A late night of soca was not going to stand in my way of getting to the mountains! I woke up pretty tired on Sunday but Jess and I had planned to hike. The floods have made it a bit difficult to hike in Kananaskis, so we decided we’d venture out to the Banff and Lake Louise areas. I’ve always wanted to explore these areas a bit more, and Sunday was the perfect opportunity to do so.
We stopped at the Banff Information Centre and asked for recommendations. From the Canadian Rockies Trail Guide book by Brian Patton and Bart Robinson, we chose Taylor Lake. Although it was described as “not particularly inspiring”, the view of the lake was sure to be gorgeous. So off we went, westbound on Highway 1, looking for the Taylor Creek Picnic Area turn-off near Castle Mountain and just before Lake Louise.
Once we were through the animal gates, it was a steady trek and incline to the lake. I can see why it would be described as uninspiring because there weren’t any mountain views along the way, but the wild flowers, forest, streams and bridges made for a nice and enjoyable hike. As with most glacial lakes nestled within an amphitheatre, the lake reveal was awesome, especially with Mount Bell towering in the background. We chatted with some people who were fishing in the area (who then graciously took our photo!), and then found a picnic table and stopped for lunch before heading back to the car. It was definitely a lovely afternoon :).
Stats:
Start time: 1:20 pm
End time: 5:40 pm
GPS time: 3:53 minutes trekking time; ~30 minutes lunch at the lake
Elevation gain: 585 m (1920 ft)
Distance: 12.6 km round trip
That’s a long hike, well for me anyways