The Lakes on Castle Mountain

Despite having spent a considerable amount of my life within sight of the Alberta Rocky Mountains, and having travelled through both Banff and Jasper National Park more times than I can remember, I still believe that these mountains are vastly under appreciated.

I think solitude is underrated in today's society. While treading a well marked trail with friends to a pair of lakes alongside Castle Mountain hardly counts as a quiet venture, there is great value in being away from the cities where the routine and tumult of day to day life coexists with us in our every moment.

Tower Lake and the larger Rockbound Lake lie near the south eastern slopes of Castle Mountain approximately 35 km (22 miles) west of the town of Banff. The trail to the lakes starts just off of the Bow Valley Parkway. It is a well worn trail that winds steadily up toward the mountain.

We met up that morning with Graham and Hayley and set out together for Banff. The four of us took the long weekend to make the quick drive to west and hike the trail. None of us had ever hiked the trail before but we expected that it would take most of the day as the round trip would be almost 18 km  (11 miles).

The trail roughly meanders in a north west direction into the arms of Castle Mountain and the ridge Helena Peak. The route climbed steadily to Tower Lake, the smaller of the two lakes and notable for the greenish hue of its waters.



Further up you climb a steep trail that switchbacks up a ridge which opens up in to a vast natural amphitheatre that houses Rockbound Lake.

Depending on your fitness level, the trail could be either quite difficult or relatively easy. There is no scrambling up to either lake, and the trail is so well marked that hiking shoes are not really necessary.


Longer hikes are good opportunities to talk and catch up. I find though that I spend a lot of my time reminiscing. This is compounded when I am with people that I have known since childhood. I find it interesting how we interact with the same friends over the years, especially as we grow as people.

Rockbound Lake is bordered by Helena Ridge on the north and the scree slopes of Castle Mountain to the west. I am told that if you hike on the eastern shore of the lake, you can scramble up the ridge and get a spectacular panoramic view. Unfortunately we started the hike later in the morning and we did not have the time to do so. Given where we were, it would take us until after 5 pm before we could return to the parking lot.

The original plan was actually to hike a much more difficult trail between Mount Cory and Mount Edith. It is getting late in the year now so I am not sure how many more opportunities we'll have to get out in 2013 but I am actually pretty excited to hit the trails again relatively soon. There is an opportunity to see a lot of things out here that in the 24 years previous of living here I have not had the eyes or interest to see.