Best waterfall hikes near Banff
The 15 best waterfall hikes near Banff, out of 24 that we map, ranked by trail score.
How we rank trails Ranked by trail score and distance from Banff, so the score is one of two inputs.
- All hikes
- Easy 105
- Moderate 110
- Hard 138
- Under 5 km 184
- Kid friendly 95
- Lakes 56
- Summits 79
- Views 196
- Canyons 9
- Loops 25
- Backpacking 28
- Wheelchair friendly 7
The list
Sorted by rank- 1Bow Falls TrailNear Banff · Banff National ParkEasy · 2.4 km · 54 m gain · 45 min · 1 km from BanffWaterfall · Views · River or creek · Passes Bow falls viewpoint and Bow Falls93score
- 2Sulphur MountainNear Banff · Banff National ParkModerate · 9.7 km · 670 m gain · 4 h 45 min · 3 km from BanffWaterfall · Summit · Views · Alpine · Passes 224092score
- 3Cascade PondsNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkEasy · 2.1 km · 31 m gain · 35 min · 5 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · Passes Cascade Ponds87score
- 4Johnston CanyonNear Moose Meadows · Banff National ParkEasy · 5.7 km · 218 m gain · 2 h · 20 km from BanffWaterfall · Views · River or creek · Canyon · Passes Johnston Creek Valley and Lower Falls97score
- 5Grassi LakesNear Canmore · Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial ParkEasy · 3.0 km · 150 m gain · 1 h 15 min · 16 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · Views · Passes Lower Grassi Lake88score
- 6Johnston Canyon TrailNear Moose Meadows · Banff National ParkHard · 15.1 km · 556 m gain · 5 h 15 min · 20 km from BanffWaterfall · Views · River or creek · Canyon · Passes Johnston Creek Valley and Lower Falls90score
- 7Cascade ValleyNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkModerate · 118.2 km · 2,481 m gain · 36 h 15 min · 9 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · Views · River or creek · Passes Wigmore Lake76score
- 8Bow Falls/ Banff Springs TrailsNear Banff · Banff National ParkEasy · 0.9 km · 43 m gain · 20 min · 2 km from BanffWaterfall · River or creek69score
- 9Riders of RohanNear Canmore · Bow Valley Wildland Provincial ParkModerate · 2.4 km · 267 m gain · 1 h 45 min · 16 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · Views · Passes Lower Grassi Lake83score
- 10Cascade Ponds BankheadNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkEasy · 3.1 km · 20 m gain · 50 min · 7 km from BanffWaterfall73score
- 11Cascade Mountain Scramble RouteNear Banff · Banff National ParkExpert · 6.6 km · 882 m gain · 7 h · 7 km from BanffWaterfall · Summit · Views · Alpine · Passes Cascade Mountain68score
- 12Trans Canada TrailNear Canmore · CanmoreModerate · 6.8 km · 88 m gain · 2 h · 18 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · River or creek · Passes Canmore Sulphur Pond and Three Sisters Creek Falls70score
- 13Cascade AmphitheatreNear Banff · Banff National ParkModerate · 9.0 km · 608 m gain · 4 h 15 min · 6 km from BanffWaterfall · Alpine · Passes Cascade Amphitheatre59score
- 14Grotto CanyonNear Exshaw · Bow Valley Provincial ParkHard · 11.6 km · 741 m gain · 5 h 30 min · 29 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · Canyon · Cave · Passes Grotto Mountain Pond81score
- 15Legacy Trail to Cascade PondsNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkEasy · 1.2 km · 10 m gain · 20 min · 5 km from BanffLake · Waterfall · River or creek · Passes Cascade Ponds57score