Horseshoe Lake Trail
Near Lake Louise · Banff National Park
Trail score 61 out of 100, from popularity, scenery and trail quality
About this trail
Horseshoe Lake Trail is a 5.5 km loop trail near Lake Louise in Banff National Park. The route gains 207 m in total and tops out at 2,218 m. Hike Alberta rates it hard. Allow about 2 hours of moving time. It passes six mapped trail junctions. At the start a 60 m side branch with the same name splits off. The map also shows a separate section with the same name that is not part of this route. The distance and climb above follow this route only, not its branches. Along the way you pass Giant Steps and a backcountry campground.
- Length
- 5.5km
- Elevation gain
- 207m
- Estimated time
- 2h
- Moving time
- Route
- Loop
- Highest point
- 2,218m
- Lowest point
- 2,053m
Elevation profile
2,053 m to 2,218 mHighest point 2,218 m, lowest 2,053 m, 207 m of climbing in total. Steepest sustained grade about 44% over 100 m.
Predicted coverage: 100% of route
0% LTE · 100% 5G
- Longest modelled gap
- 0.0 km
- Model
- 2024 · Natural Resources Canada
Predicted coverage is not guaranteed. It varies by carrier, terrain, weather, device and network load, and it does not guarantee emergency service.
Along the way
- 0.7 kmGiant StepsViewpoint
- 1.0 kmParadise Valley Campground (PA10)Backcountry campground
Good for
- Hiking
- Dog friendly (on leash)
- Lake, Views, Glacier, Camping, Alpine
Rankings
Trailhead
The trail starts at 51.3545° N, 116.2423° W.
Banff National Park admission
National park admission required
Pass details
Visitors spending time in a national park need valid daily admission or a Parks Canada Discovery Pass. Admission is separate from camping, reservations, parking and other service fees.
Information checked October 21, 2026.
Before you go
Carry an offline map and plan for no service in backcountry areas. Trails close for wildlife, fire, weather and construction. Check the official sources:
Nearby trails
- Sentinel Pass · Paradise ValleyModerate · 2.0 km · 58 m gain · 0.3 km away
- Sentinel PassHard · 5.6 km · 559 m gain · 0.8 km away
- Mounts Aberdeen and Haddo RoutesHard · 7.6 km · 1,312 m gain · 1.2 km away
- Mount Temple, South West Ridge RouteExpert · 1.3 km · 318 m gain · 2.1 km away
- Mount Temple RouteExpert · 2.7 km · 589 m gain · 2.3 km away
- Paradise ValleyModerate · 5.9 km · 193 m gain · 2.7 km away
All 588 trails in Banff National Park
Trail data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL
Elevation © Mapterhorn from NRCan HRDEM (Open Government Licence Canada) and Copernicus GLO 30