Best canyon hikes near Calgary
The 15 best canyon hikes near Calgary, out of 21 that we map, ranked by trail score.
How we rank trails Ranked by trail score and distance from Calgary, so the score is one of two inputs.
- All hikes
- Easy 373
- Moderate 348
- Hard 647
- Under 5 km 653
- Kid friendly 347
- Waterfalls 44
- Lakes 151
- Summits 409
- Views 773
- Glaciers 24
- Loops 100
- Backpacking 84
- Wheelchair friendly 26
The list
Sorted by rank- 1Johnston CanyonNear Moose Meadows · Banff National ParkEasy · 5.7 km · 218 m gain · 2 h · 126 km from CalgaryWaterfall · Views · River or creek · Canyon · Passes Johnston Creek Valley and Lower Falls97score
- 2Grotto CanyonNear Exshaw · Bow Valley Provincial ParkHard · 11.6 km · 741 m gain · 5 h 30 min · 80 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Canyon · Cave · Passes Grotto Mountain Pond81score
- 3Gorge CreekNear Diamond Valley · Bluerock Wildland Provincial ParkHard · 21.6 km · 713 m gain · 7 h 15 min · 61 km from CalgaryWaterfall · River or creek · Canyon72score
- 4Johnston Canyon TrailNear Moose Meadows · Banff National ParkHard · 15.1 km · 556 m gain · 5 h 15 min · 126 km from CalgaryWaterfall · Views · River or creek · Canyon · Passes Johnston Creek Valley and Lower Falls90score
- 5Gorge Creek LoopNear Diamond Valley · Bluerock Wildland Provincial ParkHard · 21.7 km · 641 m gain · 7 h 15 min · 61 km from CalgaryWaterfall · River or creek · Canyon · Camping70score
- 6Stewart CanyonNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkEasy · 2.4 km · 80 m gain · 50 min · 103 km from CalgaryViews · River or creek · Canyon · Passes View point76score
- 7Sundance CanyonNear Banff · Banff National ParkModerate · 1.9 km · 90 m gain · 45 min · 109 km from CalgaryViews · River or creek · Canyon · Passes Sundance Canyon Trail Viewpoint66score
- 8Upper Canyon Creek SE Ridge RouteNear Kananaskis Village · Elbow Sheep Wildland Provincial ParkHard · 4.9 km · 670 m gain · 4 h 15 min · 66 km from CalgarySummit · Views · River or creek · Canyon · Passes Bryant Ridge Peak 455score
- 9Canyon Creek TrailNear Paddy's Flat · Ing's Mine Provincial Recreation AreaModerate · 10.9 km · 267 m gain · 3 h 30 min · 54 km from CalgaryRiver or creek · Canyon52score
- 10Steve Canyon RouteNear Exshaw · Bow Valley Provincial ParkEasy · 1.0 km · 63 m gain · 25 min · 80 km from CalgaryLake · Canyon · Passes Grotto Mountain Pond56score
- 11South Gorge CreekNear Diamond Valley · Bluerock Wildland Provincial ParkModerate · 10.6 km · 330 m gain · 3 h 30 min · 61 km from CalgaryRiver or creek · Canyon52score
- 12Canyon Creek Peaks RouteNear Kananaskis Village · Don Getty Wildland Provincial ParkHard · 8.7 km · 937 m gain · 6 h · 64 km from CalgaryViews · River or creek · Canyon · Alpine · Passes Bryant Ridge Peak 1 and Bryant Ridge Peak 252score
- 13Upper Canyon Creek Drain RouteNear Kananaskis Village · Elbow Sheep Wildland Provincial ParkHard · 4.4 km · 312 m gain · 2 h 15 min · 65 km from CalgaryViews · River or creek · Canyon · Alpine50score
- 1412 Mile Coulee Trail SystemNear Bearspaw · 12 Mile CouleeModerate · 5.5 km · 116 m gain · 1 h 45 min · 16 km from CalgaryRiver or creek · Canyon42score
- 15King Creek CanyonNear Fortress Junction · Peter Lougheed Provincial ParkHard · 3.3 km · 288 m gain · 2 h · 82 km from CalgaryRiver or creek · Canyon50score