Tunnel Mountain – Banff

This was definitely a highlight stay of the trip. For the record, we really loved staying in Tunnel Mountain and far preferred that to being out at Two Jack Lake. Since there are so many city things to do in Banff, it was awesome to be able to easily ride into town. We ended up eating out a lot, which we need to remember is a tendency when we’re doing city camping. No regrets, but we should remember to maybe not shop for Blue Aprons in those situations.

Coming from Redstreak, we basically just traversed Kootenay National Park. We thought to maybe to some short hikes around Marble Canyon, but the parking areas were really busy, and since we had Dory in tow, we opted out. We’d done Marble Canyon and Paint Pots before, so we didn’t have FOMO about that, but just want to note that from one end to the other is a pretty long drive. We’d have to leave earlier in the morning if we want to get uncrowded parking. This stop in Kootenay was intended to check out the Redstreak area, and we did that quite well. I’ll also note that we didn’t think to look at our gas tank until we were under way and into the park. If I’d been seriously worried about it, I would have turned around to go back and fill up in Radium Hot Springs. We were ok, but cut it kind of close and that is something that hangs over one’s head unnecessarily. We should have thought to fill up before entering the park, but oh well. We stopped to gas up at a tiny place (the only place) in Castle Junction and that was fine.

The first thing we did after getting unhitched at the campground was ride down to town. What an awesome campground though! The views of the surrounding mountain peaks are just stunning, and a delightful way to enjoy morning coffee. To get to town, it’s about a one mile downhill easy coast (coming back uphill is another story if you don’t have an e-bike). We had some shopping to explore, namely, we did end up getting Richard a new camping backpack to match mine. Monod Sports is an excellent store and I had spoken with one of their employees prior to coming, just to make sure they had what we were looking for in stock. You can pack their packs with sand bags to get a feel for the weight and the Talon 22 was a great pick.

The next thing we hit was Beaver Tails. OMG. These are kind of like churro batter, but made into long flat cakes that are fried to order and topped with your choice of all kinds of sweet treats. We chose the classic, which is generously adorned with cinnamon sugar. They are hot and chewy and delicious. We split one of those a day, eschewing all of the ice cream possibilities in town. While downtown, we succumbed to the pungent aromas of delicious foods and grabbed an early dinner in an unassuming food court place. Banff Shawarma was a great choice, seemed to be authentically prepared, and boasted the only long line. We went with a chicken and beef combo rice bowl with vegetables and a perfectly spicy dressing. Yum!

Since it stays light so late at this latitude at this time of year, we had time to check out some viewpoints and get beta on the Tunnel Mountain hike. The latter was for Richard’s morning cardio planning and not something I was interested in. There is a view of the river down below and lots of trails in and around the campground to go see the hoodoos or get to town via the river and Surprise Corner, where you can see Bow Falls.

The next day we got to do another stellar ride and check off another must-do of this summer trip. Weather reports threatened, but when there was any rain, it came in short spurts of like ten drops from the sky before clearing to blue skies. We got out early and hit the Bow River multi-use trail to get through town. Water levels on the river are high, but the bank-side paths were clear and untrafficked in the morning. From there, signs point the way for bikers to follow Vermillion Lakes Road for a couple of miles. This is just gorgeous. You are right next to the lake the whole way. Lots of people come and park along the banks and fish or picnic, and there is a steady stream of bikers making their way to or from the Legacy Trail that picks up at the end of the road. 

On the Legacy Trail, you skirt the highway and have to go through an intimidating looking wildlife gate. It looks like you are either entering or leaving the Velociraptor paddock, but I guess all of this, plus the impressive wildlife over crossings, is really effective at keeping wildlife related accidents down along the highway. Eventually, the Legacy Trail ends and you get to the start of the Bow Valley Parkway. Unbeknownst to me, this stretch of road is closed to car traffic from May 1st to June 25th during the day, which was only three days away from our visit. Like we accidentally nailed this so hard, it was like an unexpected gift. I’ve biked this now three times, Richard four. This was the first time I had gotten to do it on my own e-bike and it was just the best. 

We stopped and parked our bikes at Johnston Canyon, which was open to cars and very, very crowded. We decided to do the trail up to the falls, even though a good portion of the trail goes across suspended metal walkways that make Richard very nervous. We discovered that the best way for him to endure these is to cover his eyes and hold on to me. Once we got to the Lower Falls viewpoint, there was a long line to take pictures at the cave where you can see the falls through an opening in the rock. I passed, having done that before. We continued on to the Upper Falls this time, which we hadn’t done before. There was only one stretch of boardwalk until you get to the end. Again, there was a long line, and it was entirely off solid ground, so Richard kindly waited for me to get through the line to get pictures. I’m not sure how long it took. Twenty to thirty minutes I’m guessing. Yes, I got the picture, but I wouldn’t do that again. Instead, you can keep going up the trail a bit more and come to an equally picture worthy view point from above and avoid the line. On the way back down, Richard took an alternate trail that avoids the Lower Falls boardwalks entirely. This was far preferable to him and something to note for the future. He got ice cream and we got back on the Parkway. It was a fabulous day, with even a bear spotting along the side of the road. Yay!

Our next full day was spent investigating the Cave and Basin area across the river. We rode bikes to a visitor information building where there was also a nice exhibit about the area and its history. There is a paved road that goes for two miles and skirts the river for a while. At the end, there is a trailhead marker and you can catch the Sundance Canyon loop trail from there. The first part of the trail, if you go in clockwise fashion, takes you up a climb right next to a rushing, tumbling, cascading river. There are falls all along the way and sometimes the trail goes up small stone steps and crosses a couple of bridges. Eventually, it veers away from the river and runs under a deeply shaded forest canopy. Before you turn to go downhill on the other side of the loop, you can catch some sweeping views of the Banff valley. They say that this trail gives you all the water beauty of the Johnston Canyon, without all the people. I will say it was one of my all time favorite trails, but I give the waterfall points to Johnston. However, if you deduct points for crowds, this one might come out ahead. We were supremely happy we had ridden the paved path, rather than walk it. That would have dimmed our enthusiasm considerably having to needlessly walk the extra four miles. I think I would recommend doing the trail clockwise like we did. I would not have liked coming down those steep stone stairs and I think it’s nicer to view falls going up, as opposed to coming down.

We rode back into town, split another Beaver Tail, and checked out the IGA market. We would need to restock groceries before moving on. We also needed to refill propane tanks, but couldn’t find any place in Banff to do so. We ended up taking care of that in Jasper. Before heading back to Dory, we got in one last dinner in town at a place right by the downtown park called Hankki. It is a Korean street food place and I guess corn dogs are the thing to get. That seemed surprising to me, but I didn’t argue. Who doesn’t want a corn dog covered in crispy fried potato bits with a choice of dipping sauces? These were really good, though I still question their Korean roots. The beef bulgogi dumplings were also good and felt less bastardized. 

That was it for our three night stay. We really loved staying at Tunnel Mountain to enjoy Banff. It was great having hookups and there was no sacrifice in views or natural beauty. It’s definitely a parking lot type situation, but you are not that close to your neighbors and the sites are pull along with plenty of room down the middle for people to get through without making you worry they’ll run into you. We loved the short rides into town because that meant we never had to find parking for the car. It is centrally located to so many activities and there is every kind of service or store you can imagine. In addition to purchasing a really nice day pack at a good price, Richard got a cute bottle of chain lube from Banff Cycle & Sport. It also had some good trails close by for morning hikes for Richard. He liked the Tunnel Mountain trail a lot and rode his bike to the start. You can also walk the trails along the Bow River all the way to Surprise Corner. We ate out two out of three nights and are now addicted to Beaver Tails. Such a great stay!!

Total miles from Redstreak – 93.0, 16.3 mpg, 3 hours 43 min. Site B60 hookups. Good free dump. Potable spigots near bathrooms. Good cell for both. Riding distance from downtown. Showers, trash & recycling.