Ice Fields Parkway Hwy 93

oldtrojan66 wrote:
I searched all the known names of this highway, with no success. Who has driven Hwy 93 either way through the national park? The questions I have are condition of highway (Google earth looks good). Also, with the Canadian National Park Pass, will a daily pass allow us to stay more than one day after entering the park? Also, are reservations needed at Lake Louise campground in June?

Hi, I live in Calgary so I am only an hour from the park and up there most weekends x-country skiing.

We have had a very mild winter this year, very little snow compared to most years. Those roads are always keep clear because of the traffic going back and forth to the various ski resorts. No worries at all. I would always make reservations ahead as the parks are used extensively. In June it will be easy to get a spot but reserving is better.

Just go to the Government of Canada National parks website and pick the park you want to stay at. You can see what site is available, pick a site and view the pictures of the site, reserve with a CC and you are good to go. Maybe just reserve a week or so ahead. In July and August, it is a different story, sites fill up quick when the kidds are out of school.
Lynn

Between Lake Louise and Jasper there are number of organized, but basic campgrounds. That is, no hookups and such. But you still need to register, pay and follow the rules. The newspaper that you get at the gate has that information. You can also download the pdf.

oldtrojan66 wrote:
Thanks for all the great responses. Just Feb and we are already antsy about leaving. I think we will take our chances. Yes, I know this is not the advised path, but we really don't want to be tied to dates. If we have to stay outside the park until a reservation opens up, so be it. Have some people to see before we get out of the states, so dates are really hard to pin down. Thanks again!

HAHA sounds like what I went through last year before my grand adventure. Start packing your RV now... I started a month before I left and was still adding and removing things up until the day I left, as I'm terrible at organization.

I'm not schooled on what is/isn't allowed in Canadian National Parks, but I will say, driving around the dirt roads / trails that lead off 93, I saw plenty of sites that are obviously being used as boon docking campsites. Actually right off the main highway maybe 20-30 miles North of Lake Louise there's a huge dirt parking lot that once served a now abandoned campground. You can't get into the campground itself, that's thoroughly barricaded, but the parking lot had people camping in it when I drove past mid June.

Thanks for all the great responses. Just Feb and we are already antsy about leaving. I think we will take our chances. Yes, I know this is not the advised path, but we really don't want to be tied to dates. If we have to stay outside the park until a reservation opens up, so be it. Have some people to see before we get out of the states, so dates are really hard to pin down. Thanks again!

oldtrojan66 wrote:
I searched all the known names of this highway, with no success. Who has driven Hwy 93 either way through the national park? The questions I have are condition of highway (Google earth looks good). Also, with the Canadian National Park Pass, will a daily pass allow us to stay more than one day after entering the park? Also, are reservations needed at Lake Louise campground in June?

I was on 93 mid May, it was fantastic. Lots of snow still in the hills, all the lakes frozen. Very few tourists.

Lake Louise CG wasn't busy and about 80% of the sites were closed due to snow.

Skip ahead, I was back again in mid June. 93 was crazy busy and you surely needed reservations at the campgrounds. Most of Lake Louise CG was still closed. Whistlers in Jasper was all open, and all full except some of the rustic no services sites. The CG across the highway from Whistlers, I forget the name, was 100% closed due to renovations, so that made congestion even worse.

We've found that the annual pass is worth the money if you are going to be in the area for more than a few days. We used to visit the Canadian Maritime parks quite often due to their close proximity. Right now we are looking at possibly flying to Banff/Jasper and even if we do, Fundy National Park can be done in a long weekend. And if we give the National Park service a bit extra, so be it.

Hi,

The road is good.

Do reserve a spot.

They will ask to see your National Parks pass when you register. If another day is needed you can purchase it at that time.

The Lake Louise campground is surrounded by an electric fence to keep bears away.

The Icefields Parkway is worth driving both ways -- an amazing road. Take your time -- stop at the pullouts -- bring a good camera. This is just a typical shot along the roadway -- this is near the Icefields at the summit:

Daily pass is good for 24 hours. If your stay in the national Park system(Banff, Yoho, Jasper and many others) will be 6 days or more then the annual pass is the cheapest way to go - good for one year, anywhere in Canada.
Yes the icefields Parkway ( #93 ) is a good road - slow because of the scenery/tourists.
and yes - Lake Louise cg in June - you should make reservations.

There's lots of discussion of this route on the Canada/Alaska board. Just search for Banff or Jasper or Icefields.