Planning a trip through Banff next year and would like some info on this route. We have a 30 foot 5th with a diesel ford one ton. How is this route? Would also like some tips on campgrounds and sites to see along the way. Prefer hookups. Thanks in advance. Dianne

HalfWhit wrote:Planning a trip through Banff next year and would like some info on this route. We have a 30 foot 5th with a diesel ford one ton. How is this route? Would also like some tips on campgrounds and sites to see along the way. Prefer hookups. Thanks in advance. DianneAs far as the route goes, the worst part is traffic congestion driving through the Kelowna and Westbank area, otherwise, no worries.

Excellent highway. No problem with your combo. Lots of campgrounds but don't have any up to date info that would be useful for you. Happy trails.

You should stop in Field.There is a campground on the opposite side of the highway.The train tunnels are great .....but.....there is a waterfallthat is higher than Niagara and you can walk right up to the base of it.From there go on to Golden.A must see bridge you need to cross to get to Golden.Take the cable car up the mountain and have lunch.Very spectacular on a clear day.Nice campgrounds there also.From there to Three Valley Gap.Stop and take in the sights.On to Revelstoke.From there you can go two ways.1) Take the ferry to Nakusp, drive down the Lower Lakeand then Needles Ferry. Both ferries are free.On into Vernon and connect with Hwy 97 to Penticton.2) Head to Sicamous, follow the highway Enderby and on to Vernon.Hope all this helps.Fantastic country.Oh yes, I have driven it all with a 40footer towing a CRV

luckyd wrote:You should stop in Field.There is a campground on the opposite side of the highway.The train tunnels are great .....but.....there is a waterfallthat is higher than Niagara and you can walk right up to the base of it. The falls he is describing are Takakkaw Falls, about a 300 meter free fall, with boulders at the base that you can climb. It is spectacular and I would highly recommend the side trip off the Trans-Canada Highway to see it. However, there are some hairpin turns that won't take any big MH or long trailer, so the suggestion to get an RV spot in Field is a good one (we watched a tour bus back down one of the hairpins despite signs saying that long vehicles were prohibited).And our favorite lunch on our entire trip to Alaska in 2013 was in West Kelowna at the Quail's Gate Winery. We had lunch on the terrace overlooking the vineyards, with a rose bush blooming at the end of each row. Down the hillside covered with vines was beautiful Lake Okanagan, the biggest of the glacial lakes filling the Okanagan Valley. Getting back to the Okanagan is now near the top of our bucket list!The campgrounds in Banff Tunnel Mountain 2, Jasper Whistlers, and Lake Louise have 15/30A electricity, but no water or sewer hookups except at a very few sites. And there are no private RV parks in those national parks to use as an alternative to the national park campgrounds. So, if you want to stay in the parks and have full hookups, you will need to make reservations very early.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I've been researching the Jasper area. I think we will take a side trip up that way on the Icefields Highway. Probably spend a night or two up there and check out Lake Magnline and the ice fields. I would appreciate any suggestions you all have for that destination as well. I'm already getting super excited and it's a year away. Dianne

Trans Canada Highway from Calgary to Pentition | Good Sam Community

16 Replies

sue_t
Explorer
Oct 18, 2014
Gary Dietz wrote:
Where is Pentition? I cannot find it on Google maps

Gary

I'm assuming you should Google for Penticton, not Pentition.
hedge
Explorer
Oct 18, 2014
Also try to see horseshoe lake, if you're there on a nice day there'll be people cliff diving into the lake. It's not well marked but it's about 12km south of Jasper. I prefer Wapati over Whistlers, especially if I can get a site along the river or the creek.

If you have a lot of time consider going east at Saskatchewan river crossing to the Nordegg area. It's one of my favourite camping spots, all the beauty but not as commercialized and crowded as Banff and to a lesser extent Jasper.
John___Angela
Explorer
Oct 17, 2014
South end of Okanagan lake. Find Kelowna and go south on the lake.
Gary_Dietz
Explorer
Oct 17, 2014
Where is Pentition? I cannot find it on Google maps

Gary
fanrgs
Explorer
Oct 15, 2014
Even if you don't make it to Maligne Lake, don't miss the waterfalls in Maligne Canyon. They are very different than Athabasca Falls, Bow Falls in Banff, and the other larger waterfalls in the Canadian Rockies.
HalfWhit
Explorer
Oct 02, 2014
I thought I read somewhere that there is a shuttle to Maligne Lake from Jasper. I hope to find more information about that. I"ll check out the Angel glacier trails as well. Thanks,

Dianne
Powder_pig
Explorer
Oct 02, 2014
HalfWhit wrote:
Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I've been researching the Jasper area. I think we will take a side trip up that way on the Icefields Highway. Probably spend a night or two up there and check out Lake Magnline and the ice fields. I would appreciate any suggestions you all have for that destination as well. I'm already getting super excited and it's a year away.

Dianne

Maligne lake is pretty though a fairly long drive out of Jasper. The Angel glacier trails are another good area to visit if you don't mind a fairly short hike to the lake at the foot of the glacier or a moderate hike to the alpine meadows.
Mr_Biggles
Explorer
Sep 28, 2014
For Jasper, look at Whistlers campground. It's a NP campsite. Book early. We camp often in the Alberta/ BC Rockies, and Jasper is my favourite area. We camped at Whistler last month for 5 nights. Can't wait to go back.
canadafan
Explorer
Sep 28, 2014
Posted by Luckyd Lake Louise "there is a Provincial Park at the bottom of the hill".

It is a National Parks campground and you should be aware that it is quite close to the railway so can be fairly noisy.
luckyd
Explorer
Sep 28, 2014
When you go to Lake Louise. There is a Provincial C/G at the
bottom of the hill.
Drive your truck to the Lake as it is quite a climb and winding road.
Once on the Columbia Icefields highway, you will come out on the
Yellowhead Highway (5).
You can go to Mount Robson and it is quite beautiful on a clear day.
Campgrounds there also.
From there go through to Kamloops.
Beautiful drive down the Valley.
From Kamloops on to Penticton through the Okanagon Valley.
Take Highway 97