Rockbound Lake Hike, Banff National Park

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I’d wanted to hike to Rockbound Lake in Banff National Park for some time despite the fact it’s one of the ‘don’t do’ hikes in the book Don’t Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies. The author actually suggests “it helps to wear colourful boot laces so you’ll have something interesting to look at.

But when it’s late October and you still have the itch to hike in the mountains, where do you go from Calgary, especially if it’s a windy day? The Rockbound Lake trail turned out to be a great choice.

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Rockbound Lake trail details

Total distance return: 16.8 km or 10.4 miles

Total elevation gain: 760 m or 2,493 feet

Time needed: Approximately 5.5 – 6.5 hours

Level of difficulty: Moderate

Dogs: Allowed on leash

Bears: Carry easy to access bear spray – and know how to use it.

Best time to go: Rockbound Lake can hold snow into July so aim for mid-July until the snow flies in the fall. Check Banff National Park trail conditions report before you go. In the summer the Rockbound Lake trail can be very buggy. Don’t forget bug repellent.

Map: Gem Trek Banff and Mt. Assiniboine

Don’t forget: Gaiters early and late in the season.

Location: Rockbound Lake is a scenic alpine lake located beneath Castle Mountain in Banff National Park.

Highlights: Enjoy great views of the backside of Castle Mountain and pea-green Tower Lake on the Rockbound Lake hike. The hike to Rockbound Lake is a decent one for larches in the fall – and it’s not a busy one.

Side trip: There is an option to do a short detour from the Rockbound Lake trail to Silverton Falls.

Permit: You will need a Parks Canada pass to hike. They can be purchased online or at the entrance to the park.

Weather: Check the weather forecast before you go.

Please: Practice Leave No Trace principles, packing out what you pack in, stay on the trail, plan ahead, properly dispose of waste, leave the area as you found it, don’t feed or approach wildlife, and be considerate of fellow hikers.

Mostly view-less hiking for the first 90 minutes

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The first 5 km on the Rockbound Lake hike

I would agree that the first 5 km on the hike to Rockbound Lake isn’t very interesting. It’s steep (you gain 518 m) with occasional peek-a-boo views but not much else.

We did see a couple of ptarmigans – perhaps one of the stupidest birds out there as you almost step on them before they take off. However, they did provide a welcome distraction.

And then in short order we were into snow so everything seemed prettier.

A couple of ptarmigans provided entertainment along the way

Snow always seems to make hiking more interesting

Hiking the backside of Castle Mountain

When you finally reach the meadows, the landscape gets your attention as the backside of iconic Castle Mountain slowly comes into view. (Everyone who drives the highway between Banff and Lake Louise has admired Castle Mountain at some point but few have ever see its backside.)

Large boulders, scattered larch, a couple of streams, and some lovely distant mountain views also show up. You certainly don’t need colourful boot laces here.

Our first views of the backside of Castle Mountain

You see the backside of Castle Mountain on the way to Rockbound Lake — You see the backside of Castle Mountain on the way to hike to Rockbound Lake

The hike up to to Rockbound Lake

Count on about 45 minutes of easy hiking from the time you break out of the woods to reach Tower Lake. It was already frozen when we visited in October but reportedly it’s a pea-green colour.

From Tower Lake cross a footbridge over the outlet stream. This is the one place on the hike, except at the beginning of the trail, that you’ll see any signage pointing to Rockbound Lake.

Continuing past Tower Lake - reportedly pea green in colour when the ice is gone — Continuing past Tower Lake – reportedly pea green in colour when the ice is gone

Next there’s about 10 minutes of steep hiking up the headwall to reach the high point of the Rockbound Lake hike at 2,210 m.

From there it’s an easy walk through larch forest to reach Rockbound Lake. If there is snow on the trail, take gaiters. If we’d had to break trail we would have been up to our knees in snow. The same thing will happen to you if you step off the trail.

You get great views part way up the headwall on the trail to Rockbound Lake

Look up as its very pretty — Look up – it’s really pretty

Hike through scattered larch trees on route to the lake — Hike through scattered larch trees on route to Rockbound Lake

It would be really pretty here in September when the larch are ablaze in yellow

Rockbound Lake was stunning in the light of late October

I think Rockbound Lake makes a great destination for a fall hike especially on a windy day as you’re largely protected. Another great time to do the Rockbound Lake hike would be in mid-September when the larch trees start to turn yellow.

With snow on the ground now it's easier going down with icers on — With snow on the ground now it’s easier going down with icers on

It was really helpful to have a group in front of us packing down the Rockbound Lake trail

The first & last 90 minutes on the Rockbound Lake trail is up and down through the woods - and not so interesting — The first & last 90 minutes on the Rockbound Lake trail is up and down through the woods – and not so interesting

Where to stay near the Rockbound Lake trailhead

The trailhead for the Rockbound Lake hike is close to Castle Junction and Lake Louise.

There are no backcountry campsites on the Rockbound Lake hike but there is the nearby Johnston Canyon Campground that is open from May 25 – September 24th. Reserve a campsite online.

There are lots of hotel options including the following.

In Castle Junction check out Castle Mountain Chalets.

There is also Castle Mountain Hostel. Along the beautiful Bow Valley Parkway, Baker Creek by Basecampis a great choice.

In Lake Louise there is quite a range of price points. In the village choose the Lake Louise Inn or the upscale Post Hotel and Spa.

Closer to Lake Louise check out Paradise Lodge & Bungalows.

What a stunning backdrop for the Castle Mountain Chalet property

Location map for the Rockbound Lake hike

The trailhead for Rockbound Lake is a snap to find. If you’re coming from Calgary drive the Trans-Canada Highway west to the intersection with Highway 93. Turn right and drive over the Bow River to reach Castle Village. (You can purchase lunch supplies here.)

Turn right again onto Highway 1A and 200 m later turn left into a large parking lot. There is signage on the highway for the Rockbound Lake hike.

For more information on Banff National Park visit their website.

4 Comments

mike says:

July 4, 2021 at 9:49 pm

lots more to enjoy here than what you listed. I go to rockbound in larch season, its phenomenal. There is another waterfall (Silverton Falls) along the way, with a small side hike to get over to it, a nice multi tiered falls. Once at the lake, the hike around the lake is beautiful. Its another 5km or so, but secluded, lots of great views of the lake and walls around you, plus some awesome bouldering (house size boulders) on the south side of lake to play on, around and under. Spend a couple hours around the lake and the few kms of uneventful forest approach to get there is long forgotten.

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Rockbound Lake Hike, Banff National Park