The Banff-Windmere Highway, sometimes known as the Banff-Radium Highway, Highway 93 South, or the Kootenay Parkway, is the only highway through Kootenay National Park. Entrance to this park is at Castle Junction, which is nearly midway between Banff and Lake Louise on the Trans-Canada Highway and ends in Radium Hot Springs, British Columbia.
We did this 104km drive (65 miles one-way) on our last day in the Canadian Rockies. We had low-hanging clouds, and it was lightly raining in spurts. Happy that we had chosen to be car tourists this day, we set off not knowing what adventure this day would bring.
As soon as we turned onto Highway 93 South, the road started to climb and continued to do so for the first 3 or 4 miles, until we reached the Continental Divide at 5,650 feet. A pullout here provided a panorama view of the Kootenay National Park to the west and Banff National Park to the east. We also obtained a good view of the Vermilion Pass Burn area from this pullout (thousands of acres burned as a result of a lightning strike in July, 1968), and the short Fireweed Trail leaves from this area.
About 6 miles farther down the road was Marble Canyon. This area was closed on our visit, but it usually opens mid-June. There is an un-serviced campground here, but the main sight is the canyon.
Our next stop was at the Paint Pots, or the "Ochre Beds". After crossing a swinging bridge over the fast flowing Vermillion River, we took the half-mile nature trail to the paint pots. Here we found several areas stained with red, orange, black, and mustard-yellow dirt, water pools amongst green grass, and burnt trees, with snow-capped mountains surrounding the area. An informational sign told us the early natives believed animal spirits resided in the springs and that they collected the colored ochre and used it for body paint during important rituals.
Another 3 miles up the road had us hopping out of the van at the Numa Falls Picnic Area. At the south end of the picnic area, a bridge spanned across the Vermillion River, where it funneled through a narrow gorge and formed a fast-flowing waterfall. Restrooms were available here.
The next stop was at the Kootenay Park Lodge complex, which had historic cabin accommodations (available May through September), a restaurant, general store (complete with souvenirs), and a gas station.
A couple points of interest along the next stretch of miles were Mountain Goat Lick (mountain goats are known to frequent this area for the rich minerals found on the side of the highway, but we didn’t see any) and Hector Gorge Viewpoint, which provided a beautiful view of the Kootenay Valley, Vermillion River, and the Vermillion Mountain Range.
As we were driving along, my husband commented that he hadn’t seen any wildlife. I casually reminded him that the last time he spoke those words, he passed up a bear standing on the side of the road. We rounded a curve near the beautiful emerald-colored Olive Lake, and there, on the roadside in a sea of yellow dandelions, laid a big black bear eating ever so happily. We pulled off to the side of the road and got some good photos. It wasn’t long until we had created a "bear jam" and the slamming of car doors frightened it away. My husband was happy! He had seen a bear ,and this one made number 27 on our trip.
We continued on our way to Radium Hot Springs, passing through Sinclair Canyon and the only tunnel in the Canadian Rockies, the Iron Gates Tunnel. We stopped at the parking area immediately out of the tunnel, which had picture-perfect, astounding red cliffs against a bright blue sky. I couldn’t pass up this photo opportunity.
Immediately following this area was the Radium Hot Springs Aquacourt. This complex has a swimming pool, the hot pool, bathhouse, and a restaurant. We parked and took a quick tour of this area. We actually did not go into the town of Radium Hot Springs, but the small town has over 30 motels, several restaurants, and a golf course.
As we drove back towards Banff National Park, we saw two more black bears eating dandelions on the side of the road near the Redstreak Creek Trail trailhead. We managed to get a few photos before a truck pulled up and scared one of them across the road. The other one just kept eating, oblivious to the gawking tourists!! It was funny watching the bear eat; it was like a vacuum cleaner sucking up the tops of the dandelions. That made bear sightings number 28 and 29 for us. About 14 miles up the road near McLeod Meadows Campground, we spotted a mother bear with two cubs that were extremely small compared to the other cubs we had seen. We could not believe there were this many bears in the area. But, oh, were we happy!!
There are many more short and easy interpretive hikes, as well as scenic viewpoints located throughout Kootenay National Park. This was our laid-back, not-in-a-hurry driving tour and just a few of our favorite stops.
If planning to drive through the Kootenay National Park, a parks pass is required. They can be purchased at any park entrance gate or park information center. We found that it was much cheaper to purchase a year’s pass instead of paying by the day. A year pass was $89, versus a family day pass of $14 per day. Kootenay National Park only has a few services, and those are at the Kootenay Park Lodge. Make sure you have a full tank of gas when you start.
The landscape of Kootenay is varied and beautiful in its own way. You will have a different type of national park experience by making this drive, one that showcases nature as it really is.