Chester Lake Hike

Where:

• Chester Lake

 

When:

• April 5, 2025

 

Who:

• Ed, Dave, Oak, Rod, Craig, Janet, Kardy, Roger, Carolyn

 

Trailhead:

• a 60-minute drive (45 km) up the Smith Dorrien (Spray Lakes) road from Canmore
• turn left (east) into the parking lot, which is directly across from the Burstall Pass parking lot
• you can also access it from the Kananaskis Lakes Road, which is slightly shorter if you are coming from Calgary
• the trail is at the far end of the parking lot and we head up the right hand side beside the outhouse which allows us to connect into the snowshoe trail vs. the trail on the left that is more of a hiking trail and not as scenic

 

 

Degree of difficulty:

• 400 km to the Elephant Rocks
• 9 km
• the hike took us three hours
• we followed the snowshoe route which has a few steep climbs in the first half hour and then another short climb from Chester Lake to the Elephant Rocks
• from Chester Lake to the Elephant Rocks is a 10 minute stroll
• this is a moderate trail that we did at a leisurely pace enjoying all the beauty of the area

 

 

Interesting notes:

• it was a spectacular bluebird day, although we started in chilly -12C weather
• there were not many other people on the trail, which is unusual for this popular trail
• the initial part of the trail is quite forested, but once you break out of the trees, the 360 views are amazing
• the views include Mount Chester, Fortress Mountain, Mount Galatea, Mount Burstall, and Commonwealth Peak
• most people are not aware of these Elephant Rocks, and it is one of the most unique and majestic sites in the Bow Valley
• as well most people don’t know about the Three Lakes Valley, which is beyond the Elephant Rocks and is like being on the moon with rocks blanketing the entire valley in the upper part of the valley