Lake Louise: Emerald of the Canadian Rockies

Emerald/turquoise water, soaring mountains, glaciers, tall trees and mountain air-and all from the comforts of a five star hotel- await the visitor to Lake Louise. It is the home of the world famous Chateau Lake Louise, a resort built to entice tourists to travel the Canadian Pacific Railroad through the Canadian Rockies. The hotel sits at the foot of the lake and captures the view from many of its public spaces as well as the guest rooms. Even if you elect to stay at another property, a visit to the Chateau for a meal or just to see the lake from the Lobby Bar will be well worthwhile.

The hotel is not alone. In addition to the nearby Lake Louise Ski area, Lake Louise is also home to smaller hotel properties as well as a small number of restaurants and shops. It does not rate as a bustling town or even a sleepy village…it is more of a cross roads that grew up around the Chateau. A visit to Lake Louise is for drinking in the beauty of the lake and mountains, hiking through hillsides, skiing and getting away from civilization in a very civilized way.

Quick Tips:

Most visitors fly into Calgary and either drive or take a bus to Lake Louise. We have found that Calgary is worth a night or two before venturing on to the lake. In addition to overnighting in Calgary, we combined a visit to Lake Louise with a stay at Banff on both of our trips to the area. This is a great way to include two world-class resorts on a single trip…as long as you allow enough time at each property. Banff is both a larger resort and located in a sizable town, so we allocate more time to stay there. We also prefer to stay in Banff on the way back to Calgary thus ending our trip with more options for activities and dining.

Canada has made strides in simplifying the process of claiming a refund for your Value Added Taxes (VAT). Be sure to get the latest procedures and save your receipts as it can add up quickly! On our first trip in 1997, we arrived at the airport with too little time to pursue our refund; however, on a more recent trip we were able to obtain the refund via mail.

Best Way To Get Around:

Many visitors to Lake Louise fly into Calgary and travel the roughly 2-3 hour trip by bus. This is convenient, and bus transit is included in many of the package deals offered by the Chateau Lake Louise. We have traveled there by bus and also by rental car, but we found the flexibility of our own car well worth the extra costs. It enabled us to set out on our own schedule, to eat at alternative restaurants and to make day trips to other locations at times that best suited us. On our first trip, the bellman at the Calgary airport hotel gave us a sheet of paper with highlights to watch for along the way marked by mileage from the hotel. The drive is scenic, with views such as the Three Sisters peaks. You enter the Banff National Park along the road to Lake Louise and must pay an entry fee when traveling by car (package deals will usually include this). Recent fees were C.00 for adults, C.00 for seniors and C.50 for youths (see ). A word of warning: the traffic cameras in Calgary will catch you despite your best efforts, so be alert to changing speed limits!

As you round the last corner of the winding approach to the hotel, the chateau suddenly fills the view…a midrise building with Swiss details. You step into a large lobby framed with graceful archways, a grand staircase on your right that leads to a gallery and an opening on your left that ultimately leads to the Lobby Bar. While the stairs are impressive, it is the huge crystal clear window in the bar that will draw you like a magnate. It looks out over the full length of the lake to the glacier and mountains that feed it. In the winter, it offers a snowy vista with Nordic skiers on the frozen lake. In summer, the emerald/turquoise water is surreal (the color is due to minerals in the melting glaciers).

The reception desk opposite the main door runs the length of the lobby. The clerks are friendly and you may well find that your room has been upgraded if the hotel is not full. All of our special requests were met with a smile and executed with style. The hotel offers lake and mountain view rooms. Clearly the lake view rooms are the premium option, but all views are outstanding. The lake view offers one additional feature …it is much more quiet. The mountain view rooms face the parking lot. It quickly fills with buses that seem to be perpetually backing up (BEEP, BEEP, BEEP). This was especially noticeable because we kept the window open (there is no air conditioning).

The rooms vary in space and appointments. Even the budget room offered as part of a ski package was comfortable. We spent little time there, however, as relaxing in the Lobby Bar with its lake view, hiking the trail around the lake, picnicking in the snow and venturing out on day trips occupied most of our time. The trail around the lake is wide and easy to walk. For the more adventurous, side trails lead up the hillside and, in the winter, across the lake itself.

The hotel is a self-contained village with a variety of shops, travel services, restaurants and lounges. You need not ever step foot outside, but don’t miss the mountain air! Picnics are a great way to enjoy the outdoors. If you are on a budget, consider getting your supplies from the Samson Mall shopping center "in town." When money is not a concern, you can order one packed and ready to go, or purchase it ala cart at the deli on the main floor.

The 250 seat Glacier Saloon downstairs is a welcoming venue after a hike or when returning from a day trip. Its heavy wood trim and western motif provide a comfortable retreat. There is often live music here and a dance floor for the adventurous two-stepper. Restaurants include the Victoria Dining Room (fine dining), the Poppy Room (casual dining), the Edelweiss Dining Room (fine Canadian dining) and the Walliser Stube (see separate journal entry). Their web site is .

The Walliser Stube is one of the premium restaurants in the Chateau Lake Louise serving Swiss Alpine cuisine. You enter through a narrow, richly paneled bar area that leads to two principal seating areas. The paneling, furniture and unusual wine library are all crafted from solid cherry. These dark and atmospheric rooms blend a feeling of a baronial European hunting lodge with elegantly appointed fine dining. The second seating area also offers views on the lake side of the hotel.

The menu echoes the European hunting lodge motif by highlighting changing game dishes along with Swiss favorites such as fondue and cheese raclette. An extensive wine list and knowledgeable servers ensure that heavy or light fare will be well matched. We opted for the novelty of the raclette, a large heated portion of cheese on a spit. You scrape off portions of the melted cheese on the surface to eat with the selection of meats and other side items arrayed in front of you. This was a heavy meal, but we relished the new experience. We also sampled the beef which was served with exceptional rosti potatoes.

The Walliser is a comfortable fine dining option that cannot and should not be rushed. The surroundings are cozy in scale but in keeping with the luxurious standards of the hotel. Service is excellent and very helpful for patrons who need assistance with the menu or the wine list, and the food is outstanding. The prices are high, but so are the standards. Be sure to call ahead for a reservation to avoid disappointment.

A short bus ride from the Chateau will whisk you to the slopes of the Lake Louise Ski Area, one of the premiere ski resorts in the Canadian Rockies. Buses to and from the hotel are frequent and operate on a first come-first serve basis, just take care not to miss the last one out! This full service ski area boasts a 3250 foot vertical rise topping out at 8650 feet and an extensive base complex with multiple dining options, equipment rentals, ski lessons and pro shops. Looking up from the decks at the base, you see a variety of trails; however, you are only looking at a small portion of the ski area. It extends much further up and back and provides opportunities for skiers of all abilities in its 4000 skiable acres and 105 runs.

The mountain has three major areas serviced by eight lifts (3 quads, 2 triples and 3 doubles): the South Face, the Back Bowls and the Larch area. I am a solid intermediate skier, and I found plenty of options. My preference is to get out of the base area as quickly as possible and enjoy the Back Bowls and Larch for the majority of my time. Larch has one lift serving some long and optionally steep blue runs. Most of the runs were groomed during my visit, but there were powder options and some challenging moguls, especially in the back bowls. Conditions were good in February that year, comparing favorably with my usual haunts in Utah and Colorado. The runs are 30% black, 45% blue and 25% green. My wife, a non-skier, found comfortable places to wait for me, and the staff treated her well during her long stays at various establishments.

I opted to rent skis at the Chateau, but a better option would be to rent and store the skis on the mountain if you only plan to ski at Lake Louise. The prices are roughly the same, and you are spared the ordeal of carrying them on and off the buses. In my case, I also skied at Sunshine, so I kept the skis at the hotel, took them with me when we moved to the Banff Springs hotel and returned them at Banff to avoid the hassle of a second fitting.

For more information, check out their web site at .

Sunshine contrasted in many ways with Lake Louise. While Lake Louise was easily accessible, Sunshine is a longer drive and, once you have arrived, a long gondola ride from the parking area. Just getting there requires a much greater investment in time, so get an early start. Lake Louise’s three major areas are close and easily accessed from each other. Sunshine also has three main areas, Goat’s Eye Mountain, Mt. Standish and Lookout Mountain. Mt. Standish and Lookout both connect to the village area, but Goat’s Eye is farther away. While it is interconnected by skiable trails to the village, the distance makes it a strategic decision to change areas (you can also exit the main gondola midway to ski Goat’s Eye). Sunshine does offer a large area, over 3100 acres, with a heavy weighting toward the advanced skier (22% novice, 31% intermediate, 42% advanced and 5% expert).

Conditions on the day that I skied the mountain were not good. High winds, flat lighting and very cold temperatures made the large open area served by the Continental Divide lift very difficult. Mt. Standish was better shielded from the winds, and I opted for shorter, but more comfortable trails there such as Big Bunkers. Time did not allow a visit to Goat’s Eye, but companions reported that it was their favorite area. Overall I found the convenience and variety of intermediate terrain at Lake Louise preferable, but it is difficult to provide a completely objective comparison given the weather conditions during my stay at Sunshine.

My wife spent most of her time at the Sunshine Inn lounge. The staff was friendly, and she felt relaxed in the couches set by the large see-through fireplace. This was a warm and inviting place to wait. We dined on standard ski fare in the Mad Trappers Saloon on the second floor of the Old Sunshine Lodge. This old west style building sits right in the middle of the village area and is the easiest to reach from the lift bases. It is smaller than the Day Lodge, but we did not wait long for food and a table.

Sunshine is closer to Banff than it is to Lake Louise. Due to the lengthy process of just getting there, the ski-in/ski-out accommodations in the village present the best option for a serious skier who plans to maximize time on the slopes. You can get more information at .

The Columbia Ice Fields are a great day trip from Lake Louise. You can make the round trip in 6-7 hours (driving time to the glacier is roughly 1.5 hours). This is one of the few places in the world that you can safely journey to the middle of a glacier and walk around. You begin the tour at the visitor center. It is wise to check the snocoach schedules before you leave or when you first arrive, that way you can tour the visitor center at the correct pace. It is enjoyable and educational, providing a context for the history, nature and geography of the Canadian glaciers. When your scheduled snocoach trip is ready, you report to the parking lot for boarding. These are not your average buses. Each bus rides on six huge wheels. The vehicle is specially designed not only to travel on glacial ice but also to travel up and down extremely steep slopes. The driver explained that the bus will actually stop on the steepest slope (up or down) if pressure is released from the accelerator pedal. This was a feature created to prevent run-away buses from careening down the ice roads. You will appreciate this design when you descend from the entry road to the glacier itself.

After a narrated transit from the visitor center to the ice fields, the bus stops and allows the passengers to get out and walk on the glacier. If it were not for the diligent safety inspections, this would be extremely dangerous because the ice is constantly changing with new fractures (i.e., crevasses) opening and closing from day to day. Your first impression of the amount of change that is occuring comes when the driver explains how large the glacier was just 80 years ago. You look up from the road and visualize the huge area encased in ice. The ice expands in the winter, but it shrinks by a greater volume each summer; thus, it is gradually melting away. The second impression that we experience was watching avalanches on the mountains around us, including snow and ice on glaciers above the ice field in the surrounding mountains. It is amazing to ponder the fact that you are standing on a sheet of ice hundreds or more feet deep with water trapped from time immemorial.