My husband and I will celebrate our 30th Anniversary at the Chateau LL Sept. 6-12. We will do some day hiking, maybe rafting, sightseeing and at least one elegant dinner. What kind of clothing do I need to take for this time of year and what we intend to do? Thanks for any and all help.

Hi Cindy, My husband and I got back from Canadian rockies a week ago. We swear by quick-dry convertible pants. They are easy to convert to shorts, and take the guesswork out of packing. We also like the quick-dry shirts, either t-shirt or button-up, on hikes and other outdoor activities, as perspiration vents and you won't be wet all day in the event of a rainstorm.

On the advise of locals, we packed fleece or a heavy sweatshirt and a light waterproof jacket on all our hikes, but only needed them very occasionaly. Still, it can turn nasty and snow, even in the summer, so better to be prepared. We did use our heavier wear in the cooler mornings and in the evenings.

We also went whitewater rafting. Though we did actually get in for a short swim, the water was glacial, and VERY cold. We were told to wear swimsuits, and were given wetsuits to wear over this and footgear at the put-off site. We left warm tops in the outfitter's van for afterward, and were glad we did; we were only slightly cold, not chilled, but it was more comfortable.

Happy Anniverary!

cindyhames -
Because "warm" and "cold" are very subjective, here is some weather data for you:

According to Environment Canada data for the past three years for 6 to 12 September:

The highest daily high temp = 23.4C (74F)
The lowest daily high temp = 6.2C (43F)
The lowest daily low temp = -3.2C (26F)

There was NO snow last year in Sept in Lake Louise, just some rain (approx 1 inch during the week in question).

In 2001 it snowed approx 2 inches on September 17th.

In 2000 it snowed approx. half an inch on Sept 26th.

Keep in mind when hiking, that the higher the elevetion, the colder it is, so even when it is balmy in the valley it can be freezing up on the mountains.
(and that's what fireplaces are really for when you get back to your accomodations ;-) !!!)
Happy Anniversary and Bon Voyage!!

Does anyone have any info on forest fires in the Lake Louise area? I was told that it was "smoky" there by someone in the ranger's office, but he seemed very reluctant to actually say that there were fires in the park.

We hope to be in the area around 9/5.

Thanks.

Tah -

The forest fires are not in lake Louise, but there are fires in Kootenay National Park (to the southwest, in B.C.) and apparently some to the east (in Banff Nat'l Park) as well.

Unfortunately, the smoke from the fires seems to travel all over the place through the valleys, so it has been rather unpleasant (haze, smoke, ash) as far east as Calgary over the past two or three weeks.

Hopefully by the beginning of September there will be some rain to clear the air, plus the temperatures at night can be very chilly at that time of the year which should slow the fires down, so my guess is that it should be fine by then.

Check the following website for wild fire news before you start your trip:
http://www3.gov.ab.ca/srd/wildfires/index.html
Good luck!!

Asking local govt. entities about current conditions reminds me of Myrtle Beach weather forecasts. (I am in South Carolina.)

Whenever current conditions are anything other than ideal (for example, rain, sleet, storms, etc.), the forecast is always "No Report". <grin>

The last thing a tourist area is going to do is publish bad news about their area. Ok to check out websites, but it's best to balance official reports with fellow tourists just returned.

Hello skip5700 -

Counting on information from "just returned fellow tourists" is unreliable when it comes to weather and wild fires.

The information provided by the Canadian national weather service (Environment Canada) is current and ongoing. The forecasts for Alberta are usually very accurate for the next 24 hours, with the accuracy declining for each day in the future.
The archived climate data is . . . well. . . what really happened (it doesn't change!!).

As for wild fires, the changes are so rapid that what is true at this moment may not be true this afternoon.
For example, we drove through the B.C. interior (from Vancouver to Banff) in the middle of last week with no problems at all. The next day a friend was driving the same route and found that roads were closed due to new fires that had started overnight. His trip was extended by 17 hours because of the detours.

For anyone planning a trip to the B.C. interior (the Okanagan and north) in the next little while, you may want to reconsider your plans.
Your best bet is always to get as much information from as many sources as possible, and that includes local goverment entities.