Arnica Lake is a beautiful alpine lake located in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada. The Arnica Lake Trail is a popular hiking route that offers stunning views and a challenging trek. The hike begins at the Vista Lakes parking lot and descends into the Altrude Creek Valley before climbing up to Arnica Lake. Along the way, you'll pass through a larch forest, cross multiple creeks and waterfalls, and enjoy breathtaking views of the valley and surrounding rocky mountain peaks. Arnica Lake itself is located at the foot of Storm Mountain, and its calm, clear waters reflect the mountain's majestic presence. Canadian Rockies Hike.
October 7/2024 Fall Hike
The trailhead is in a small lot off Highway 93. We will visit 2 lakes on this hike. For the first portion of this hike, we will be descending to Vista Lake. The trail was well defined and had a gradual descent. The trail is in the trees, but you will come across numerous lookout points. As you near Vista Lake, the trail opens up. At 1.6k we arrived at the end of the lake and crossed a bridge over the stream. From here the trail will now start to ascend. It begins gradually. There were a couple of areas where there was mud on the trail. Now you will be in the trees for a while. We came across a few boardwalks with a couple streams flowing below it. Now you will start and get some views on your left. As you gain elevation the trail will now get a little bit steeper. At 3.3k we came across our first Larch Tree. As you continue the trail will get even steeper. You will come across a few more beautiful lookout points. Now you will be hiking amongst the Larch Trees. At 3.7k we came across snow on the ground. We soon reached a meadow where the trail widened. Then back into the trees. Soon the trail became very rocky with some ice on it. The trail will start to level out as you approach Arnica Lake. At 4.7k we arrived at Arnica Lake. This lake was just stunning with Larch Trees on both sides of it and Storm Mountain towering above it. We enjoyed our lunch and beer sitting on some rocks at the edge of the lake. Soon it was time to head back. On our way down we had to take it slow in a couple of areas that had ice on the trail. We also paused at quick a few spots to take in the beautiful views across the valley. Once you arrive at Vista Lake be prepared to head back up for about 1.5k. Once we got back to the parking lot we had a beautiful view of Storm Mountain with the sun shining on it peak.
This was another great Larch Tree hike, and we only came across a few other groups on the trail. It is not the easiest hike though, just over 10k with and elevation gain of 726 meters. I highly recommend this hike.
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Cary Mason
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