Jasper is a friendly little town nestled in a beautiful valley in Jasper National Park, surrounded by stunning and iconic mountains such as Mount Edith Cavell, Pyramid Mountain, Whistler Mountain and Old Man Mountain. It is the perfect place to experience the natural beauty Canada has to offer.
Jasper is a place where nature, wildlife and humans all exist in peace and harmony. You will often see a herd of Elk or Mule Deer grazing in someone’s front yard. The days are very long, as the sun stays up late, until 11pm at night in the peak of summer! This makes it very easy to go for afternoon hikes and bike rides.
Whether you are stopping in for a couple of nights, a week, or staying the entire summer as Chris and I did (we loved it so much, we stayed for the winter too!), here are some tips and recommendations for getting the most out of your time in Jasper.
Hire a car
While it’s nice checking out the town of Jasper, most of the areas worth seeing are out of the town. Chris and I made do with bikes and lifts with friends, but if you can afford it, I would definitely recommend getting a car for your time here.
Go camping or be happy to stay up to 40 minutes out of the town of Jasper.
Jasper is SUPER expensive in the summer. Hotel room prices inflate to a crazy $300 a night for an average hotel room and they are always booked out- especially on a Wednesday, Friday and Saturday night. Camping is a much more economical way to experience Jasper, and you will get a much more authentic experience of the beautiful nature Jasper has to offer. Although there are many campsites around Jasper (run by Parks Canada) make sure you make your booking in advance- as you have probably already gathered, it gets very busy in Jasper in the summer. The shoulder season (April-May) is a less expensive time to visit- however not everything is open until the end of May.
Pyramid Lake
I can not rave enough about Pyramid Lake! It is the perfect place to visit if you don’t want to stray too far away from town, but want to get that remote mountain feel. It is about 6 km north of the town, up a windy road. Chris and I really enjoyed riding our bikes there. There are lots of trails you can take (make sure to take a map with you so you don’t get lost!) Or you can choose to stick to the road. Pyramid Lake lies beneath the beautiful Pyramid Mountain. Next to the lake is Pyramid Lake Resort. This hotel has a fantastic restaurant which looks over the lake, called the Pines. I went there for my birthday and highly recommend it! The food is fantastic and the service is also excellent. Definitely try the White Chocolate & Goat Cheese Brownie. Yum!
Make sure to rent a boat and head out onto the lake. Out on the water on a beautiful warm, clear day you can marvel at Pyramid Mountain and other surrounding mountains such as Mount Edith Cavell. Also make sure to check out Pyramid island. It has lots of signs with information about the island, surrounding area, animals and mountains as well as benches so you can sit down, eat your packed lunch and enjoy the view!
Not far from town and a pretty relaxed hike. The walk has lovely views of Athabasca river, and once at the top of the point you get a beautiful panoramic view of the town of Jasper and surrounding lakes and mountains. If you are lucky the three resident male big horned sheep will be hanging around! Don’t get too close though, they have been known to charge people in the past.
Valley of the Five Lakes
Chris and I didn’t have a car so we rode our bikes pretty much everywhere in the summer. One of the biggest rides we went on was to the Valley of the Five Lakes. We took the trail along highway 93. It was a 20 km return journey, so is not for the faint hearted. Once we reached the trail we locked our bikes up and continued on foot, as it is not a recommended biking trail. The 5 lakes trail itself is 4.5 km and goes in a loop. It takes about 2 hours to complete. There are 5 lakes, each a beautiful turquoise blue colour. We really enjoyed sitting by the water’s edge and made sure to bring plenty of yummy snacks with us for the day trip.
Maligne Canyon
This canyon is renowned to be the most interesting canyon in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. It is a distance of 3.7 km from the 6th bridge one way and will take approximately 1-2 hours to hike each way with some sight-seeing time considered. Jasper National Park`s website describes the origins of the canyon: ‘Maligne Canyon is carved into the Palliser Formation, a layer of limestone deposited in a shallow tropical sea by lime-secreting plankton about 365-million years ago. Some geologists speculate that parts of the canyon were originally deep caves that have since been uncovered by glacial scraping and water erosion.’ In the summer time this canyon comes alive with swirling, churning water, underground stream outlets and beautiful waterfalls. In the winter the canyon becomes a frozen wonderland, definitely a sight worth checking out no matter what time of year it is.
Medicine Lake & Maligne Lake
Maligne lake is located about 40 km out of Jasper, along Maligne Road. The first stop along the way is Medicine Lake. It has a beautiful view of Proposal Peak, affectionately named by locals after a proposal took place there. Unfortunately during the summer of 2015 a forest fire ripped through this area, destroying most of the vegetation. We saw our first wild black bear here which was so special and awesome! At the end of Maligne road is the famous Maligne Lake and Spirit Island. There are boats that take visitors out to Spirit Island, which is the most photographed place in Canada. There is often lots of wildlife here, including Moose and Deer. However we were not fortunate enough to spot any.
Sky Tram
The Jasper Skytram sits on one of the peaks of Whistlers Mountain, which watches over the town of Jasper and surrounding National Park. Chris and I hiked up the mountain with a group of friends- this took approximately 3.5 hours. Then we enjoyed the views at the top and took the tram back down for free. I definitely recommend experiencing the tram this way- it is really satisfying when you finally reach the top and the views are fantastic!
Lake Annette and Lake Edith
If you would like to go for a dip in the water on a nice hot day, I recommend heading to Lake Annette and Lake Edith. Easily accessible (about a 10min drive from town) with parking available, and situated only a short walk from each other, both lakes feature nice sandy shores, crystal blue water, a large grassy area and picnic tables. These lakes are glacially fed, so are always a little cold! Definitely a nice way to cool off in the summer.
Make sure you check out the Bear Paw cafe for a chocolate chai and a raspberry and white chocolate scone, and stop at the teal leaf boutique for delicious tea and beautiful, unusual clothing and accessories. The Jasper Pizza Place also has a great roof top patio where you can have a crisp cold beer and a slice of pizza while enjoying the nice warm day.
There is so much to see and do in this amazing place! I couldn’t possibly list it all. If you are looking for a truly authentic experience of the Canadian Rockies, Jasper is definitely the place to go!
spark wander 