THE ROAD LESS PEDALLED
Cycling to Johnston Canyon has become a must-do experience in Banff National Park
A big landscape lends itself well to cycling. On a bicycle, you travel slowly, stopping whenever and wherever you like as the scenery unfurls around you. As my husband and I followed our cycling guide, May Drouin of White Mountain Adventures, along the scenic Bow Valley Parkway in Banff National Park, there was a moment when she stopped and pointed to a mountain ridge. We could see a female black bear and three small cubs slowly making their way up the mountainside. We stood on the side of the road watching for several minutes before we continued pedalling along the parkway.
Cycling is all the rage in Banff National Park and the pandemic has a lot to do with it. In 2020, Parks Canada closed the eastern section of the Bow Valley Parkway to automobile traffic in part to decrease exposure and spread of COVID -19. What happened next surprised almost everyone. With little to no motor vehicles on the road, hikers and cyclists took over. Cycling to Johnston Canyon became “a thing.”
You could say it's one of the good news stories from the pandemic. This summer, Parks Canada is experimenting with what it calls “The Enhanced Cycling Experience in Banff National Park.” The eastern section of the Bow Valley Parkway is once again closed to most automobiles and for a time, the Minnewanka Loop Road was also closed. Bicycle rentals and new bicycle tours are now on offer by local tour operators. The Town of Banff has also set up a complimentary bike valet service this summer, so cyclists can explore the townsite and enjoy local dining knowing their bikes are secure.
There are other upsides to the road closure. “We're seeing a lot more wildlife now that most vehicle traffic is gone,” Drouin explained. “Cycling the parkway is now a fun part of the experience of visiting Johnston Canyon.”
Our e-bike tour began at Castle Junction. We cycled six kilometres from Castle Junction to Johnston Canyon stopping to admire scenery and read interpretive signs along the way. We only saw a few other cyclists and hikers — likely because it was an overcast weekday with an 80 per cent chance of rain. We also saw the occasional Roam transit bus along the route. Those who don't want to cycle or hike to the Johnston Canyon trailhead can use public transit to get there.
We parked our bikes at the trailhead and enjoyed a guided hike to the first set of waterfalls in the canyon. As we hiked up the beautiful mountain canyon, our guide told us stories about the history, geology and wildlife in the canyon.
When we got back to our bikes, we headed toward Banff along the Bow Valley Parkway — stopping occasionally to take in the scenery and watch wildlife along the way.
While we were stopped, enjoying a picnic lunch at the Muleshoe picnic area, a massive male grizzly walked out of the trees directly behind the picnic table where we were sitting. I felt like running, but our guide Drouin stayed calm — even as the bear came directly toward us. She picked up my backpack, reminded me not to run and walked with us back to the bicycles.
When we were up on the road, she told us the bear is called “Split Lip” by locals. It's one of the biggest bears in Banff National Park.
In that moment, I was glad we were on a guided tour.
We hopped back on our bikes and began cycling the Bow Valley Parkway to the Legacy Trail that connects Canmore and Banff. We made a stop at beautiful Vermillion Lakes before returning to the Banff Townsite.
Banff's Bow Valley Parkway has long been one of the prettiest roadways in Canada's first national park. Now that it is closed to most motorized traffic, it's a cycling paradise with amazing scenery, incredible wildlife and one of the top hiking trails in Canada.