This Is Why You’ll Love The Enchanting Lake Louise

There are several intriguing castle-like resorts in the Canadian Rockies. When we booked our Canadian Rockies trip, we chose the tour that had us staying in 3 of these “castles”. This post describes our stay in the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise as well as the places we visited in the surrounding area. It was a little pricey but worth it for the memories.

Kelowna to Banff

Our Tour started in Vancouver. On the way east to Lake Louise, we spent 2 nights in amazing Kelowna. Read my Kelowna post for that story here.

The Last Spike

We stopped in Craigellachie, BC where the last spike was driven for the 3,000-mile transcontinental railroad on November 7, 1885. This track was a dream that pushed through prairies and mountain passes. It twisted through canyons and bridged a thousand streams from ocean to ocean.

Rogers Pass Discovery Centre

Next, we headed toward Rogers Pass and the Discovery Centre in Glacier National Park.

Rogers Pass is designated as a National Historic Site in commemoration of its role as an essential link in the building of the transcontinental railway.

In the heart of Rogers Pass National Historic Site, the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre is a replica of a historic railway snowshed.

The recently-renovated information center features a theatre, exhibits about avalanches, wildlife and the area’s history.

One taxidermied animal I saw in the Discovery Centre was the wolverine. I was not familiar with it but now I know that it is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The wolverine has a reputation for ferocity and strength out of proportion to its size, with the documented ability to kill prey many times larger than itself. One of the places where they are still found is Northern Canada.

Spiral Tunnels

The historic Lower and Upper Spiral Tunnels that wind through the blackness are miracles of early 20^th-century engineering that allowed trains to climb previously impassable grades. Although anywhere from 25 to 30 freight trains traverse the Spiral Tunnels to this day, Rocky Mountaineer is the only regularly scheduled passenger train to have that privilege. Since we were not on the Rocky Mountaineer train, that would be an excellent reason to come back and ride on it.

Lake Louise: A Beautiful and Cold Lake

Finally, we reached Lake Louise located in the heart of Banff National Park. It is one of the most photographed sites in Canada and possibly the world.

In the busy summer months, up to 15,000 people a day visit the shore of Lake Louise between dawn and dusk. But it is not a lake that you would want to swim in as it doesn’t thaw until the first week in June. Fortunately, we were there the second week of June and the ice had cleared. Even in the summer, the temperature of the water rarely gets above 41F.

Even if you have seen photos of the lake, they still won’t prepare you for how it feels to experience it yourself. The sight of the emerald green water and rugged peaks and glaciers is dramatically beautiful. Late in the day, it is quiet and still. It was a feeling I will remember forever.

Chateau Lake Louise, Alberta Canada

Known for breathtaking mountain views, its iconic turquoise blue lake, and fantastic family skiing at nearby ski areas, the Lake Louise area is one of the most incredible places on earth to visit, any time of year. 

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise features breathtaking views of Lake Louise and the surrounding Canadian Rocky Mountains. Elegant and polished, yet relaxed and inviting, it is a 539-room resort in Banff National Park.

Originally built as a base for outdoor enthusiasts and alpinists over 100 years ago, the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise is a year-round luxury mountain resort offering guided mountain tours, world-class skiing in the winter, scenic hiking and canoe activities in the summer. There is also a kid’s camp and a luxury spa.

Our stay there included our choice of dinner in any of their 3 deluxe restaurants. The prime rib was suburb and the dessert was delicious. We had a window table with a direct view of the lake.

Lake Louise Mountain Resort Gondola

Our tour guide took us to the Lake Louise Mountain Resort for a gondola ride to the top. We spent 14 glorious minutes in a fully enclosed gondola enjoying some of Banff National Park’s greatest views!

Once at the top there were views of Victoria Glacier, hiking trails, and wildlife viewing opportunities.

Columbia Ice Field Adventure in Jasper on the Ice Explorer Bus

This was one of the highlights of the trip. It started at the Discovery Center and Gift Shop where we boarded buses to the glacier. Once there, we transferred to the Ice Explorer vehicles.

The giant Ice Explorer took us onto the Athabasca Glacier where stepped right onto the glacier ice. We wandered around enjoying the view and marveling at the size of the glacier. It is 3.7 miles long, covers an area of 2.3 square miles, and is measured to be between 300–980 feet thick.

Summary

This was only a part of our Canadian Rocky Tour but I will never forget the castle-like Chateau Lake Louise and all the fascinating stops we made in the surrounding areas. It took me quite a while to get to the Canadian Rockies because I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains and thought that it would just be more of the same. Not so! It is so much more – unique and wondrous! Be sure to put it on your bucket list.

Be sure to check out my YouTube Channel at Sandy Over 70!