Best glacier hikes in Alberta
The 25 best glacier hikes in Alberta, out of 137 that we map, ranked by trail score.
How we rank trails Ranked by trail score, highest first.
- All hikes
- Easy 1,139
- Moderate 662
- Hard 1,193
- Under 5 km 1,547
- Kid friendly 1,101
- Waterfalls 89
- Lakes 445
- Summits 652
- Views 1,398
- Canyons 50
- Loops 245
- Backpacking 266
- Wheelchair friendly 75
The list
Sorted by rank- 1Plain of Six GlaciersNear Lake Louise · Banff National ParkModerate · 13.7 km · 692 m gain · 5 h 30 minLake · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Plain of Six Glaciers Tea House and Lake Louise96score
- 2SkylineNear Maligne Canyon · Jasper National ParkHard · 45.2 km · 1,953 m gain · 16 hLake · Views · Glacier · Camping · Passes Amber Mountain and Notch94score
- 3Caldron LakeBanff National ParkModerate · 13.9 km · 956 m gain · 6 h 45 minLake · Views · River or creek · Glacier · Passes Peyto Lake · Viewpoint and Caldron Lake92score
- 4Bow Glacier FallsBanff National ParkModerate · 9.1 km · 187 m gain · 2 h 45 minLake · Waterfall · Views · Glacier · Passes Bow Lake and Bow Glacier Falls90score
- 5Cavell MeadowsNear Jasper · Jasper National ParkModerate · 5.6 km · 472 m gain · 3 h 15 minViews · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Edith Cavell Pond and Trail's End88score
- 6Caldron Peak TrailBanff National ParkHard · 20.1 km · 1,487 m gain · 10 h 30 minLake · Summit · Views · River or creek · Passes Peyto Lake · Viewpoint and Caldron Lake87score
- 7Boundary Peak RouteJasper National ParkHard · 14.8 km · 1,625 m gain · 10 h 30 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine85score
- 8Mount Niblock RouteNear Lake Louise · Banff National ParkExpert · 4.8 km · 791 m gain · 6 hLake · Summit · Views · Glacier · Passes Lake Agnes and Mount Niblock83score
- 9Mount Perren RouteNear Lake Louise · Banff National ParkHard · 7.4 km · 1,120 m gain · 7 hLake · Views · Glacier · Hut or tea house · Passes Moraine Lake and Neil Colgan Hut82score
- 10Neil Colgan Hut RouteNear Lake Louise · Banff National ParkHard · 10.0 km · 1,233 m gain · 7 h 45 minLake · Views · Glacier · Hut or tea house · Passes Moraine Lake and Peak 3.582score
- 11Athabasca Toe of the GlacierJasper National ParkEasy · 1.9 km · 66 m gain · 40 minViews · Glacier · Historic site81score
- 12Wilcox Pass TrailJasper National ParkHard · 19.6 km · 716 m gain · 6 h 45 minViews · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Wilcox Pass81score
- 13Mount Athabasca RouteJasper National ParkExpert · 9.9 km · 1,402 m gain · 11 hSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Mount Athabasca80score
- 14Columbia Icefield RouteJasper National ParkExpert · 11.5 km · 734 m gain · 6 h 45 minViews · Glacier · Historic site · Alpine80score
- 15Observation Peak RouteBanff National ParkHard · 7.8 km · 1,202 m gain · 7 h 30 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Observation Peak78score
- 16Conical Peak Descent RouteBanff National ParkHard · 2.8 km · 455 m gain · 2 h 45 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine77score
- 17Mount Temple RouteNear Lake Louise · Banff National ParkExpert · 2.7 km · 589 m gain · 4 h 15 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Mount Temple77score
- 18Rae Glacier RouteNear Fortress Junction · Elbow Sheep Wildland Provincial ParkModerate · 5.0 km · 263 m gain · 2 hLake · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Elbow Lake77score
- 19Glacier LakeNear Saskatchewan River Crossing · Banff National ParkHard · 14.9 km · 587 m gain · 5 h 15 minLake · Views · Glacier · Camping · Passes Viewpoing and Glacier Lake76score
- 20Jimmy Junior RouteBanff National ParkHard · 4.8 km · 800 m gain · 4 h 45 minLake · Summit · Views · Glacier · Passes Bow Lake and Jimmy Junior Peak75score
- 21Mount Victoria North PeakNear Lake Louise · Banff National ParkExpert · 7.2 km · 1,288 m gain · 9 h 45 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Mount Victoria North Peak74score
- 22Sunwapta Peak RouteJasper National ParkHard · 11.6 km · 1,726 m gain · 10 h 45 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Sunwapta Peak73score
- 23Mount Sarbach RouteNear Saskatchewan River Crossing · Banff National ParkHard · 17.5 km · 1,756 m gain · 11 h 30 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Mistaya Canyon and Mount Sarbach73score
- 24Nigel Peak RouteJasper National ParkHard · 6.9 km · 927 m gain · 5 h 45 minSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Nigel Peak73score
- 25Big Bend Peak RouteBanff National ParkHard · 12.1 km · 1,228 m gain · 8 hSummit · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Big Bend Peak72score