Waterton park is the most beautiful place in Southern Alberta, Canada. While it isn't as famous as Banff or Jasper, it's just as picture perfect. Located just north of Glacier National Park in Montana, the Main Lake, Upper Waterton Lake straddles the US - Canadian Border, you can paddle or hike across! The Lake pictured below, Cameron lake also straddles the border with the far end being American.
You can drive right up to the shores of Cameron Lake and rent a Kayak or a Canoe, this was in the beginning of June and it was still a little cold. I doubt it's ever warm enough to comfortably swim in this lake, as it is 1662 m above sea level and surrounded by mountains. You can see trout swimming right off the docks and there was a list with a number of species living in these alpine waters. The lake itself is on the other side of the park from the town and involves a 20 km drive, taking a shuttle bus or a bike ride and there are interesting stops along the way.
Cameron falls is where the river meets the village of Waterton. Cameron creek connects the lake to Waterton and it makes quite the splash into the resort town. There's a popular hike that starts from here to Alderson Lake, we will save that for another time and the major hike we did was to Bertha Lake. One would expect there to be a lot of Lakes in Waterton Lakes National park, there are dozens of hikes to various alpine lakes.
The Red Rock Canyon is located in the far north of the park. Waterton Lakes park is just over 500 square kilometers and there are so many wonders packed into this little corner of Alberta.
We were done with hiking at this point, but no trip is complete to Waterton without checking out the beautiful colours of this canyon. There is a popular Blakiston falls hike nearby which is fed by melt water comming off of Blakiston Peak, the highest point in Waterton being just under 3000 m or almost 10,000 feet above sea level.
This is the entrance into Waterton National Park. The mountains are to your right the entire 2 hour and 45 minute drive South from Calgary but as you near the park they just come up in front of you. There are many scenic vistas along the way.
The Price of Wales hotel is a fancy lodge filled with old charm. We stayed here as it offers the best views of the main lake.
You can see it's a little dated from the main dining room but that's a million dollar view.
Right across a bay from the hotel, is the hamlet of Waterton, where you can find the International Peace Park. It's not that interesting but it's nice to walk along the edge of the lake.
We had dinner at the Lake Side Chophouse and Wine Bar. The beef was fantastic but the quesadilla was not. Who would guess steak beats Mexican food at an Albertan Lake Side Chophouse.
We watched deer and the lake while dining on the patio. There's a couple other places with similar views but this seemed to be the best and I'd give it a 5/5 just for the scenery.
Waterton Lakes is filled with animals. Here is a big tough black bear with a flower in its mouth. They eat dandelions in the spring as they are full of vitamins.
We saw a baby dear in town. I thought it was fake but wondered why someone would put such a statue next to a pile of wood on their construction site of a lawn.
We got a little closer and the deer stood up. I was careful not to get too close as we didn't want it to run away so it's mother could find it later. There were dozens of deer in the immediate area and this is a perfect place for them to live.
Just outside of the park, but part of the park is a Bison Paddock. There is a dirt road you can drive around inside the paddock to find the bison. Naturally we couldn't resist.
Next time you're thinking of visiting the Canadian Rocky Mountains, consider spending a night or two in Waterton. It makes the perfect weekend getaway.
All photos taken with an s20 or iPhone13 pro
Other posts from within Waterton National Park:
https://hive.blog/travel/@crypticat/waterton-lakes
https://hive.blog/hive-168869/@crypticat/hiking-up-to-berth-lake
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