Kananaskis Country is the home of an 80-kilometre section of the Trans-Canada Trail (TCT) that they renamed as the High Rockies Trail.
It travels uninterrupted from the Goat Creek trailhead at the border of Banff National Park near Canmore through three provincial parks – Bow Valley Wildland, Spray Valley, and Peter Lougheed to finish on the Alberta – British Columbia border at Elk Pass.
The High Rockies Trail is the westernmost section of the Trans-Canada Trail in Alberta. The trail, designed primarily for mountain bikers and hikers, is easily accessed at numerous locations off of the Smith Dorrien Trail (Highway 742). Maps showing the trail location are available at the Barrier Lake Visitor Centre.
Before you head out, always check the Alberta Parks report.
Tackle the High Rockies Trail in sections
Unless you’re incredibly fit and like a challenge you’ll want to tackle the High Rockies Trail in sections – especially as there are no services along the length of the trail (unless you count an out of the way stop at Mount Engadine Lodge for their afternoon tea).
One of the most popular sections is the Blackshale Suspension Bridge in the south near the parking area for Black Prince Cirque. You’ll find more hikers on this section than others.
Plan to take all your food, rain gear and a patch kit with you. Replenish water at streams but treat the water first. Don’t forget the bear spray as you’re traveling through a wildlife corridor where bear and moose sightings are common.
We saw plenty of fresh bear scat on our bike ride. Use your bike bell and make a lot of noise.
Camping on the High Rockies Trail
Wild camping is not permitted along the High Rockies Trail, but there are some first come-first served campgrounds in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park.
Check out A Complete Guide to Camping in Kananaskis.
Hikers or bikers under their own steam are permitted to camp at the Buller Mountain Day-Use Area or the Sawmill Day Use Area. Facilities here include a bike maintenance tool stand, food lockers, a bathroom and a self-registration kiosk. You can only camp at Buller and Sawmill between 6 PM and 9 AM and only for one night between June 1 – September 20th.
You could also camp at the Spray West Campground (check before you go as there has been a construction upgrade happening in late 2023) and the Pocaterra Overflow Campground in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park.
Alberta Parks had a no turn away policy at Spray West Campground between May 19 – September 20th but with the campground upgrade, I’m not sure what that will look like.
A mix of old and new trails
From the sections I biked, the High Rockies Trail is both well-built and very well-signed. The trail is a mix of old and new trails, with connectors added so that you can access existing day use areas along the Smith Dorrien Trail. It also makes for easy access and parking.
The landscape you encounter is quite diverse. Travel through forest, sometimes in the valley bottom, though often the High Rockies Trail offers a view.
Bike the section between the Sparrowhawk Day Use Area and Buller Creek if it’s a panoramic view of the Spray Valley you’re after.
The first section of the High Rockies Trail starting at Goat Creek also offers lovely mountain views, even before you get to Goat Pond. (Don’t be put off by the section of eroded trail near the Goat Creek Trailhead. It’s short and the trail after that is in great shape.)
As you travel south from the Sawmill Campground through to Lower Kananaskis Lake, the mountain views are also exceptional.
I didn’t get into the Elk Pass area but spoke with some bikers who did – and they loved it. But like many of the sections, you have to commit to and out and back ride unless you’ve been able to organize a car shuttle.
Look for wildflowers in summer along the High Rockies Trail
The High Rockies Trail is also enjoyable for the variety of wildflowers you might see. In wet areas you’ll find white camas, lousewort and elephanthead.
In the lodgepole pine forest look for calypso orchids, twinflowers, arnica and bunchberry. Around the lake and elsewhere brown-eyed Susan, buffalo berry, asters, alpine lupine, fireweed, milk and purple vetch, asters and bearberry are all in abundance.
The High Rockies Trail is surprisingly good for birding
There are plenty of birds to see if you stop and listen, with up to 130 bird species nesting in Kananaskis Country. You’re sure to see gray jays and ravens at popular picnic spots the minute the food comes out.
Along the shoreline look for spotted sandpipers and the black dipper (one of my favourite birds as it sticks around in the depths of winter, singing even when it’s miserable outside.) In the wood’s we heard both the Swainson’s thrush and the chipping sparrow singing their hearts out.
The High Rockies Trail was a relatively unheard of 80 km section of the Trans-Canada Trail that gets more popular every year. It’s a great addition to the recreational opportunities offered in Kananaskis Country. Have fun exploring it.
Further reading on biking in Alberta
- 11 of the Best Places to Cycle Within 75 Minutes of Calgary
- Exploring Alberta’s Iron Horse Trail
- Biking the Goat Creek Trail
- Biking Banff to Jasper: 2024 Complete Guide
- Sheep River Valley Biking in Kananaskis Country
For more information on the Trans-Canada Trail visit this website or Alberta TrailNet.
Click on the photo to bookmark to your Pinterest boards.
