Best lake hikes near Calgary
The 15 best lake hikes near Calgary, out of 151 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
- Summits 409
- Views 773
- Glaciers 24
- Canyons 21
- Loops 100
- Backpacking 84
- Wheelchair friendly 26
The list
Sorted by rank- 1Grassi LakesNear Canmore · Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial ParkEasy · 3.0 km · 150 m gain · 1 h 15 min · 94 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Views · Passes Lower Grassi Lake88score
- 2Rawson Lake TrailNear Fortress Junction · Peter Lougheed Provincial ParkModerate · 8.7 km · 390 m gain · 3 h 15 min · 89 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Views · River or creek · Passes Upper Kananaskis Lake and View of the Lake in front of Mount Sarrail85score
- 3Elbow Pass/Lake TrailNear Fortress Junction · Elbow Sheep Wildland Provincial ParkModerate · 10.5 km · 264 m gain · 3 h 15 min · 82 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Views · River or creek · Passes Elbow Pass and Elbow Lake82score
- 4Vermilion Lakes RoadNear Banff · Banff National ParkEasy · 8.5 km · 58 m gain · 2 h 15 min · 111 km from CalgaryLake · Views · River or creek · Passes 3rd Vermilion Lake and Vermilion Lake Viewpoint91score
- 5Grotto 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
- 6Three Isle Lake TrailNear Fortress Junction · Peter Lougheed Provincial ParkHard · 22.5 km · 867 m gain · 8 h · 89 km from CalgaryLake · Views · River or creek · Camping · Passes Upper Kananaskis Lake83score
- 7Lake MinnewankaNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkModerate · 3.5 km · 78 m gain · 1 h · 103 km from CalgaryLake · Views · River or creek · Passes Lake Minnewanka and Lake Minnewanka Cruise87score
- 8Cascade PondsNear Anthracite · Banff National ParkEasy · 2.1 km · 31 m gain · 35 min · 105 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Passes Cascade Ponds87score
- 9The Wedge RouteNear Mount Kidd RV Park · Elbow Sheep Wildland Provincial ParkHard · 7.6 km · 1,114 m gain · 7 h · 79 km from CalgaryLake · Summit · Views · Alpine · Passes Wedge Pond and The Wedge79score
- 10Riders of RohanNear Canmore · Bow Valley Wildland Provincial ParkModerate · 2.4 km · 267 m gain · 1 h 45 min · 94 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Views · Passes Lower Grassi Lake83score
- 11Pocaterra CirqueNear Fortress Junction · Peter Lougheed Provincial ParkModerate · 7.0 km · 265 m gain · 2 h 30 min · 82 km from CalgaryLake · Views · Alpine · Passes Pocaterra Tarn79score
- 12Upper Kananaskis Lake TrailNear Fortress Junction · Peter Lougheed Provincial ParkModerate · 10.4 km · 249 m gain · 3 h 15 min · 89 km from CalgaryLake · Waterfall · Camping · Passes Upper Kananaskis Lake80score
- 13Rae Glacier RouteNear Fortress Junction · Elbow Sheep Wildland Provincial ParkModerate · 5.0 km · 263 m gain · 2 h · 80 km from CalgaryLake · Views · Glacier · Alpine · Passes Elbow Lake77score
- 14Chester LakeNear Fortress Mountain Resort · Peter Lougheed Provincial ParkModerate · 8.9 km · 356 m gain · 3 h 15 min · 92 km from CalgaryLake · Views · River or creek · Alpine · Passes Chester Lake80score
- 15Burstall Pass TrailNear Fortress Mountain Resort · Banff National ParkHard · 25.0 km · 1,036 m gain · 9 h · 92 km from CalgaryLake · Views · River or creek · Alpine · Passes Mud Lake and Burstall Pass80score