Western Alberta
The city of Calgary is the major stopping-off point en route to Banff National Park, 130km (80 miles) to the west in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. Banff, the first of the country’s national parks and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a spectacular wilderness area with mountain, river and lake scenery – notably Lake Louise. Along with Jasper National Park to the north, it offers a huge range of activities, including boating, canoeing, raft tours, fishing and hiking. The major ski resort in the Rockies, it hosts the annual Banff Festival of the Arts. The small town of Jasper is mainly used as a stocking-up point for the numerous hikers on their way into the mountains. Set in magnificent mountain scenery, it is an ideal starting point for trips to Pyramid Lake, the Miette Hotsprings and Maligne Canyon as well as Maligne Lake. For the bold of heart, there is even alpine scuba-diving. Horseshoe Lake, Patricia Lake and Lake Annette are three of the more popular locations. Divers should be experienced and employ the ‘buddy’ system as the water is cold and visibility is often limited. The local Rangers Station opposite the railway station can supply maps and other information. One-day permits for these parks cost C$5 per adult, with children aged six years and under admitted free of charge. The Icefields Parkway (Highway 93), runs the length of the two parks, affording magnificent views of the lakes, forests and the glaciers of the Columbia Icefield, which incorporates the McKinley Glacier and the Columbia Glacier. Visitors can take a bus trip to the top of the latter or go on foot to the bottom edge of it. It should be noted, though, that the temperature drops noticeably when approaching the glacier and that the hiking trail can be difficult in parts. The Parkway provides the best access to the wilderness trails in the area.
In the far north of the province, the remote Wood Buffalo National Park straddles the border with Canada’s Northwest Territories. The park is located 1310km (819 miles) north of Edmonton and 228km (143 miles) north of Fort McMurray. Wood Buffalo is Canada’s largest national park (it is bigger than Switzerland) and was granted World Heritage status by UNESCO in 1983. The park’s vast expanses of boreal plains make it a perfect habitat for many rare species of wildlife, including the world’s largest free-roaming bison herd. Within the park, the Peace-Athabasca Delta is one of the world’s largest inland freshwater deltas and a major nesting area for migratory waterfowl, such as the whooping crane. The park offers a variety of activities to visitors, including wildlife viewing, walks on secluded forest trails and canoe trips on the mighty Athabasca, Peace and Slave rivers.
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