Table Of Content
We aim to help you get the most out of your trip to Banff National Park and the surrounding areas. I’d say kids from ages six years old and up, maybe even younger. Strollers will not work on the rugged trail, but you should be fine hiking to the lake if you have a baby carrier. A pair of durable and lightweight hiking poles are a great asset on the hiking trail.
What Should You Expect From The Lake Agnes Trail?
From the Little Beehive, the trail can either descend the same way back to the original trail to catch a view of the Banff waterfall coming off of Lake Agnes. Or take a shortcut directly to Lake Agnes and the Tea House. On the lookout, a series of large rocks make for a great place to take photos and clamber along the ridge edge.
The Lake Agnes Tea House Hike Terrain
There are several other hotel options available in Banff National Park. These hotels are also within easy walking distance of the Park and Ride Connector. This shuttle bus service leaves from Lake Louise Village and has stops at both Lake Louise and Moraine Lake. After a long day of hiking, you really don’t want to spend more time driving to get back to your hotel. Lake Louise has several hotels right in the village, that range in price to suit any budget.
Fairmont Miramar
The view from here is spectacular, with vistas that encompass the lake, the mountains that tower over the lake, and out to the runs of Lake Louise ski resort in the distance. Along the shore near the tea house is a small bridge with a lovely vista across the lake. If you don't want to go back down the same way you came, you can cross the bridge, and the trail from here goes down and joins up with the main trail at Mirror Lake. This is a steeper section, but does shave off a bit of distance. By mountain standards, this is an easy trail, although it's rated as moderate due to the elevation. If you aren't used to hiking in the mountains, you may find it more difficult than expected simply because of the altitude.
Cross-Canada tour: Stories from every province and territory - The Globe and Mail
Cross-Canada tour: Stories from every province and territory.
Posted: Thu, 29 Jun 2017 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Since 1905, the Lake Agnes Tea House has been serving, with pride, fine loose leaf teas to visitors from around the world. Flowerhead Tea, which is popular for its colorful and playful approach to tea, is slated to open a shop in the year to come. Even the secret tea shop mentioned above may be opening a not-so-secret location in the near future.
Before heading all the way back down to Lake Agnes, we perched ourselves on the edge of the Big Beehive to take in the view over Lake Louise. We could see the tiny canoes on the vivid blue water far below. This trail is probably rated as moderate due to the elevation gain in the given mileage. If you don’t want to arrive before the sun comes up, the shuttle is a great alternative. This is what we opted for as we were driving all the way from Calgary and wanted to visit Moraine Lake afterwards. The old Park & Ride lot we parked at seems to be closed permanently.
Once the stairs are over, the hiking trail is much more natural and comes with lots of rocks and roots. It should be manageable for almost everyone, but hiking shoes would be a big help here. If you are lucky enough to visit Lake Agnes in fall, the lake is surrounded by larch trees. Lake Agnes is incredibly beautiful in fall when the needles on the larch trees change color.
What to Do on a Day Trip to Lake Louise - Avenue Calgary
What to Do on a Day Trip to Lake Louise.
Posted: Fri, 01 Feb 2019 18:11:39 GMT [source]
Sadly, the whitebark pine tree is endangered, so please don’t touch and definitely don’t carve anything into the trunk. You don’t have to be an experienced mountaineer to enjoy the Canadian Rockies. It’s very easy to find several great trails that should be appropriate for all visitors. If this is your first time hiking in the Rockies, take a conservative approach. Pick an adequate hike for your fitness, plan for plenty of time, pack water and food, and don’t be afraid to turn around. If you want to learn more about what to wear hiking, we have a great post.
Hiking to the Lake Agnes Tea House & the Beehives
The hike up Lake Agnes is 3.5 km long and climbs about 400 meters in elevation. There are several worthwhile stops along the way and plenty of trails for detours in the area. You have two options from Mirror Lake up to Lake Agnes, but the trail to the right is more scenic with a small waterfall and provides access to the Little Beehive hike.
In addition, if you add on the Big Beehive hike or the Little Beehive hike, you’ll be treated to a decent amount of golden larch trees, especially on the former. If you are visiting Banff with kids, this is an excellent hike for the entire family. It may be challenging for some kids, with the consistent climb, but it’s well worth it to make it to the top.
Bear Spray – Yep, you’re in bear country so bear spray is something all hikers should carry on the trail to Lake Agnes. So, if you want to enjoy a nice cup of tea and maybe even dessert, be sure to bring some along otherwise it’s a $1 CAD fee if you use a card. For reference, a cup of tea is around $4 CAD and a dessert is around $5 CAD. The trail to Lake Agnes Tea House from Lake Louise isn’t overly difficult and the terrain in summer is not technical. With that said, there is a hefty elevation gain that will catch some hikers by surprise.
This should entail carrying bear spray, hiking in a group and making plenty of noise on the way up. There are relatively few hiking hazards along the Lake Agnes hiking trail. The trail is well maintained and easy to follow up all the way to the Lake Agnes Tea House. The round-trip distance of the Lake Agnes trail is 6.8 km (one-way distance of 3.4 km) from the Lake Agnes trailhead along the Lake Louise lakeshore. After 5.1 km of hiking, Mirror Lake appears through the trees on your left. On a sunny day you can really appreciate turquoise color from this vantage point.
The hike to the Plain of Six Glaciers Tea House is about 11 kilometers return and has an elevation gain of approximately 360 meters. From here, it's only another 800 meters to Lake Agnes, but tired souls sometimes turn around here if they aren't up for completing the hike. Once you've come this far, it's definitely worth pushing on to the Lake Agnes Tea House. The good news is, after you hike up, you can stop and enjoy a snack at the Lake Agnes Tea House and soak in the alpine scenery. Afterwards, you can linger around the lake, tack on a hike up to the Big Beehive if you have more energy, and then meander back down to Lake Louise.
No comments:
Post a Comment