Waterton Lakes National Park

Rugged, windswept mountains rise abruptly out of gentle prairie grassland in spectacular Waterton Lakes National Park. Here, several different ecological regions meet and interact in a landscape shaped by wind, fire, flooding, and abundant plants and wildlife. The park helps protect the unique and unusually diverse physical, biological and cultural resources found in the Crown of the Continent: one of the narrowest places in the Rocky Mountains. The deepest lake in the Canadian Rockies (444 feet) and the first oil well in western Canada (1902) are both found in Waterton, a small park named in honor of English naturalist Charles Waterton. Set in a region renowned for its winds, Waterton has special significance as the Canadian portion of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. Waterton sits in the extreme southwestern corner of Alberta, sharing boundaries with British Columbia and Montana in the United States. It’s “where the mountains meet the prairies,” as locals like to say. Indeed, lush native grassland rolls right up to the colorful peaks, which have been carved from sedimentary rock well over a billion years old. With its outstanding scenery, sunny weather, easygoing wildlife, and picturesque wind-raked trees, Waterton is a photographer’s paradise. The park’s isolation, far from any urban center and off the beaten track, keeps the crowds small. All three of the Waterton Lakes lie along the entry road. Other paved routes provide quick access to park highlights. One of the hiking trails is world famous, while mountain bikers will find several trails open to them, too. Waterton is open year-round, but windy weather discourages visitors in winter. Few services are available in the park between October and May, when some roads are subject to closure and the townsite population drops to fewer than 40. Spring arrives in early May. The park is busiest in July and August, when daytime temperatures reach over 70ºF and may hit the mid-90sºF. Low-elevation wildflowers are at their best in June, while the high country above tree line is most colorful in mid-July. Waterton’s many aspen groves paint the valley floors and lower slopes brilliantly yellow in September.