Jasper National Park

When the Canadian Rockies was decided upon as a vacation destination, I jumped into research on Jasper and Banff National Parks. I was somewhat familiar with these parks from their famous iconic lakes and mountain meadows, but I was looking for an experience that could be the highlight of our Canadian National Parks road trip- The Skyline Trail in Jasper proved to be just that!

EXPERIENCE

We flew into Calgary and then made our way north to Jasper National Park via the famed Icefields Parkway, we had a cloudy and rainy first day, so our trip was pretty focused on getting to our place for the night near Jasper, we stocked up on some last minute gear in the Jasper town and had some cheeseburgers at a local joint before hitting the lodge and getting our gear in order for the next day.

TREK DAY 1: We set off after spending the morning at Lake Maligne, leaving our car there. The Skyline Trail can be hiked in two to three days, but we broke up the three days of hiking over four days and three nights. This meant we could hike for just a half day (5.1 miles) on this first day. Knowing we were not in a rush, we enjoyed this first few miles of the hike and checked out Lorraine Lake. We stopped for a quick swim and intense loon encounter at Mona Lake just a mile or so up the trail. This portion of the trail was very enchanted feeling, the forest floor full of vivid mosses, lichen and spectacular mushrooms! This day ended with our first altitude gain of the trip with several switchbacks after Evelyn Creek– a reminder of the weight of our packs. We set up at Little Shovel Site for the first night of camping, a site we were less than thrilled with, but enjoyed a nice doe visitor.

TREK DAY 2: This was our first intense day of hiking and after making a few adjustments to the ratios of our packs, we got started. The Little Shovel Site sits right on the threshold of the tree line, so we hit tundra almost immediately upon walking the second day. We encountered many brazen marmots here which was fun. Day two was all about open tundra and rolling vistas. Big Shovel Pass was quite breathtaking with the abundance of seasonal wildflowers and although the wildlife evaded us we enjoyed some picturesque moments at the mountain streams between Little Shovel and Snowbowl. The terrain as we closed in on Curator became slightly steeper and much more bleak. As we approached the turnoff for Watchtower, the landscape could have been mistaken for Mars. Luckily the weather was in our favor, and the wind and rain held out for this especially exposed portion of the hike. Our plan was to camp at Curator Site for the night but this required a one mile decent (which we’d have to reascend) in the morning. We did a little exploring and found a special spot up near Curator Lake to set up camp for the night. A little friendly sparrow sat with us the entire evening, reappeared in the morning when we woke, and then hiked at our heels for the first hour of the next day. Along with the site next to the lake and the rain on the tent, this magic moment with the sparrow made this a really special evening. This day totaled 8 miles and was one of the best of the entire trip.

TREK DAY 3: The third day of our hike was by far the most beautiful and also the most grueling. This day posed the most elevation gains and showed us what skyline trail really meant. We packed up our makeshift camp at Curator Lake and quickly began the steep accent to “the notch” which is the highest point of the trail. Here we dropped our packs and climbed higher to summit one of the two peaks the trail passes between. This provided us insane views of the entire Canadian Rockies as well a view of the town of Jasper far below. After the ascent the trail leveled out for a bit then climbed again to the point of complete exposure as we hiked along the crest of the Maligne Range. It was pretty incredible to hike with mountain ranges on either side and mountain lakes decorating the entire landscape. From here we descended for the remainder of the day through the gorgeous mountain meadows near the Tekarra site. The final push of this 8.8 mile day dipped us back into the forest before shooting us out for some of the most stunning snow capped mountain views of the trip. We hit the season right for wildflowers and were able to enjoy them in the foreground of the spectacular mountain backdrops. We hunkered down for the night at the Signal Site, which was the only site will challenging access to water. We kept camping concise for the evening knowing we’d have only a quick walk out in the morning.

TREK DAY 4: The final day of the trek was a breeze. 5.2 miles out down a gravel downhill access road. This portion of the hike was uneventful, but we were relieved we had not tried to tackle this final five miles on the previous day. We emerged back from a landmark we had visited days before, the Maligne Canyon.

Once we emerged we had a very easy time thumbing it and hitched a ride with a nice local woman back to where we had left our car near Maligne Lake. From here, we took off our boots and hopped in the car in pursuit of civilization, beers and cheeseburgers in Jasper!

STAY

The night before the trek we stayed at a decent and affordable place called the Overlander Mountain Lodge. It would have been more ideal to spend this night in Jasper, but the hotels there were overbooked and overpriced so this location ended up working out well for us just east of the park in Jasper East. The room was comfortable and we enjoyed a nice free hot breakfast here before hitting the trail. Once on the trail we backcountry camped each of the nights. The campsites are mentioned in the section above and were booked up though the Canadian National Parks website well in advance of our visit. The Skyline Trail is quite popular and it can be competitive to get reservations for sites along the trail. It is suggested you book up at least three months in advance of your trip.

EAT

On the trail we were fully committed to dehydrated camp food. The positive side about having the dedicated campsites are the bear bag setups, which offer a nice reassurance in grizzly and black bear country. In addition to what we packed, we foraged for both blueberries and raspberries and saw lots of gorgeous mushrooms (many of which we later learned are edible, but be careful!). One mushroom in particular we regretted not trying was the spiny hedgehog which seems very certainly identifiable and was growing in abundance for day one of the hike. Also, we did not have gear packed, but with a permit I believe you are able to fish in some of the park lakes, many of which house several types of trout. Before AND after our big trek we hit the Whistle Stop Pub (a local’s recommendation) for cold beers and tasty cheeseburgers!