A Few Days in Banff and Lake Louise

You can’t go wrong with a trip to the Rockies, and this road trip was an end of summer long weekend to Banff and Lake Louise. With stops in some icon locations with the most epic views, follow along for highlights of this quick trip to Banff and Lake Louise.

What to See in Banff and Lake Louise

Since we only had a limited time to make this trip to Banff and Lake Louise, we decided to fly into Calgary. If we had more time we would have made the Vancouver to Banff road trip which can be an adventure in itself.

When we arrived in Calgary, we rented a car and made our way to Banff. From there we spent our second night in Lake Louise before driving back to Calgary on our last day to catch our flight. It was definitely a whirlwind trip, but sometimes you just have to get away for the weekend.

We were lucky to have great weather, although there was a bit of smoke from wildfires in some places.

Moraine Lake

Moraine Lake is in Banff National Park and it is a must see. We went there for sunrise and the lake was calm creating beautiful reflections. Early in the morning there were hardly any people, however, by 10am the parking lot was closed because was so busy!! Make sure you go early if you visit in the peak season.

There are just so many things to do in Banff National Park. I need to get back with more time to fully explore this area.

Johnston Canyon

The next two photos are from Johnston Canyon. It is a really amazing area with lots of places to hike and a beautiful waterfalls. We were there at the end of August, so it was busy there, too.

All along the drive we saw so many places to pull over for photos…like these wildflowers that I made Josh pull over for.

I was so happy to see a deer! You know me…I love animals. It is always a treat to watch some wildlife (at a distance) when you get the chance.

Banff and Lake Louise Vlog

While I was on my trip to Banff and Lake Louise, I put together a road trip vlog with all the highlights. You can watch below or on YouTube directly for better quality.

Just another stop along the way to enjoy a beautiful sunset. One of my best road trip tips is to not be too scheduled with your itinerary so that you can just pull over when you see something that interests you.

Takakkaw Falls

Takakkaw Falls is in Yoho National Park and is in British Columbia. This waterfalls is huge and even where I am standing here I was getting wet from the mist.

Natural Bridge

This natural bridge is in Yoho National Park, too.  It was busy during the day so I would recommend hitting it at sunrise or early morning so that you can get out on the bridge without a lot of people in your photo.

Emerald Lake

This is Emerald Lake which is also in Yoho National Park. It is seriously beautiful and the most amazing green colour. You can expect this location to be busy in peak times, too.

Peyto Lake

Peyto Lake was like a dream at sunset!!! The smoke from a wildfire added a haze that seemed the grab all the colours. I love these photos. After we took photos we just sat and watched it until it was dark.

A huge thank you to Josh for all the images and coming with me on this trip! 

Lake Louise

Lake Louise is the most amazing blue green water and as you can guess, it was also so busy this time of year. Actually, year round Lake Louise is beautiful and so very different. This post provides some insight on the best time to visit Lake Louise.

We went really early before the sun was up. We arranged the day prior to rent a canoe for sunrise. The bonus was that we got breakfast with the canoe rental. I would definitely suggest doing this.

While this was just a quick weekend trip, I would love to plan another visit to do some in hiking in Lake Louise and the surrounding area.

Just another random shot along the way.   The smoke from the forest fires was really intense this day and also was block views of the mountains at some points.

Thanks for stopping by the blog to read about Banff and Lake Louise. Road trips in Canada are always the best way to see all the views.