All photos © Robin and Arlene Karpan
Glacier National Park offers amazing hiking, including some challenging backcountry trails. But if you’re looking for short, easy walks that give you a taste for the wild landscapes, these three trails should be on your list. The trailheads are all conveniently situated along the Trans Canada Highway.
One of Canada’s oldest national parks, Glacier NP was established in 1886, only a year after the founding of the country’s first national park in Banff. The Trans Canada Highway takes us through a succession of mountain national parks – Banff in Alberta, followed by Yoho, Glacier, and Mount Revelstoke in eastern British Columbia. Each has its special attractions.
Glacier NP is set among some of the most rugged mountain landscapes that presented significant challenges for building the Canadian Pacific Railway, which was eventually completed through Rogers Pass in the middle of the park. Another engineering accomplishment came in 1962 with the completion of the Trans Canada Highway through Rogers Pass.
Exhibits at the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre tell the story of those triumphs as well as outlining the natural aspects of the park, from flora and fauna to spectacular landscapes of soaring peaks and glaciers.
If you have just come from Banff or Yoho Parks, Glacier NP has a different feel to it. Set in the Columbia Mountains, this is the only inland temperate rainforest in the world. The climate differs from the drier and colder Rocky Mountains just to the east, making this one of the most species-rich forests in Canada.
Meeting of the Waters Trail
This is our favourite short walk, located about 3 km south of the Discovery Centre. To reach the trailhead, take the exit for the Illecillewaet Campground and drive to the parking area at the end of the road. The loop walk of around 1.3 km takes you to the confluence of the Illecillewaet River and Asulkan Brook.
The well-maintained path has little elevation gain and alternates with great views over the mountain peaks and wild river, and an intensely green forest of fir, spruce and hemlock. The confluence is a stunning spot where you cross a short bridge over the frothing waters. Parks Canada’s classic red chairs invite you to linger and enjoy the view.
We also get a history lesson along the way as the trail passes remnants of Glacier House, a luxury hotel which operated from 1887 to 1925. While it seems like a remote location today, the original route of the CPR ran through here, giving visitors access to the wilderness. The hotel became a base for mountaineers, and many of today’s mountain trails in the area were started by the CPR as access routes for climbers.
The problem was that this area was avalanche-prone, with disasters affecting the building and operation of the railway. The Connaught Tunnel was opened in 1916, bypassing Rogers Pass and Glacier House. With a train stop no longer at its doorstop, interest in Glacier House quickly waned, leading to its eventual closure in 1925 and dismantling of the structure a few years later.
We can still see bits of foundations from the 90-room hotel complex, complete with interpretive signs telling its story. A model of the hotel complex in the Rogers Pass Discover Centre shows what a substantial operation this once was.
Hemlock Grove Boardwalk
Located in the eastern part of the park, this is by far the easiest walk, only 0.3 km long and entirely on boardwalk with ramps. It was built as a legacy of Rick Hansen’s 1987 Man in Motion World Tour to raise awareness and create opportunities for those with disabilities.
This short loop takes us through a rainforest canopy of giant cedar and hemlock trees, with a thick green understory of ferns and other plants. Interpretive signs along the way provide details on the old-growth forest and animals that make it their home. One of the more obvious plants covering much of the forest floor is devil’s club with huge maple-shaped leaves. A member of the ginger family, it has been used as a medicinal plant by many Indigenous peoples.
While it is just off the highway, this wonderful walk feels like a magical wonderland and is a great spot to stretch your legs or have a picnic and take a break from highway driving.
Bear Creek Falls Trail
The walk is only one km return, but it has an elevation change of 95 metres. The park rates the hike as moderately difficult. While the trail is steep, there is nothing particularly difficult about it, since staircases on some sections make the walking easier. The challenging part is that you have to be prepared for a bit of huffing and puffing on the way back up.
The trail descends through the forest to Connaught Creek, where you can walk right up to the base of the falls, or as close as you want to get without being soaked from the constant and powerful spray. Take care to protect your camera or phone from the spray, and bring a raincoat if you want to approach the falls. The lower section (the part that we can see up close) drops 20 metres, although the entire falls are 55 metres. It’s a gorgeous setting with the cataract dropping into an icy blue pool and surrounded by rocky walls and thick vegetation.
Resources
For more info on the park, see the Glacier National Park website.
For a more comprehensive look at the many other attractions of the region, see Kootenay Rockies.
Further Reading
Looking for more hiking ideas in Canada’s national parks? Here’s some suggestions.
The Newly Reopened Boundary Bog Trail in Prince Albert National Park
Five Easy Hikes in Saskatchewan’s Prince Albert National Park
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