Boom Lake Hike, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
Boom Lake
After a full day spent climbing Achilles Spire the previous day, Mike and I decided to do a mellow hike and hike up to Boom Lake in the area between Banff and Lake Louise. We parked at the Boom Lake trailhead and headed out on the trail. We immediately crossed Boom Creek. When I was looking at the map before the hike, it seemed like we would walk near the creek for much of the hike. Turns out, the trail is farther from the creek than I anticipated so 97% of the hike was in the woods with limited views. For the most part the trail was wide and in good condition, although there were a few sections that were quite muddy, but were navigable by hopping on a few rocks. After 3.25 miles and 700 ft of elevation gain, we found ourselves at the lake. The views of the surrounding mountains were breathtaking and made the hike worth it. Since this is the one spot with views on this hike, it is where everyone also stops so we didn’t get the peace and quiet I normally like on hikes as there were 30 other people also stopping there for lunch, but I still really enjoyed the views. Once we were done with our sandwiches, we headed back to the trailhead the same way we hiked in. I found the hike back to the trailhead to be a little bit of a slog as it all felt very similar and longer than it felt on the way in. Overall, the views at the lake were great, but the majority of the hike lacked views. It was probably one of the more “boring” hikes you can do in the area, and I’m not sure it’s one I’d recommend to someone visiting because there are so many other spectacular hikes to choose from.
Total stats: 6.5 miles, 700 ft of elevation gain
