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    Sunwapta Falls

    4.3 (12 reviews)

    Sunwapta Falls Photos

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    Sunwapta Falls
    Jacqueline T.

    This is a nice falls a little bit off of Icefields Parkway. It's a very short hike down to it if you'd even call it a hike. With it's position on the river, it's hard to get a great view of the falls. There's a bridge that goes across the river, but you the view isn't the best from there. There are a couple of spots along the side of the river with good views. It's a quick stop and worth seeing.

    Marissa C.

    Review for Upper Sunwapta Falls - easy "hike" that felt more like an overlook in a way (about 0.5 miles). You need a professional camera if you want that iconic photo of the "island" but we tried with our iPhone anyways lol. If you're hungry, stop by the lodge on the way out and grab breakfast at their restaurant, use the restroom, or browse the gift shop.

    Easy walk from parking lot
    Tim L.

    Nice waterfall and easy access. This is one of the more popular stops on Icefields Parkway. The walk from parking lot to the falls is only 100 meters and mostly flat (great relief after a long day). The view is great and there's not too many tourists here. Highly recommend if you have 20 minutes to spare!

    Map of Falls and nearby hikes - near Sunwapta Resort.
    Daniel C.

    The Sunwapta Falls was our second stop on the journey from Jasper to Banff, right after the Athabasca Falls. The funny thing is that Sunwapta has a huge marketing department. A huge parking lot, restsurant, resort, gift shop, and gigantic welcome/info sign are all visible from the freeway. Alas, the actual falls are down a mile on a separate road. You'll find a smaller parking lot with signs pointing the way to the falls or the various hiking trails around it. Although we were more impressed by the roar and spectacle of the Athabasca Falls, the Sunwapta Falls are also worth visiting. You can hike down near the bottom to see the falls or climb onto the steel bridge for an aerial view. One nice thing about the Sunwapta Falls (as opposed to the Athabasca Falls), is that they seem to have more options for nearby hiking trails. Unfortunately, it was raining and we were somewhat pressed to drive back to Banff, so we passed.

    Jason H.

    These massive falls lay farther south in Jasper national park. It's one of many falls. If you are heading south you will see a diner/hotel/gift shop to your right. You can relax here and grab a bite or room and when you are ready to go there is a road that leads further down. Start driving down and you'll come up to a parking lot. The trail itself is paved and extremely short so no worries on a long hiking trail. There are many vantage points to where you can take a picture of. Just fyi, the sun goes down fairly quick in this section as the trees block the sun earlier than usual. This place should only take maybe 30 minutes at best to take in the scenery and get a few good pictures.

    View of pedestrian bridge at Sunwapta Falls

    This is a nice stop. You can walk along the path to get various perspectives of the Sunwapta Falls and the river. Easy parking and shaded trail. Well worth stopping unless you're short on time.

    Sunwapta Falls
    Leesa M.

    A stunning view! Personally, I find this more beautiful than Spirit Island. This is an easy stop off of the Icefields Parkways that is accessible to anyone. The falls, the island like feel, the power of the water all nestled in the evergreens is the perfect photo op. It can get crowded and since there is a lot of people trying to get photos, it makes it hard for you to see it or get photos yourself without other people in them, but it's worth it. Wait around, maneuver, stand and enjoy the site.

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    Review Highlights - Sunwapta Falls

    This is an easy stop off of the Icefields Parkways that is accessible to anyone.

    Mentioned in 5 reviews

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    Jasper SkyTram - The tramway entrance...

    Jasper SkyTram

    3.9(36 reviews)
    4.9 km

    To reach the SkyTram's lower terminal, you drive a couple of miles south from Jasper townsite and…read moreturn off onto a side road that leads up to the parking area. The lot can fill up so you may end up parking on the road's shoulder. I think you can reserve tickets online, but we just did walk-up (as we were not sure when we'd arrive on our first day after the 4-hour drive). When we got there (a bit before 2 p.m. on a Sunday), they were selling tickets for a tram just before 4 p.m. They also want you to book a rough return time. We opted for 2 hours. We then drove back to Jasper to explore the town for an hour before returning to wait at the terminal. If you can, you should schedule your ticket in advance to avoid a long wait. This area also has a café of some sort (outdoor seating), a gift shop, and the ticket office. There are also restrooms here. The trams run every 7 - 8 minutes (there are 2 operating in tandem). They call your time slot and you queue up awaiting the tram. It soon arrives and your group is herded in. Then you have a 7-minute ride to the top. There is a similar terminal at the top, but with a sit-down restaurant also. The main attraction here is hiking. You are above the tree line, so the trails are all just dirt among barren ground and stones. You do notice the air being a bit thinner here also. If you have hiking poles, they will be helpful. It is a bit desolate (other than all your fellow hikers) but still pretty in its own way. If you aren't interested in hiking up to the nearby summit, then you may want to question whether the tram rides and strolling a bit are worth the ~ $60 CDN price (per person). When you want to return, you can either wait for your agreed slot or inquire with the staff whether there are known extra spaces on earlier trams. We were lucky and got 2 spaces 25 minutes or so early, which was good. Also, it is colder at the top, especially if you are waiting in the shade. You may want to bring a light jacket (even in summer). The visit here is definitely better on a really clear day. There was lingering smoke from wildfires earlier in the summer when we visited, which degraded the views of more distant mountains.

    Mid Sept with warm sun so we lucked out. Arrive before 11am and the ride up will be full be 1pm…read morecoming down wasn't crowded. The hike is moderate to advanced but you can take your time to the lookout and enjoy the beautiful panoramic Rocky Mountains. Highly recommended

    Photos
    Jasper SkyTram
    Jasper SkyTram
    Jasper SkyTram

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    Mount Robson Park - Playing Around...

    Mount Robson Park

    5.0(3 reviews)
    78.3 km

    Must stop place. Not only it's beautiful location but also have all the things that a road trip…read moreperson would need. Gas, food, drinks, picturesque views, washrooms, drinking water, clothing n hats , huge parking for RV's , park trail to walk n stretche a bit, dog walk area, kids slides ... Museum gives you very educational tour of the times of summit. You can actually register here to climb the mountain, watch videos of the previous climbers, find some artifacts or just enjoy the view of spectacular robson mountain. Cafe has vegetarian and vegan choices. Fresh fruit , yogurt n cheese also available but little more pricey then regular drive throughs. N why not? Its in the middle of nowhere. I mean far away but definable reachable and accessible from highway. All staff at the museum, cafe n gift shop are nice and friendly. As a single traveller i had my time here. Enjoyed the views over a cup of soup. Freshen up quickly n on my way to edmonton.

    Whenever I come out to Mount Robson Provincial Park, I always stop and take a gander through the…read moregift shop. This is a family owned and operated business for more than 40 years. In many tourist areas, the souvenirs are pretty similar. This shop also has the regular garb - pens, mugs, knick nacks, tshirts, books on the area, etc. However, it also has some unique items that in the past, have motivated me to purchase. A few years ago, they had a bunch of hoodies that are a bit more expensive, and they were artistically inspired. They were not logo'ed from the area. I remember talking to the gal who was working, and she mentioned it was someone local. I paid about $45 for the hoodie, and I have not seen another one anywhere, so needless to say, I'm pretty pleased. When I headed back there today, I saw a few more of these unique hoodies, but sadly, there were none on my size. However, there was a large rack of unique scarves, that were selling for only $10. Game on! Definately check out this little shop. I know that tourists are inundated with the same old stuff everywhere you go. Just be advised that this shop does offer a few reasonably priced, unique items.

    Photos
    Mount Robson Park
    Mount Robson Park - Wow... BC and Alberta are BIG.

    Wow... BC and Alberta are BIG.

    Mount Robson Park

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    Valley of the Five Lakes - Lakeview

    Valley of the Five Lakes

    4.7(6 reviews)
    7.8 km

    The Valley of the 5 Lakes is a 3 mile loop trail near Jasper. It's considered a moderately…read morechallenging route, it takes an average of 1 1/2 hours to complete. This is a very popular area for hiking, mountain biking & paddle sports, we encountered other friendly people while exploring. The best times to visit this trail are June through October. Dogs are welcome, but must be leashed. Before starting out on the trails, there's a trailhead sign listing hikes with information. The short hike took me past all 5 spectacular lakes. 4th Lake was terrific! Here the waters were clear, clear green and the reflection of the forest trees onto the waters was like a painting from some professional artist! I mean, really, I was loving this 4th Lake. Stunning! 3rd Lake - my favorite lake! The reflection here again...was this unreal, futuristic aspect where the mountainside surrounding the lake converged down towards the middle and the reflection was symmetrical. You got both angles of the trees coming at you from both sides. And while walking above this 3rd Lake, the center of it was dark green with a light blend of turquoise green on the outer sections of it. It was too good to be true! I was impressed! 2nd Lake was sort of a downer. Weird. Out of nowhere coming across this lake, it was like a pale brownish. But still, it was clean enough at the bottom to where you could still see the reflections of the trees. So, ultimately, it wasn't too colorful, but the reflections were good enough. And honestly, it was sort of a nice change of pace from the rest of the others. Finally 1st Lake. This had the best coloring in terms of real good turquoise blue but just unfortunately the trees overtook the perspectives from the trail. If they only did some maintenance around it...1st lake would be everyone's favorite, lol. 1st Lake is the biggest of them all and will take you the longest amount of time to navigate around.

    We put this hike off til last as the parking lot was packed on our previous passes. We stopped in…read morearound 7pm & there were only a few other cars. We took it slow in hopes of catching the sunset & ended up clocking about 3.6mi on our counters before exiting around 10pm. There were plenty of mosquitoes, you may want to take repellent if they tend to like you. (I get bitten but the hubs isn't as tasty, apparently.) Don't go in expecting a flat trail. While most of the trail is relatively level, there are some climbs (complete with signs to warn of steep hills), no matter which way you go. We logged 568ft of total elevation gain. We opted to go counterclockwise (going right at the loop) & would do it the same direction again, if we repeat the trail. What you will see for colors, reflections & water clarity will depend on lighting, wind & weather.

    Photos
    Valley of the Five Lakes
    Valley of the Five Lakes - From a distance

    From a distance

    Valley of the Five Lakes - Boardwalk crossing

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    Boardwalk crossing

    Sulphur Skyline Trail - On the way up

    Sulphur Skyline Trail

    4.5(8 reviews)
    36.8 km

    This was one of my favorite hikes that we did between Banff and Jasper…read more The trail starts to the left by the heated pool house. It's about a 4-5 mile hike and it took us about 3.5 hours to do. The hike up was pretty steep, but not unmanagable. You start out on a horse path for a bit before it turns into a dirt path. About half way to the top the path takes a turn to the right and then there are a bunch of switchbacks. Close to the top you get above the treeline and it starts to get windy. The trail turns into gravel there and gets a lot steeper. The climb is worth it though. The views at the top are amazing. You can see 360 degrees around you. It's incredibly windy at the top. We almost got blown over while we were taking a picture. It's about an hour drive from Jasper and definitely worth the trek to the top!

    STEPH JUDGEMENT: Tough but rewarding hike with some of best views of the area…read more This was the first hike of our trip so we were all excited and rarin' to go! The trailhead is right next to the Miette Hot Springs parking lot and very easy to find. We'd gone for a pre-hike dip at the springs and felt nice and relaxed. Which was good, because it was pretty much a straight uphill climb for 2.2 miles and the last quarter mile or so was pure agony, but you feel so good when you finally make it! We lingered at the summit with the other hikers, eating our packed lunch and taking in the breathtaking views. There were a lot of really cute chipmunks at the summit that were obviously used to being fed by people (which you're not supposed to do, and we didn't) and were bold enough to come right up to your feet to look for scraps. The other best part was rolling right into the hot springs again after our hike and soaking the aches away.

    Photos
    Sulphur Skyline Trail - View from the summit

    View from the summit

    Sulphur Skyline Trail - View from the summit

    View from the summit

    Sulphur Skyline Trail - On the way up

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    On the way up

    Cavell Meadows Trail

    Cavell Meadows Trail

    4.7(3 reviews)
    19.9 km

    The Edith Cavell hike overlooking Angel Glacier was breathtaking. The hike was a bit strenuous in…read moreparts but that was also due to the cold winter air blowing it. The hike is worth it! I could have sat on the rocks looking unto the glacier for hours had the temperature not dropped significantly and the snow fall. It is a beautiful area and didn't have many tourists so it was perfect!

    The meadows trail is a must-see and must-do for people who visit Jasper. It's a little challenging…read morebut not that difficult. Takes a couple of hours to get all the way to the top for someone like me who is not at all fit and is suffering from knee problems on both knees. The greatest thing about this trail is that it is completely rewarding. You climb up to point number 3 on the trail (which is roughly 4 km from the start and an elevation gain of 500 metres) and the views of the Angel glacier, lake and the Cavell meadows are beautiful. While climbing up, you'll have the opportunity to see some really pretty wild flowers that grow in this sub-alpine forest. It's totally worth half a day's work and the best part is, when you get back down, you can complete the Glacier loop and get really close to the glacier. Leave that for the end and you'll enjoy your day thoroughly. I would go on to recommend starting this trail a little early in the day. 9 a.m.m would be great. You'd reach the top with the sun shining nicely on the face of Mt. Edith Cavell and with a terrific color of the Angel lake.

    Photos
    Cavell Meadows Trail
    Cavell Meadows Trail

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    Wilcox Pass - The trailhead for Wilcox Pass.

    Wilcox Pass

    4.5(2 reviews)
    94.6 km

    This is Wilcox Pass Trail located in the Columbia Icefield section of Jasper National Park…read more It's an 8 kilometer (or 5 mile) moderate, roundtrip hike offering rewarding views of Athabasca and Snow Dome Glaciers set in the distance. Basically...if you'd like to capture a landscape/panoramic perspective of this ultra popular, Icefields Parkway area from high above...then you'll appreciate venturing along Wilcox Pass Trail. The hike ends when you have reached Wilcox Ridge, the "pinnacle of it all" where you'll have undisturbed, vista point sceneries. Here at Wilcox Ridge...some hikers were taking selfies as well as sitting and relaxing while having water and snacks. Btw, an added bonus midway through the hike was...passing by a family of bighorn sheep while they were lying and grazing in the grass right along the path towards Wilcox Ridge. Now...I highly recommend you proceed onto Wilcox Pass Trail in the morning to be afforded time with the sun at your back and making for worthwhile picture opportunities. Funny...unfortunately for me, the first time I arrived here, I stopped in the afternoon and the sun was staring me straight in the face. I was barely able to admire the setting because I was blinded by the sun and couldn't see. Welp...with a 2nd chance to make things right, lol, I woke up the following morning (at 6am!) and was the first hiker onto the trail. This made all the difference. With the sun's positioning in the sky exactly where I wanted it, I was now able to have wonderful moments breathing in the fresh Canadian air while enjoying the glacial surroundings. Overall, it made for a fulfilling morning and first half of my day. One extra note...right nearby here (just a few kilometers down the road) is another 1/2-day hike I'd recommend called - Parker Ridge Trail. And, of course, don't forget to spend time at the Columbia Icefield Lodge and taking a tour out onto Athabasca Glacier (which almost every tourist does). Alright, well, this is Wilcox Pass trail situated in the heart of Jasper NP, Alberta, Canada.

    This trail is probably the nicest short trail in Banff-Jasper area, especially when there are no…read moreforest fires or low clouds, so you get perfect views of mountains Athabasca, Andromeda, North Twin, and Columbia icefields. I don't think any other trail in the Rockies is that rewarding in terms of the views from the top. We didn't see any wildlife except for lone elk and some pikas, but people report seeing marmots and mountain goats. Someone told us that there are some fossils right at the top, we tried to find them but couldn't. I recommend starting your hike early in the morning as by 2pm the sun will be right behind the mountains and you would see anything. Also, by noon, the trail will be crowded, we met over 30 people on the way down.

    Photos
    Wilcox Pass - 1.5 kilometers away from Wilcox Ridge.

    1.5 kilometers away from Wilcox Ridge.

    Wilcox Pass - Appreciating the morning sunrise setting with the snowcapped mountain in the background.

    Appreciating the morning sunrise setting with the snowcapped mountain in the background.

    Wilcox Pass - The road sign for Wilcox Pass.

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    The road sign for Wilcox Pass.

    Sunwapta Falls - hiking - Updated May 2026

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