Mountains! Miles Hiked, Not Miles Driven

By RVLife Published May 29, 2025 2025 Van Life Road Trip to Alaska

Gradually the mountains emerged as we headed west out of Calgary on the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 1). Initially just a fuzzy crooked line on the horizon, and then eventually, there they were standing resolute with snow-capped peaks. As we closed in on Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada the view became increasingly stunning. We were ready to find some hiking trails in Banff National Park!

We paused our journey to Alaska for five days to explore Banff, Canmore and Lake Louise. We squeezed in a last minute reservation at Tunnel Mountain Trailer Court, which is a national park campground in Banff, for four nights and one night at another national park campground, Lake Louise Hard-Sided Campground.

four lane divided highway in Canada leading to Banff National Park mountains and hiking trails — _{As we traversed west out of Calgary on the Trans-Canada Highway, the Canadian Rockies finally came into view.}

Wanting to get off the road and out of the van to hike into the mountains and absorb the incredible scenery. We found four great hiking trails in Banff National Park. It is early in the season here in the mountains, and many trails are still closed due to snow or avalanche danger.

highway overpass designed with vegetation on top for wildlife crossing — ***_{Several overpasses along Route 1 provide an exclusive and safe way for wildlife to pass over without creating havoc with traffic.}***

Brad Saum driving a van on a highway looking out into Banff National Park — _{Easing west on Canada Highway 1 anxiously awaiting the mountains.}

Alaska Road Trip Overall Progress:

Shepherdsville, KY, USA to Banff, Alberta, Canada
17 Days (5/9/25 to 5/25/25)
2,558 miles

Sulpher Mountain Hiking Trail

We tackled Sulphur Mountain trail in Banff National Park hiking up 2,292 feet in elevation gain over 3.4 miles of switchbacks and relentless inclines. The trail basically zig-zags up the mountain below the Banff Gondola. But the rewards at the top made the hike a success!

At 7,486 feet in elevation the trail pops out on top of Sulphur Mountain. The blue sky and puffy white clouds accented the dark colors of the pine and spruce trees. Looking out and seeing other mountains at eye level and the valleys below was stunning.

There was also the Northern Lights Restaurant with a wonderful buffet complete with brisket and salmon while sitting with a panoramic view of the Canadian Rockies. After indulging ourselves with the buffet, we relaxed with a cup of tea captivated by the view. And finally, after the strenuous hike, a grand buffet and magnificent views, we opted to take the eight-minute gondola down the mountain.

Canada flag over Banff community from high viewpoint — _{Typical outdoorsy mountain community of Banff nestled in the valley with Tunnel Mountain, the smaller mountain the right where we camped.}

Brad Saum sitting at table at Northern Lights restaurant with mountains in the background and a Canadian flag flying — _{Typical outdoorsy mountain community of Banff nestled in the valley with Tunnel Mountain, the smaller mountain the right where we camped.}

Johnston Canyon to Ink Pots Hiking Trail

Our second hiking trail in Banff National Park was Johnston Canyon. The initial mile or so on the Johnston Canyon trail follows a paved path with many sections of unique trail securely constructed of cement and steel, and handrails cantilevered into a sheer cliff extending out over the river below.

The first stop is the Lower Falls, which is the primary destination for most the crowds walking the path. A few people continue to the Upper Falls, but then the trail becomes a typical hiking trail through the forest for the next several miles and very few people continue to the end.

Johnston Canyon trail ends at the Ink Pots in a valley surrounded with again, stunning mountains protruding up all around. The Ink Pots are natural spring pools where the water is colored by the minerals in the rocks.

Brad Saum and Mary Beth Sampson with her dog Jolene — _{Brad and Mary Beth, and Jolene hiking Banff National Park.}

Ink Pots natural spring pools on Johnston Canyon Trail withe mountains in the background — _{Brad and Mary Beth, and Jolene hiking Banff National Park.}

Lake Agnus Hiking Trail at Lake Louise

Lake Louise is one of those places that is easily accessible and provides a postcard perfect mountain lake view iconic of Banff National Park. The parking lot fills quickly everyday, so we parked at nearby Lake Louise Ski Resort and rode a shuttle bus a couple miles over to Lake Louise.

After briefly absorbing the beauty of the idyllic scene and basically weaving through the crowds to get our obligatory photos, we headed up the adjacent mountain. The Lake Agnus hiking trail leads uphill with very few views until it levels off at Mirror Lake. Not much of a mirror or reflection since it is mostly iced over, but still a beautiful mountain lake.

Continuing on, we steadily gained elevation and ran into snow and ice on the trail. We put on our microspikes to enhance grip and provide traction. Just under three miles and 1,800 feet in elevation gain Lake Agnus sits at 7,004 feet above sea level nestled into the mountains above Lake Louise. Also iced over, Lake Agnus is surrounded by deep snow and trails continuing further up the mountain were not readily accessible and not recommended due to avalanche danger.

And on our descent, as we passed below Mirror Lake we heard the crackle and thunder of an avalanche! It initially sounded like thunder and lightning popping and then continued a low rumble for several seconds. Heads on a swivel, we searched the surrounding landscape, but it must have been just out of view. Fortunately it was not above us, but it would have been very interesting to spot the falling snow on a distant mountainside.

_{Expecting snow and ice, we were prepared and glad to hike in our MICROspikes hiking the trail up to Mirror Lake and Lake Agnes.}

“Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, So…Get on your way!” – Dr. Seuss

Bow River Trail in Canmore

We drove over to Canmore, about thirty minutes from Banff and walked the Bow River Trail. It was an easy level walk along the Bow River. We saw Three Sisters mountains which rise to 9,600 feet.

After a few miles of exploring, we walked around Canmore. A typical mountain community welcoming tourists with gift shops, outdoor supply stores and restaurants.

In the evenings, after hiking during the day, downtown Banff was on our list to explore several times. The Banff National Park Visitor Center is right downtown and had all the latest information on hiking trails. Parking is limited and somewhat expensive in downtown Banff, so we typically walked to downtown and then take the ROAM shuttle bus back up Tunnel Mountain to our campground which was quite nice, easy and ran every twenty minutes from multiple stops.

***_{Downtown Banff, located in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada.}***

We ran into Doug and Stacy, known on Facebook as RV2AK, who are the editors for the MilePost. MilePost is the long running mile by mile guide to RV to Alaska. It includes intricate details about every pullout on various routes and what is offered along the way. We happened to be staying in the same campground with Doug and Stacey, and through the powers of social media, we met up with two other couples, Jim and Heidi, and Sonny and Felix who are also making their way north to Alaska.

**_{Met up with Stacey and Gary with RV2AK who work for the MilePost logging changes for the next edition.}**

Next on our journey to Alaska, it’s off to the Icefields Parkway and Jasper National Park…

Road Trip to Alaska Q&A

How many states and provinces have we been through so far?
6 USA States: Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota
2 Canada Provinces: Alberta, Saskatchewan

What’s the price of diesel in Canada?
Short answer: about $3.52 USD per gallon of diesel, roughly the same as in the States. Long answer if you are really interested: about $1.29 CDN per liter, and there’s 3.79 liters in a gallon, so about $4.88 CDN per gallon, but the USD is strong, so the $4.88 equals about $3.52 USD per gallon.)

What’s the current currency conversion?
$137 CDN equals $100 USD (So, if we buy $137 CDN worth of diesel (or anything) in Canada, our credit card is charged $100 USD, and with all my travels I use a credit card with no foreign transaction fees. Very favorable; however generally we find products are priced slightly more in Canada stores, making them roughly the same price we pay in the States after the currency conversion.

What wildlife have we seen to far on our journey to Alaska?
Deer, Elk, Big Horn Sheep, lots of birds

Tags: Banff Canada vanlife