summer letters - banff edition

as if one hiking trip wasn't enough

and it truly isn’t. and it’s perfectly okay to have two hiking trips set a week apart in neighboring provinces. you also decide to fly back to the east before making another trip back to the west. but hey, you’re on vacation- and that. is. okay.

banff is by no means the food capital by any measure, so if you enjoy photos of some wing wednesdays, a&w couponing or strangely satisfying authentic japanese ramen (and delightful shin ramen, black edition), dm me. instead, this letter will be about jaw-dropping views, and a wonderful surprise at the end.

lake louise

plain of six glaciers (14.8km/3.5h/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) - after you’ve begrudgingly paid $11.70 for day parking, zoom past the crowds and make your way up past the lake. looking back down on the lake makes for a stunning view. you also wonder why people pay $120/hr to take a jenky plastic floatable (aka paddleboard) to take trite photos on the lake (sir/madam, you’re not impressing anyone on instagram). in contrast, this was free! once you’re on the top, whip out your snack (whoops we didn’t bring one) and enjoy the stunning view. i was told that the glaciers usually amount to much more, but ~apparently~ global warming has real life consequence

food pairing: hot genoa salami, cheese

sentinel pass via larch valley (11.6km, 3.5h, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) - lake moraine is crowded but since night life in banff is practically non-existent, hop into bed early and make it out for a 5am departure to do a ‘sunrise’ hike (there was no sunrise to see that day). once you make it up the switchbacks, you’re greeted by larches (which turn color in mid-september, a sight to behold i’m told). you also get to see the valley of ten peaks (remember, mount babel is not one of the ten! many people sillily get that bunched in with the others 🤭). ascend the clearly marked paths and you’re greeted with the other side of the valley on the sentinel pass. bring a mid-layer so you don’t freeze and whip out another snack.

food pairing: a warm beverage (apple cider) and perhaps some chicago mix

banff

cory pass (12.7km, 6h, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) - the entrance was blocked by cyclists (inconvenient when you don’t have your bike, but imagine a perfectly paved path void of cars 🤤), so add another 2km round-trip to your strava activity. once you’ve crossed the small creek, veer a sharp 90-degree right to stay on trail, otherwise you’ll be bush-wacking and trying to convince yourself you’ll eventually find the trail (we did not). go clockwise and ascent the mountains until you find yourself at cory pass. this was a personal favorite since crowds were at an all time low and some scrambling made this fun.

food pairing: sweet and crisp apples (honeycrisp please), tortillas

tunnel mountain (4.5km, 1h, ⭐️⭐️⭐️) -if it weren’t for the sunrise, this will be particularly unspectacular for the lack of views except for the ~bustling city of banff~ (it’s an oxymoron, i hope you understand). but if you’re feeling like a wake-up call at 5am and still would want to make summit before sunrise, this is for you. most of the elevation is done in the car and you’re really just strolling to the top at this point. don’t celebrate too much, you barely did anything.

food pairing: hot chocolate/ coffee, blueberry muffin

johnston canyon + inkpots (11.7km, 608m, ⭐️⭐️) - the only thing redeeming about this hike is that it’s free and gets progressively quieter as you pass lower, upper falls. that being said, it’s a good recovery hike, but then again, you’re ascending a bit only to find yourself at a colored pond. i could be more descriptive, but that’s about it. save your expectations for yellowstone instead.

food pairing: hummus, tortillas, a cold beverage*

canmore

ha ling + miner’s peak (8.2km, 864m, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) - the amount of people here are staggering. especially considering merely a few years ago, canmore was nothing more than a cheap alternative to stay at in banff. regardless, the aerial views spill onto the town below and while the diy switchbacks to climb to the top can be a little daunting, the view to down below is nothing short of spectacular. bring a jacket though, the winds are unforgiving.

no food recommendations here, but bring a book worthy to enjoy in its views. and sunscreen too.

supplies! (thanks to joycelin for editing and carrying the team on this video)
clarence