HELP W/HIKING&RESTAURANTS
 

Hello again,
There are so many hikes we want to do that I am wondering about everyone's favorites so we don't miss the best ones. We were thinking 6 Glaciers, Lady Agnes Teahouse, Johnston Canyon/Ink Pots in the LL area but what are the must hikes in Yoho and Jasper in terms of scenic beauty? Should we try to do Louise Lakeshore Trail, Larch Valley, Lake Moraine trails, any around Banff or on the Ice Field Parkways? We will have 10 days total, but only 6-7 full days where we are not traveling, but it might be feasible to get some hiking in on 1 or 2 of the travel days if they are shorter. Also, is there any realistic way to see Lake O'Hara without that bus? Regarding restaurants, what does everyone think of the Post Hotel, Lake Louis Station Rest., Victoria Room and Lakeside Lounge (these 2 are in Fairmount Chateau), Baker Creek Chalet Bistro and in Jasper Becker's Gourmet and in Banff, Maple Leaf Grill and Ticino? We are foodies, and are pretty adventurous, but are not particularly interested in game, other than maybe a little duck. Places that have upscale food, but allow neat jeans type attire are preferable for most nights. Any other suggestions are very welcome! Thanks again!

cheryl,

We just got back this weekend.

The best meal we had was in the Maple Leaf Grill. Superb food, excellent service, and wonderful wine list.
For a casual breakfast in Banff, try the diner on Banff Ave....you cant miss the funky front. They make a delightful cinnamon bun french toast.

Definitley do the Lake Agnes Teahouse. It is a 1300 ft elevation climb...but worth it.

Instead of walking along the Lake Louise lakeshore trail with the crowds, we walked areound Moraine Lake. If you walk around to the right, the trail ends at the point where the glacier feeds into the lake. The hikes along the Moraine Lake offered some wonderful scenery.

A word of clarification. ..the trails were very well marked and maintained.

While doing the Snocoach tour at the icefields, I notice people walking on the glacier itself. It turns out that there is a once aday guided walk on the glacier that looked fabulous. Had we known about it, we would have made reservations and allowed time to do the walk.

In Jasper, I highly reccomend hiking in the Maligne Canyon. We hiked along the canyon to the fifth bridge and really enjoyed it.

A

Our favorites were:
The Lake Agnes and Little Beehive hike (you can continue on to Big Beehive and Plain of Six Glaciers which many have and have written good reports about it)in Lake Louise area.

Angel Glacier and top of Whistler mountain as well as Maligne Canyon in Jasper area.

Along the parkway there are hikes to Peyto Lake for one (we got the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide--had to get it when we got to Banff) which tells you about the hikes. For instance you can continue beyond Peyto Lake if you want. We also hiked to the toe of the glacier as well as took the Snocoach Ride. We didn't take the ranger led hike, but it looked interesting to us too.

We climbed the rock pile and hiked to Takkawah Falls (actually short walk) and part way around Emerald Lake.

Will you be hiking in Banff at all? A hike we really liked (and have never seen in mentioned) was to the top of Tunnel Mountain--great views all the way up of the Banff area. We took a hike around Lake Minnewanka. We took the gondola to the top of Sulfur Mountain, but you can hike up there.

Also liked the Johnson Canyon hike very much--only went to the upper and lower falls. I don't know your travel plans--but we flew in and out of Calgary--therefore we went on the Icefields Parkway twice. We did different hikes, etc. going each way. We saw Moraine Lake and did the Johnson Canyon hike on our way from Lake Louise to Banff. So, yes, you can do alot on your travel days. Also, it has been mentioned here many times--try to do the hikes with views on clear days and the falls and canyon hikes on days that are cloudy--if possible. That is what they told us at the visitor centers too.

The only restaurant that you mentioned that we went to was the Lake Louise Station (it was very good),and we both wore jeans. People we saw going in most of the restaurants were in casual attire.

You will get a lot more replies, I'm sure--just thought I'd add my two cents. Loved the area--you'll have a great trip. Also, please post a trip report when you return. Love to read them and see what you ended up doing.

Cheryl, the hiking question depends to some extent on your level of fitness. I think the average city dweller would consider hikes to fall into the following categories:

Johnston Canyon to the Upper Falls and back - half day hike

Johnston Canyon to Ink Pots and back - full day hike

(Johnston Canyon is NW of Banff townsite, about one third of the way to Lake Louise.)

Plain of Six Glaciers (from Lake Louise) - half day

Lake Agnes (from Lake Louise) - half day

Larch Valley (from Moraine Lake) - half day

I do not believe it's worth walking the Lake Louise Lakeshore if one does the Lake Agnes hike.

The Plain of Six Glaciers hike in any case incorporates the Lake Louise lakeshore path.

It is well worth doing the brief walk to the top of the pile of rocks at the end of Moraine Lake even if one is going to do the Larch Valley hike. It is not worth doing the full Moraine Lake lakeshore path if one is going to hike to Larch Valley, in my opinion. However, if you are not going to hike to Larch Valley, then I recommend completing the Moraine Lake lakeshore path.

In Yoho National Park, the Emerald Lake Lakeshore path can be anything from a brief walk to a half-day walk. It depends on how much of it you want to do.

On the Icefields Parkway between LL and Jasper, aside from the obvious Snocoach ride on the Athabasca Glacier, other worthwhile places to stop and do walks are Peyto Lake Lookout, Sunwapta Falls, Athabasca Falls. These are not what I would call hikes, just walks.

The Bow Lake to Bow Glacier Falls is a half-day hike on the Icefields Parkway. The route begins at Num-ti-jah Lodge overlooking Bow Lake.

In Jasper National Park, half-day hikes are:

* Angel Glacier / Cavell Meadows

* Maligne Canyon to 5th Bridge

* Whistler Summit (from the upper tramway station to the mountain summit)

You can do as much or as little of Maligne Canyon as you like. If you do a little, you could consider it to be no more than a walk. If you go to the 5th Bridge, it's about a half-day hike. If you go to the 6th Bridge, it's a full-day hike.

With your timeframe, you're going to have to be realistic, and choose your hikes. For example, in the LL / Moraine Lake area, you may be forced to choose from amongst Six Glaciers, Lake Agnes and Larch Valley. In Jasper, you may be forced to choose from amongst Angel Glacier / Cavell Meadows, Maligne Canyon and Whistler Summit. If I was pressed for time, my preference would be to do the Angel Glacier / Cavell Meadows hike and then to squeeze in shorter versions of the other two (only take the tramway up Whistler Mountain and do an abbreviated version of Maligne Canyon).

It is out of the question for private vehicles to drive to Lake O'Hara. The only other way to get there, aside from the bus, is to hike there in summer or cross country ski in winter. The road that the bus uses is 12 kilometres. I don't know what the distance would be on foot.

If you want fine dining in Banff, you also might consider Le Beaujolais or Buffalo Mountain Lodge.

The Post Hotel in Lake Louise is excellent, but expensive. Deer Lodge also has a great restaurant, but an expensive wine list. You absolutely need dinner reservations at either of them. As far as the Post Hotel is concerned, reservations are highly recommended even for lunch.

People also speak well of Baker Creek Bistro and Lake Louise Station Restaurant.

People say Becker's Gourmet is excellent (but not cheap).

In recent years Chateau Lake Louise appears to have shut itself off from anyone who is not staying there. I don't know the details. It may be possible to phone and make a reservation at one of its restaurants if one is not staying there. However, we tried to walk in there for lunch, based on an impromptu decision, during a recent winter visit, and the doorman wouldn't let us in.

Hi Cheryl13,

Thought I'd respond to the restaurant part of your question.

We had wonderful dinners at Post Hotel - I would recommend it any day! The food was delicious and exquisitely presented, the service was beyond excellent (I have dietary restrictions so as far as I'm concerned the mark of a good restaurant is how they treat these restrictions - at Post Hotel I even had a dessert made specially for me!!), the ambience was peaceful and lovely, and the wine list was among the best - if not the best - in the Banff-Lake Louise area!!! Guess I really liked the place - huh??!!!

Our experience at Maple Leaf Grill was the complete opposite of Dick's. Mind you that was a year ago, and staff no doubt has changed since then. (we had very poor service - the waiters/waitresses were more interested in chatting to each other than in doing their job - if they were my staff I would have fired the lot!!) and the food was just average.

We have had good (tasty) meals at both Becker's Gourmet dining room and at Baker Creek Chalets. They weren't outstanding - but very very good. Becker's has been around a long time, and they have had several changes in chef during those decades, so I'm not sure what the menu is like this year. Dinner was always fine, the atmosphere very nice (they have music playing discretly in the background), the view to Athabasca River and Mt. Kerkeslin in the evening is lovely (especially if there happens to be a full moon rising that day !!), and the menu was always varied and appealing.

Lake Louise Station was an interesting experience (several trains rumbled by as we were eating), and the service was attentive. The food was good and the service was charming.

Most restaurants in the mountains are very casual in dress - I think it has something to do with the "outdoors" atmosphere in the area. It isn't unusual to see people in jeans even in fine dining establishments. Sometimes when we have "dressed up" (for example on our 20th anniversary in Banff), we have felt a little overdressed when dining out.

Thank you all so much for your help! I will definitely post a trip report upon my return. You are wonderful! Thanks again.
Cheryl