Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
• Elevation gain: 480 meters/1,755 feet
• Rating: moderate
• Trailhead: From the Bow Falls parking lot, cross the Spray River and walk along Golf
Course Road to behind the green of the first golf hole on the right-hand side of the road.
At 2,950 meters (9,680 feet), Mount Rundle is one of the park's dominant peaks. Climbing
to its summit is possible without ropes, but previous scrambling experience is advised. An
alternative is to ascend the mountain's western slope along an easy-to-follow trail that ends
just over 1,000 vertical meters (3,280 vertical feet) before the summit. The trail follows the
Spray River Trail from Golf Course Road, branching off left after 700 meters (0.4 mile).
Climbing steadily, it breaks out of the enclosed forest after 2.5 kilometers (1.6 miles). The
trail ends in a gully from which the undefined route to the summit begins.
Stoney Squaw
• Length: 2.4-kilometer/1.5-mile loop (1 hour round-trip)
• Elevation gain: 180 meters/590 feet
• Rating: easy
• Trailhead: top of Mount Norquay Road, 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from town
Looking north along Banff Avenue, Stoney Squaw's 1,884-meter (6,180-foot) summit is
dwarfed by Cascade Mountain, directly behind it. To get to the trailhead of a trail that
leads to its easily reached summit, follow Mount Norquay Road to a parking lot in front
of the resort's day lodge. Immediately to the right of the entrance, a small sign marks the
trail. The narrow, slightly overgrown trail passes through a thick forest of lodgepole pine
and spruce before breaking out into the open near the summit. The sweeping panorama in-
cludes Vermilion Lakes, the Bow Valley, Banff, Spray River Valley, Mount Rundle, Lake
Minnewanka, and the imposing face of Cascade Mountain (2,998 meters/9,840 feet). The
return trail follows the northwest slope of Stoney Squaw to an old ski run at the opposite
end of the parking lot.
Cascade Amphitheatre
• Length: 6.6 kilometers/4.1 miles (2-3 hours) one-way
• Elevation gain: 610 meters/2,000 feet
• Rating: moderate/difficult
• Trailhead: day lodge, top of Mount Norquay Road, 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from town
Search WWH ::
Custom Search