Icefields Parkway - Route Description

Route Description

Going northwest from Lake Louise, the Icefields Parkway passes the following points of interest:

  • Crowfoot Glacier
  • Bow Summit and Peyto Lake
  • Mistaya Canyon
  • Saskatchewan River Crossing
  • Parker Ridge
  • Columbia Icefield (Athabasca Glacier)
  • Icefield Centre
  • Athabasca Falls
  • Sunwapta Pass and Sunwapta Falls

Campgrounds spot the length of the Parkway and offer water and firewood. The Parkway is easily cycled between Banff and Jasper over three to five days and self-supported riders are common in summer. Bicycle tour operators also use the Parkway, often extending the ride to five days to leave time to drive back to the start.

Limited services are available at Saskatchewan River Crossing and the Icefield Centre, and only from April to October. Gasoline is only available at Saskatchewan River Crossing, at a considerably higher price than elsewhere in Alberta.


  • View from the Icefields Parkway going North from Lake Louise, Alberta in Banff National Park

  • Athabasca Glacier on the Columbia Icefield

  • Athabasca Falls

  • Icefields Parkway

  • Icefield Parkway

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