Rockies/Montana itinerary help, please
 

My family of 4 including 6 and 10 year old boys will visiting the Canadian Rockies the last 2 weeks of June. We love fishing, hiking, horseback riding and atvs. We do like to eat out some and I like to shop at least a little. I'm starting to worry that I have too much time planned in Lake Louise and Banff since, from what I've been reading, they seem to be closer together than I originally thought. Could someone please give me advice? Thanks!

Here are our plans:

days 1, 2 and 3: Golden, BC (hopefully Beaverfoot Lodge if I can get reservations - they are currently closed for the winter)

days 4, 5 and 6: Lake Louise - Paradise Lodge - we'll check out the icefields from here

days 7, 8 and 9: Banff

days 10, 11 and 12: Glacier National Park (U.S.) - Apgar Village cabins

Golden is ok is you don't mind driving a ways to see something worthwhile.

Glacier National Park, Rogers Pass, is about an hour's drive west from Golden. (about 80 K if I recall right) The jagged peaks of the Purcells and the Selkirks are spectacular.

If you drive east on the Trans Canada, the wonders of Yoho NP are not too far away.

The Bugaboos of the Northern Purcell Range are south of Golden a short distance. If you don't mind a steep round of hiking and driving, they are spectacular.

Other than that, Golden is not really close to anything except the Rocky Mountain Trench. While geologically a major fault zone in the earth;s surface, it is not all that spectacular, mainly because the big crack is full of rocks, rubble, trees, and water.

Why don't you find an apartment in Field and stay there, right in the middle of Yoho NP?

PS If you stay in Field, you are 15 miles from Lake Louise and in a good position to drive over Kicking Horse Pass and take a drive north on the Icefields Parkway which is a very special route because of the scenery.

I hate to think of you going out there and not driving a few hours to see the sights along a most spectacular highway.

It is a good road and in a full day you can see a big section of it. At least go as far up as the Icefields Center and maybe even take a ride on the glacier buggy.

Thanks for all the information. We are definitely going to do the Icefields Parkway and the glacier buggy. The reason we are wanting to stay in Golden is only because of the Beaverfoot Lodge. I love that food, horseback riding, fishing, etc. are all included in the price. Since the kids want to ride horseback and learn to fly fish (and both are SO expensive), we can get it all for one price assuming we can get a room at the Beaverfoot. That being said, I'll check out accomodations in Field because maybe there's something there we'll like. Thanks again.

Hi, Glacier National park in the U.S. is one of my favorite places. We camped at Apgar several times when my kids were your boys ages. There are lots of great hikes that the kids can do. The going to the sun road is spectacular. The hike from the going to the sun visitors center up to the lakes look out is good, you will see the mountain sheep up close.