September in Alberta

larrie · 07-10-2015, 04:50 PM

We are planning a trip to the Banff area in mid September. We will be heading north from Moscow, ID to Banff and then coming back via Vancouver, BC. Have any of you been up there at that time of year? Am courious about possible weather conditions, places to camp, and things to see and do along the way.

Back in the late 90's we did a similar trip and stopped in Calgary where I got to take a spin on the Olympic bobsled circuit. It was a short intense adrenalin rush and great fun.

Thanks for the help.

ert01 · 07-11-2015, 07:42 PM

I live in AB... Can likely answer a lot of questions you have.

Are you looking for a 2wd pavement trip or 4wd gravel/dirt road trip?

The highway that runs from Banff up to Jasper is a nice scenic drive. Hwy 93.

There are a few nice stops along the way. The Columbia ice fields are a good way to spend an afternoon. The skywalk is neat but often busy. Though if you are traveling in Sept the roads should be getting a lot quieter since kiddos are back in school at that time.

Weather can be everything from +30C to 0C and snow so be prepared. Though we GENERALLY have good clear skies though all of Sept with temps in the 15-25C range.

What sort of interests do you have? Sightseeing, hiking, biking, climbing? I can likely give you a handful of good places to see

twolost · 07-12-2015, 09:26 PM

September in Banff/Jasper...

I recall amazing fall colors and episodes of new snow (at higher elevations like Mount Edith Cavell and even Moraine Lake). The colors were spectacular when we were there... but only lasted about a week. Additionally, the big elk will likely be out in full rut. Great time to see large wildlife.

The following trip report shows what we encountered in September 2007... toward the latter half of the report.

TWOLOST: 15 Day Post-Delivery Shakedown Tour

You will love it!! We did and we cant wait to go back!

Cheers,
---TWOLOST

rob_gendreau · 07-14-2015, 05:56 PM

Is there any part of AB that won't be ashes by Sept??

Hope you folks get some rain...although don't use it all up, we need it here in CA too.

larrie · 09-02-2015, 04:45 PM

Have the trip pretty well planned out with a couple options depending if the friends we want to visit are home or not. Looks like about 1-1/2 to two weeks touring through Alberta and BC. Should be fun.

One question that has come up is the rules about boondocking in the Canadian provincial parks and elsewhere in Canada. Can any of you that live in the area enlighten me?

The bear thread was timely, viewtopic.php?f=11&t=16657&hilit=Bears. It helped settle some fears. Added bear spray to the list of items to purchase before the trip.

reelchef67 · 09-02-2015, 04:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by larrie

Have the trip pretty well planned out with a couple options depending if the friends we want to visit are home or not. Looks like about 1-1/2 to two weeks touring through Alberta and BC. Should be fun.

One question that has come up is the rules about boondocking in the Canadian provincial parks and elsewhere in Canada. Can any of you that live in the area enlighten me?

The bear thread was timely, http://sportsmobileforum.com/viewtopic. ... ilit=Bears. It helped settle some fears. Added bear spray to the list of items to purchase before the trip.

Re boondocking..
What questions do you have?

larrie · 09-02-2015, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reelchef67

Re boondocking..
What questions do you have?

Here in the U.S. You can boondock, also called dispersed camping, pretty much anyplace you want in the national forests. The basic requirement are to be at least 100 feet from a trail, lake, or stream and not near a developed campsite. Leave No Trace guidelines also apply.

Are the rules the same in Canada?

gnty · 09-04-2015, 11:47 AM

We just got home from a trip from southern Alberta to Vancouver and Whistler and just loved it.

You've got so many great options, you just need more time! Coming up from Moscow you can either head into Canada at Kingsgate/East port on the 95 and start there, or head over to Glacier National park and do the Going to the sun road and see the St.Mary area then come in at the Chief Mountain Crossing on the 17 then check out Waterton Lakes national park then run north in and along the Alberta rocky's with boondocking opportunities in certain areas, ending up at Canmore/Banff/Jasper area. Ice fields parkway is a must. Two weeks ago they had a good dump of snow but was gone pretty much next day. Twolost has experience and shared amazing shots of the Banff/Canmore area.
Crossing through BC, Arrow, Slocan and Kootenay Lake route is fairly slow, winding and georgious. There are two free ferry crossings, at crawford bay (great campsite there on the east shore) over to Belfour. Then we go up to Kaslo then west on the 31A (one of my favorites) to New Denver then north to Nakusp, then sounth on the 6 to the Needles Ferry then over to Vernon, then to Kamloops, and on to just north of Grand Cache then south of the 99 to Whislter and carry on south on the Sea to Sky highway to Vancouver. Depending if your heading back east, take the #3 to Osoyoos then south back to the U.S.

This was my first time to Whistler, tons to do, the gondolas are a must. Great campground up high part way up the mountain with crazy good views.

Hope that helps a little, if you narrow down your route from all the suggestions we can certainly help further, especially with Alberta stuff. There is Boondocking but it is in the Forestry, Provincial parks all are limited to organized campgrounds. Forestry area is all random camping with a few organized ones within the forestry.

arctictraveller · 09-04-2015, 12:20 PM

[quote="larrie"

The bear thread was timely, [url="http://sportsmobileforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=16657&hilit=Bears"]viewtopic.php?f=11&t=16657&hilit=Bears[/url]. It helped settle some fears. Added bear spray to the list of items to purchase before the trip.[/

You probably can't take bear spray into Canada, you had better check first. Last I heard though, you could buy it there.

gnty · 09-04-2015, 02:01 PM

[quote=arctictraveller][quote="larrie"

You probably can't take bear spray into Canada, you had better check first. Last I heard though, you could buy it there.[/quote]

We carry one with us, you can buy it here, no problem, but Arctictraveller is right, i don't think you can bring it into Canada with you.