Looking for a less touristy alternative to Banff and Jasper when planning your next Parks Canada vacation?
I found the answer this fall at Waterton Lakes National Park, in the southwest corner of Alberta just a three hour drive from Calgary.
The park is the smallest national park in the Canadian Rockies, spanning an area of 505 square kilometres (195 sq. miles) but it provides some of the biggest wow moments you’ll likely ever experience, when visiting this UNESCO World Heritage Site and international peace park. Waterton Lakes National Park shares an unguarded border with Montana’s much larger Glacier National Park (Glacier National Park is about 10 times the size of Waterton Lakes National Park) - the U.S. park that makes up the other half of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. As a symbol of goodwill between Canada and the United States, this was the first peace park of its kind when it was created in 1932.
The picturesque Canadian park has it all from clear, turquoise lakes, waterfalls, a vivid red rock canyon, to 255 km. (191 miles) of hiking trails and plenty of opportunities to see wildlife. Among the more than 60 species of mammals in the park, I was hoping to see a bear when I visited in mid-September, since a colleague had spotted one a day earlier in the lower valley, where they were known to feed in abundant berry patches in late summer and early fall.
While I didn’t see any bears myself, I did see head-butting elks fighting over large harems, from a distance, after being advised by locals to head to a specific spot around sunrise or dusk since they were known to congregate there this time of year.
My elk sighting was just outside the small town of Waterton, located in the heart of the national park and which gets about 475,000 visitors annually - half of which come during July and August although the park is open year round. That fact alone convinced me travelling in the quieter fall months definitely has its advantages, not to mention the benefit of seeing fall colors, particularly yellow from the aspens.
The town has a population of around 150 people, according to Statistics Canada, but only 40 stay there during the tougher winter months, says long-time resident Lauren Baker.
Her family, which runs Tamarack Outdoors, has owned a business on this downtown site since 1922, beginning when her husband’s grandfather opened the Park Transfer Company, providing trucking parts and working as a mechanic. The family closed that company in the 1980s and started a shuttle and guiding company, aimed at the growing tourism sector in Waterton.
“In the ‘30s, ‘40s, ‘50s, they had a gas station that was open year-round because people were living here year-round. It changed dramatically in the 70s when Waterton became more seasonal. Fewer people live here now because the school closed in 1995,” she says.
“Waterton is very quiet in winter but our business is quite intensive in summer. I joke I’ll recover when the climate changes. This corner of Alberta gets the most snow in Alberta but we’re also the warmest part of Alberta in the winter so it’s a balance.”
Baker, an avid hiker and cross-country skier, says there are hikes suitable for all levels in Waterton Lakes National Park and enjoys leading a few herself as an occasional guide with Tamarack. The company also shuttles hikers to different trailheads in the park, and offers guided kayaking trips on Waterton lakes, operating from May to October.
Besides its hiking trails, a scenic portion of Waterton Lakes National Park can be explored by car on two, short road trips — one to Cameron Lake and the other to Red Rock Canyon.
With the former, I took a 90-minute bus tour with Open Top Touring, in an open-topped coach inspired by the 1930s with a guide dressed in the same period costume. (The company also does tours in Banff and Jasper.)
Our driver picked me up at the historic Prince of Wales hotel, built over 10 months between 1926 and 1927, during the golden age or railway resort development to lure American tourists to the Canadian Rockies during U.S. prohibition. The hotel, built by the Great Northern Railway, looks like an alpine chalet with its beautiful oak timber-framed interior evoking the same atmosphere of that era.
It also proved to be the perfect spot to enjoy traditional afternoon tea, with its spectacular view of Upper Waterton Lake.
The lake, which straddles Canada and the U.S., is also the deepest lake in the Canadian Rockies at 148 metres, at its deepest point.
One of the highlights of my trip was being able to get out on Upper Waterton Lake on the historic M.V. International. The wooden sailing vessel has been ferrying passengers between Goat Haunt, the northern gateway to Glacier National Park in Montana, to Emerald Bay in Waterton since 1927 (suspending trips only during WW II and COVID).
The two-hour cruise brought us close to the shoreline where we saw an osprey diving into the water and a few eagles on trees but unfortunately no bears. After coming ashore in Goat Haunt we walked over to the U.S. Ranger station, in the isolated back country, for a short talk by ranger Frank John, from Oregon who works in the park from May to October.
“I love how peaceful it is and the solitude,” he says.
“We get people here from around the world. They may be on a two-day backpacking trip or hiking the Continental Divide Trail, that starts in Mexico and ends here at the border.”
John says he also enjoys meeting day tourists who have the opportunity to get on the M.V. International, without a VISA or passport, and walk to the U.S. ranger station. Visitors can’t go further unless they make arrangements online with U.S. Customs.
“Right now you are in one of the most remarkably peaceful places in this park. Go to any other popular place in Glacier (National Park) in summer and you’ll be overwhelmed with hundreds if not thousands of people. Right now, we have just a few dozen.”
The captain of the M.V. International Phil Ruppel, now in his 25th season operating the passenger ship says the boat was built on Upper Waterton Lake at the same time the Prince of Wales Hotel was built in 1927 and for the same reason — to attract people to the region.
“A boat ride is something everybody can do. Not everyone can hike, not everybody can horseback ride or even want to but everyone can take a boat ride,” says Ruppel.
“This is one way you can get the back country experience.”
Where to stay if you go:
If you enjoy camping one of the most popular campgrounds in the park is The Waterton Townsite Campground, located across the street from Upper Waterton Lake, within an easy walk to downtown and Cameron Falls.
If you want to splurge and are into history then the Prince of Wales, on top of a grassy hillside looking down on the lake and village, is a good choice but if you want to be within an easy walking distance to the lake and downtown amenities then I would recommend the Bayshore Inn & Spa since it’s the only hotel directly on the shores of Waterton Lake. Book early to get a water view suite. It also has one of the best restaurants in town, the Lakeside Chophouse, with an outdoor patio overlooking the lake.
Kim Pemberton was hosted by Travel Alberta, which did not review or approve this story. Follow her on Instagram at kimstravelogue.
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