BANFF NATIONAL PARK - Canadian Rockies: Including Banff and Jasper National Parks - page 140

Bow Lake
The sparkling, translucent waters of Bow Lake are among the most beautiful that can be
seen from the Icefields Parkway. The lake was created when moraines deposited by re-
treating glaciers dammed subsequent meltwater. On still days, the water reflects the snowy
peaks, their sheer cliffs, and the scree slopes that run into the lake. You don't need photo-
graphy experience to take good pictures here! At the southeast end of the lake, a day-use
area offers waterfront picnic tables and a trail to a swampy area at the lake's outlet. At
the upper end of the lake, you'll find the historic Num-ti-jah Lodge and the trailhead for a
walk to Bow Glacier Falls.
The road leaves Bow Lake and climbs to Bow Summit. As you look back toward the
lake, its true color becomes apparent, and the Crowfoot Glacier reveals its unique shape.
At an elevation of 2,069 meters (6,790 feet), this pass is one of the highest points crossed
by a public road in Canada. It is also the beginning of the Bow River, the one you camped
beside at Lake Louise, photographed flowing through the town of Banff, and fished along
downstream of Canmore.
MM Peyto Lake
From the parking lot at Bow Summit, a short paved trail leads to one of the most breath-
taking views you could ever imagine. Far below the viewpoint is Peyto Lake, an impos-
sibly intense green lake whose hues change according to season. Before heavy melting of
nearby glaciers begins (in June or early July), the lake is dark blue. As summer progresses,
meltwater flows across a delta and into the lake. This water is laden with finely ground
particles of rock debris known as rock flour, which remains suspended in the water. It is
not the mineral content of the rock flour that is responsible for the lake's unique color, but
rather the particles reflecting the blue-green sector of the light spectrum. As the amount of
suspended rock flour changes, so does the color of the lake.
The lake is one of many park landmarks named for early outfitter Bill Peyto. In 1898,
Peyto was part of an expedition camped at Bow Lake. Seeking solitude (as he was wont
to do), he slipped off during the night to sleep near this lake. Other members of the party
coined the name Peyto's Lake, and it stuck.
A farther three kilometers (1.9 miles) along the parkway is a viewpoint from which
Peyto Glacier is visible at the far end of Peyto Lake Valley. This glacier is part of the ex-
tensive Wapta Icefield, which straddles the Continental Divide and extends into the north-
ern reaches of Yoho National Park in British Columbia.