Complete Guide of Icefields Parkway Drive from Lake Louise to Columbia Icefields

Last Updated on July 18, 2024 by William Alexander

I was very excited and full of enjoyment about the icefields parkway drive from Lake Louise to Columbia Icefields. And I can’t explain how much I researched about it. I started this trip with my four friends . 

Whenever people decide to visit Banff National Park ,Lake Louise  always comes first in mind. So happily  we also started from lake louise and ended at columbia icefields (and again back to lake louise ).

Now I know some questions are raised in your mind. What are the best stops, and what will eat food? Time in driving , Temperature conditions , gears you will use . so do not worry about it .

In this guide, I will answer all of your questions about Icefields Parkway Drive.

So let’s get started.

Introduction of Icefields Parkway?

The northern Highway 93 connection between the Banff National park and Jasper national park is called Icefields Parkway. It’s a very scenic drive. 

Distance And Time for Icefields Parkways.

This drive starts from Banff National Park to Columbia Icefields on Highway 93.

This is a complete road between Banff Park, Lake Louise, and Jasper National Park, which is full of scenic drive and views of waterfalls. It offers incredible scenery of the Canadian Rockies.

An entire itinerary drive takes about  5 hours and covers a 144-mile distance.

While this Time is best for summer traffic. While I recommended you to count 2 hours extra for sightseeing stops.

The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see.

Gilbert K. Chesterton

A Full Itinerary of Icefields Parkway Drive from Lake Louise to Columbia Icefields

It was the best day, and we started our drive from Banff National Park. We decided to complete our track along the icefields parkway in 1 day .

while now you know the total distance for a road trip to icefields parkway . if it’s too much driving in a car for you we recommend you to stay on the following points for relaxation and enjoy more .

The following are the best points for a visit.

1. Lake Louise.
2. Herbert Lake
3. Crowfoot Glacier
4. Bow Lake
5. Peyto Lake
6. Columbia Icefield and the Athabasca Glacier
7. Glacier Skywalk
8. Sunwapta Falls
9. Athabasca Falls

1: Start at Lake Louise.

Our first stop is Lake Louise. Lake Louise is one of the most beautiful hamlets in Banff National Park in between the Canadian Rockies . It’s also known for its turquoise.

We visited Lake Louise first . We started  from Banff in the morning. Now we were tired after the driving of 58 km and now it’s Time to lunch .

Trailhead Cafe is one of the best cafes here. I highly recommend you to-go lunch from Trailhead Cafe. After lunch we decide to continue again banff to jasper .We left the Lake Louise area at 12:35 AM.

Now, we were leaving Lake Louise, and the next point was  Herbert Lake for a stop.

2: Herbert Lake.

Herbert Lake is small in size . It’s a  glacial lake (Body of water that flows from glacier)situated on the Icefields Parkway.

We reached Herbert Lake after taking audio guidelines from the map .We decided to spend very less amount of Time on Herbert Lake. It was our first experience of such a glorious lake . Lake was incredible.

The lake looked terrific due to the reflection of nearby trees.

So, Let’s get started again. Way to Jasper.

3: Crowfoot Glacier.

After Herbert Lake we arrived on Crowfoot Glacier . We were also enjoying songs along the route. Crowfoot Glacier is one the first glaciers from the most popular 100 glaciers of icefields parkway .

This glacier was not looking good because it had melted, so we decided to move again and start driving to jasper. 

The next Point was Bow Lake.

4: Bow Lake

I recommend  you to visit Bow Lake . Because this is the best place for family picnics and hiking.  I feel too much peace in that place .

It has many tranquil areas where we can enjoy ourselves with ourselves and our family. It is the most popular stop along the icefields. And the most beautiful lake.

After seeing this lake, my heart was full of happiness.

5: Peyto Lake

Now we have reached the peyto lake viewpoint. It was the first point where we spent more than 30 minutes . It is also known as bow summit.

We want to spend more Time here, but we already have too much work for the Columbia Icefield adventure. This also has straight mountains for hiking.

In the mountains, the top views were terrific. Beautiful green trees were vacillated due to air pollution.

After that, we headed back to drive along the parkway.

6: Columbia Icefield and the Athabasca Glacier.

One of the largest icefields in the Canadian Rockies is Columbia Icefield. This is the most popular stop along Highway 93 North.

I recommend that for the best viewpoint,  visit the park on the right-hand side of the road. Do not  cross barriers around the roads for safety reasons. 

7: Glacier Skywalk

Glacier Skywalk is a cliff-edge walkway . It provides the best view of Sunwapta And Columbia Icefield. We spent some time here. It is the longest walkway in Parkway from Banff to Jasper.

Here we decided to take some bites of food from a restaurant that is situated on the back side of  Glacier Discovery Centre and Columbia icefields discovery.

I recommend you take food from these restaurants; the taste is very good.

8: Sunwapta Falls

After leaving Glacier Skywalk we were very close to the town of Jasper . Which are known as Sunwapta Falls . Here we click some pictures because these views are eye-catching . 

Sunwapta Valley was Wonderful. If you are a nature lover, it’s very best for you. 

9: Athabasca Falls

Before going back to Banff National Park, we visited the Athabasca Falls.  We drive 20 minutes to Sunwapta valley. 

Athabasca Falls was full of water. This waterfall has a high volume of water.

Total Time Of our Icefields Parkway Itinerary 

We spent a total of 14 hours driving the Icefields Parkway. After that, we stopped on the Icefields Parkway to relax. This trip was the best trips of my life. Road conditions were perfect. 

Best Tips for enjoying the drive of  Icefields Parkway.

Here is a list of some essential tips and tricks for enjoying Icefields Parkway Drive from Lake Louise to Columbia Icefields

1. Download the Map of  Icefields Parkway due to sims network problems in That area.
2. Download the audio map app for Proper Guidelines.
3. Full tank of gas in your car due to not any gas station in icefields parkway road trip. 
4. Order to drive the icefields. Check Weather conditions in those areas.
5. Start your drive early in the morning.
6. Stay safe from wildlife. And take some knives and for safety 
7. Don’t Break Speed limits. The speed limit on Icefields Parkway, Canada, is 90 km/hr.
8. Driving According to weather conditions, driving from Banff to Jasper in summer is easy, while in winter, it is difficult, so be prepared for it. And drive along the Icefields Parkway.

FAQs

The camera makes everyone a tourist in other people’s reality, and eventually in one’s own.

Susan Sontag

Bring to an end our Icefields Parkway Drive from Lake Louise to Columbia Icefields.

Now I am going to conclude my complete itinerary. We enjoyed nature, food, friends, and company very much. After reading this article i don’t know which visit place you like in this itinerary but my recommendation is to spend most of your time at Lake Louise