 1-877-737-3783. She also said that in the jasper national park only the WHistlers and Wapiti campgrounds have showers(if thats something your looking for).

the campground i like in jasper is called snaring river. it is about a 10-15 minute drive from town. it has no hookups so you get mostly tenters and small trailers. nice river runs beside it.
in banff we camped at tunnel mountain and have no complaints.

Thanks for the info Judy,joolleeb,and Itt. Sound like some sound advice. You are right. I really had no expectation of how cold it can get at night. I really don't have a feel for the elevation we will be at. I live in Virginia (sealevel).

I feel at a quandry. How do you plan for first-come, first-serve camp sites? I read from the NP website to &quot;get there early&quot;. What does that mean? I want to get camp sites that have water, showers, and perhaps power. I wouldn't have thought Sept would be difficult to get a camp site.
Thanks again for the feedback. I will make note of same. We will be flying in and have to figure how best to transport as much as possible via air transport. Any other guidance would be appreciated.

I'm not very outdoorsy, so I can't really help you with camping info. However, I work in a bookstore, and can tell you that the hiking guide about which I hear the most consistently glowing feedback is &quot;Don't Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies&quot; by Kathy Copeland. Unlike most other hiking guides that just provide maps and descriptions of all trails, this one is highly opinionated. It tells you which hikes are worth it, and which ones aren't. It's available on Amazon, or you could pick it up locally when you arrive.

from september 5 onward, you shouldn't have problems getting a site. all the kids are back in school. if you are going prior to that, it will be very crowded. september 5 is a holilday. the national park does take reservations at one or two campsites but they will fill up fast.

JustDoIt, please bear with me. This is going to take some explaining.

You say you live at sea level in Virgina. Okay, so let’s say you’ll access the Rockies from Calgary (which is the airport that is closest to Canmore, Banff and Lake Louise). Let’s suppose you’re flying out of Norfolk. Probably the earliest time you reasonably can expect to reach Calgary is 1.30 pm (if you fly out on Northwest Airlines at 7.30 am and connect through Minneapolis). Many other flight combinations will get you here later in the day, some of them late at night.

Say it takes you an hour to clear immigration and customs, collect some Canadian cash from an ATM in the airport, and take delivery of a rental car. Now it’s 2.30 pm (if you were on that early flight out of Virginia, and if your flights were on time).

You take half an hour to drive from NE Calgary, where the airport is located, to the western city limits, from which you have an open highway to the mountains. From the city limits to Banff will take you 1.5 hours. So you can expect to get to Tunnel Mountain Campground around 4.30 pm.

I don’t know if that will be early enough to secure a camping spot. It most certainly wouldn’t be early enough in July or August, when I’ve heard you need to be there at noon. September is reputed to be less busy than July and August, but is said to be somewhat busy all the same.

Okay, let’s suppose you’re lucky and you do get a spot. You erect your tent (1 hour?) and then head 4 kilometres into Banff townsite to buy groceries. I think the earliest you could expect to sit down to eat your dinner in your campsite is 7.30 pm and more likely 8 pm. The sun sets at 7.50 pm in Banff in the middle of September.

With an early flight out of Virginia, you just <b>may</b> be able to make it to Tunnel Mountain Campground. However, I think you need to build in contingencies, like delayed flights. If it was my trip, I would not plan to spend that first night in a campground. I would plan to spend it in a hostel, B&amp;B or motel, probably in Canmore. Canmore has the biggest selection of affordable accommodation in the area (affordable being a relative term in the Canadian Rockies), and it also has the biggest selection of groceries in the Alberta Rockies. Then you’ll easily be in good time to secure a campsite on your second day in the area.

Although I like the hiking in the Lake Louise area, I think Banff may well be the best place to stay if you’re camping. The grocery shopping facilities in Lake Louise are limited, to say the least.

According to the Banff National Park website, Tunnel Mountain Campground, 4 km from Banff townsite, has flush toilets, showers, and power outlets, and a camping spot costs 22 CAD per night.

Here is the web page about camping in Banff National Park:

http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/banff/v..._e.asp#camping

More coming ......

If you choose to move to Jasper for the second half of your vacation, which I do recommend, the next big day for which you will need to plan will be the day you transfer from Banff National Park to Jasper National Park. The fact that JNP is planning to introduce reservations at Whistlers, Wapiti and Wabasso Campgrounds in 2005 gives you a huge advantage that previous campers didn’t have.

I think your best bet may be Whistlers, near Jasper townsite. It has flush toilets and showers. It was open May 7 - Oct 10, 2004, so I anticipate it will be open over a similar period in 2005.

Wapiti, near Jasper townsite, has the same summer facilities as Whistlers. However, summer facilities were open May 21 - 24 and again June 18 - Sept 12, 2004. Winter facilities consist of flush toilets only. Winter facilities are open Oct 11, 2004 - May 5, 2005. I expect winter facilities will be open during a similar period in 2005 – 2006. I don’t know when you’re planning to travel, but the showers may shut down too early to be of use to you.

Wabasso is at the turn off to the Mount Edith Cavell Road (about 15 km S of Jasper townsite). It has the same facilities as Whistlers. However, it was open from June 24, 2004 until only Sept 5, 2004.

Pocahontas was the first campground at which JNP introduced a reservation system. However, it is near the east gates of Jasper National Park, not what I would consider the most convenient spot. Also, it has flush toilets but no showers. It was open May 21 - Oct 10, 2004.

Snaring River, the campground that ltt mentioned, is about 1/3 of the way from Jasper townsite to park's east gates. According to my guide to the mountain national parks, it has dry toilets and no showers. It does not appear to be participating in the 2005 reservation system, so is available on a first come first serve basis. It was open May 21 - Sept 19, 2004.

The web page about camping at Jasper National Park is:

http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/jasper/..._e.asp#Camping

More ......

Your final challenge will be getting to Calgary in time to catch your flight home. I think your best bet would be to drive the 5 hours from Jasper to Canmore or Calgary on the afternoon before your flight and stay in a hostel, B&amp;B or motel.

Many flights take off from Calgary quite early in the morning. Obviously you would not be able to get from Jasper to Calgary for a morning flight.

There are, however, some flights that take off in the afternoon. But I don’t think that it would be feasible to spend your last night in Jasper even if you had an afternoon flight out of Calgary. Still working on the assumption that your nearest airport may be Norfolk, the latest departure that I can find from Calgary is a Northwest Airlines flight that departs at 1.30 pm. It connects through Minneapolis, and gets into Norfolk at 10.30 pm.

You have to check in 2 hours before your flight. The reason is that you clear American immigration and customs at Calgary Airport. Then your flight is treated like a domestic flight when it lands in the U.S. The drive from Jasper to Calgary is 5 hours. So, at the latest, you have to drive out of your Jasper campground at 6.30 am. If it was my trip, I’d want to build in a spare hour for contingencies. That would mean driving out of Jasper at 5.30 am. Is that feasible? I wouldn’t consider it realistic.

Another thing you could consider doing is spending your first night at a hostel in Canmore, Banff, Lake Louise or Jasper. Then you could camp for, say, 4 nights in Jasper. Then you could move down to Banff and camp at Tunnel Mountain for the last 5 nights. It would be feasible to spend your last night in Banff if you had an early afternoon flight out of Calgary. For a 1.30 pm flight, you’d need to check in at 11.30 am. The drive from Banff to Calgary Airport would take 2 hours, so you’d need to leave Banff at 9.30 am. Even if you added an hour for contingencies, and left Banff at 8.30 am, that would be quite doable, I would think. <b>The more I think about it, the more sense I think this last mentioned option makes.</b>

Lake Louise is 50 minutes’ drive from Banff townsite. You can use Banff as a base for visiting the Lake Louise area and Yoho National Park.

Sorry, I don’t know anything about taking camping equipment on a plane.

I used ITA Software to find the flights that I mentioned ( www.itasoftware.com )

You can get driving directions, distances and times from

www.freetrip.com

and

www.mapquest.com

You can order a free map and travel guide on Alberta from

http://www1.travelalberta.com/cfforms/freestuff/

and on British Columbia (for Yoho, etc.) from

http://www.hellobc.com/bcescapes/request_start.asp

Hope that helps.

Just thought of something else, JustDoIt. I don't know what kind of fuel your camp stove uses. Ours uses naptha. Since naptha is a highly flammable liquid, I'm sure no airline would permit you to take it with you, even in your checked luggage. An airline <b>may</b> permit you to carry your stove in your checked luggage, provided it has been thoroughly emptied of fuel. <b>I think it would be essential to check the regulations of the specific airline(s) with which you will be flying.</b> We buy our naptha in Calgary, but I'm sure you can buy it in Canmore, Banff and Jasper too.

Justbolt
We are also from VA(the DC metro area) I have found the best flights through Orbitz and Travelocity on Air Canada flying into Calgary. We have spent many a primitive camping weekend in George Washington National Forest(VA,WV) where we would awake to frozen ground covered in frost and sometimes snow(this usually happens in October) We were nice an cozy in our tent with our Lux THERMOREST(they self inflate and roll very compact) and our 0-20 degree bags(I got mine at REI-its called the blue kazoo) these bags also compress very well. We have found with our tent(two person) two Thermorests and two sleeping bags we can easily pack them into 1 medium suitcase. Then you can pack your clothes together in another suitcase(if your good packers). Stay your first night in a B&amp;B or hotel and get plenty of food, matches etc for camping the rest of your journey.

We also are looking for some nicer accomodations(80-150$US) to stay at other than campgrounds if anyone has suggestions for the Banff,LL jasper areas.

Joolleeb, you could try Canmore. I like Georgetown Inn. The least expensive rooms, in which I have stayed myself, are in your price range. But be warned the place has a 72 hour cancellation policy. Some of the rooms at Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge are in your price range. Some of them require a 3 day minimum stay, but some of them apparently do not. Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge has received a good review here at Fodor's. I am not familiar with Bear Country Lodge, but the Free Trip website indicates it's in your price range.

In Jasper the least expensive cabin in the ever popular Becker's Chalets complex is in your price range. However, note the 7 day cancellation policy. Becker's books up fast, so it would be good to reserve there ASAP if you want to stay there.

When you see a hotel rate posted on the Internet, be aware the taxes will be added (7% Goods and Services Tax and 5% Alberta Hotel Tax).

Thanks again Judy, joolleeb, chuckleberry, Itt. I think I should let you Judy arrange my plans. Sound like a great idea to go north to begin the trip and then work our way south to maximixe time in the parks. This is why I wanted at least a 10 day trip because we will burn 3-4 days traveling to/from our destination. Last year we went to Glacier National in Montana and flew from Richmond to Kalispell. It would be cheaper to fly to Kalipspell and I considered this and driving to Banff area. I can see that is not practical to do without burning even more time going and coming. Not worth the $ savings. You all answered many additional questions I had. I will investigate the airlines for what we can carry on. I am sure any kind of fuel is out of the question. I have ordered the book &quot;Canadian Rockies Trail Guide&quot; and may also pursue the suggested book, chucklebelly. I am planning on getting a passport even though technically we don't have to have one. Please pass along any other guidance you may have. I appreciate your feedback and will likely have more questions. Putting this all together is fun but logistically very challenging.