Hi Everyone! Here's What’s Happening This Week!

Three bear warnings went up this week, and every one of them covers ground people use daily - a trail, a picnic area, a campground. Horseshoe Loop is under warning after a close encounter with a black bear and her cubs. A sow and cub are working the Mt. Lorette Ponds picnic areas and parking lot, where Alberta Parks advises staying in your vehicle. In Lake Louise, black and grizzly bears are feeding on berries through the village, the RV campground and the Bow River trails.

Tunnel Mountain presents a different sort of obstacle. Banff Centre has started charging for trailhead parking, with day rates up to $50 ahead of a campus-wide rollout on August 19. Staff, students and some visitors are exempt. Hikers are not.

If that has cooled your enthusiasm for driving to trailheads, an e-bike run along the Bow Valley Parkway and a walk into Johnston Canyon's Lower Falls removes the parking question entirely, with a shuttle back to Banff at the end.

Further north, the Athabasca Glacier runs on the same rhythm as everywhere else here - busy from mid-morning, empty by evening. Staying at Glacier View Lodge, the only hotel right at the glacier, means you are still there when the coaches have gone, and the only sound left is meltwater.

Plan Your Visit To Banff For August | September | October

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Combine two very different Banff experiences. A relaxed e-bike ride through Vermilion Lakes and along the Bow Valley Parkway, then stretch your legs on the walk to Johnston Canyon's Lower Falls. Afterwards, simply hop on the shuttle back to Banff.

Check it out and book

🐻 Three Bear Warnings, Two Valleys. A close encounter with a black bear and her cubs has put Horseshoe Loop under warning, while a sow and cub are working the Mt. Lorette Ponds picnic areas and parking lot, where Alberta Parks advises staying in your vehicle. In Lake Louise, black and grizzly bears are feeding on berries through the village, RV campground and Bow River trails - which is to say, everywhere people already are.

🚗 Tunnel Mountain Trailhead Parking Now $50. Banff Centre has started charging for trailhead parking, with day rates up to $50, ahead of a campus-wide rollout August 19. Staff, students and some visitors are exempt; hikers are not.

🌮 Grizzly Paw Fires Up Mexican BBQ. Five courses of Mexican-inspired barbecue paired with Grizzly Paw beers hit the Canmore beer garden on August 19. Tickets run $136, tax and gratuity included.

🐿️ Kananaskis Marmot Comes Home Twice. A hoary marmot that hitched a ride from Ptarmigan Cirque turned up in the same Airdrie garage on back-to-back visits before her release into the wild this month. Where exactly, nobody said.

🚧 Jasper Starts Phase Two Utility Repairs. Crews move onto Connaught Drive, Patricia and Geikie streets within weeks, combining fire repairs with ageing pipe replacement. The $7.63-million job needs $4 million in borrowing, since recovery funding won't cover the renewal side.

☀️ Sunshine takes over the weekend and settles in for the week ahead - Saturday is a mix of sun and cloud with a chance of showers, the high is 21°C, Sunday goes fully sunny at 24°C, and Monday holds that sunshine at a warm 23°C. That warmer, brighter stretch is here and sticking around. Full Forecast Here

⛳ DeChambeau Ranks Banff Springs Second. The pro golfer's video from Banff Springs Golf Course passed a million views in a day. He shot six under, met the wildlife bins, and put the course behind California's Cypress Point.

🧊 Columbia Icefield Ice Explorer & Glacier Skywalk - Board a six-wheeled Ice Explorer out onto the Athabasca Glacier, then step onto a glass floor suspended 280 metres above the Sunwapta Valley.

🚡 Jasper SkyTram - Seven and a half minutes gets you to the shoulder of Whistlers Mountain, where a boardwalk delivers views across six mountain ranges, Mount Robson included on clear days. Keen hikers can push on another 1.4km to the true summit.

🍂 Larch Valley Guided Hike - An 8.8km climb through switchbacks to where the subalpine larches turn gold each September, with a stop at Moraine Lake's Rockpile on the way in and Lake Louise on the way back. Guide-prepared lunch and trekking poles are included; transfers run from Canmore, Banff or Lake Louise.

✈️ Can foreigners move to Banff? Yes, but you need legal status in Canada first - typically a work permit or permanent residency. Moving to Banff from abroad usually starts with a job offer.

🏔️ How does Canmore compare to Banff for family-friendly hiking? Canmore's easy trails are right in town, free to access, and less crowded than Banff's popular routes - making it a genuinely practical choice for families with young children.

🐻 Who is Split Lip? He is Bear No. 136, a 500-600 pound grizzly in Banff National Park named for a distinctive facial scar earned through years of brutal rivalry - and his full history in the Canadian Rockies is even more extraordinary. See the full guide

Once the day trippers clear out along the Icefields Parkway, guests here get the glacier to themselves, with nothing but ice and the sound of meltwater until morning.

Check it out here

Yesterday’s Question: What is the only way for tourists to reach the famous Spirit Island viewpoint at Maligne Lake?

✅Answer: 3) By boat or non-motorised watercraft - 77% Correct

Spirit Island can only be reached by boat and is one of Jasper’s most iconic sights. For a boating experience closer to Banff, check out Lake Minnewanka.

📅 Featured events for today are listed below. Visit our website for a complete list.

FULL EVENT CALENDAR | BANFF & LAKE LOUISE | CANMORE

13:15 | Saturday Distillery Tour | Wild Life Distillery | Canmore

18:00 | Gregg Boldger | Rose and Crown Canmore | Canmore

18:00 | Sunset Festival @ Banff Gondola | Banff Gondola | Banff

18:30 | Live Musician Night | The Dusty Boot | Banff

19:30 | Jazz & Sonic Arts Concert | The Banff Centre | Banff

19:30 | Jasper Historical Tour | Jasper Town | Jasper

21:00 | DJ Najee | Tavern 1883 | Canmore

21:30 | Jazz Jams Session | The Banff Centre | Banff

22:00 | Club Night: DJ Raven | High Rollers | Banff

22:00 | Red Mile High | Rose and Crown Banff | Banff

22:00 | DJ Nazo | The Drake | Canmore

22:00 | Northern Quarter | The Drake | Canmore

22:00 | DJ TENAX | Rose and Crown Canmore | Canmore

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