The Canadian Rockies have so many beautiful lakes, here are six of my favourite ones:

1. Lake Louise

Beautiful Lake Louise with Mount Victoria and the Victoria Glacier behind

Lake Louise is very beautiful, especially early in the morning on a summer’s day. The view from the end of the lake by Chateau Lake Louise is incredibly dramatic, but it’s worthwhile hiking one of the trails around it to get a sense of scale. The Plain of Six Glaciers has to be one of my favourites, but if you’re looking for a scramble, Mount Fairview has excellent views over Lake Louise and the surrounding area.

2. Lake Agnes

Lake Agnes

A little smaller than Lake Louise, Lake Agnes is a great hike with beautiful views if you carry on up to the top of the Big Beehive. It is an enjoyable hike up through the forest to get to Lake Agnes and it’s tea house, and the extra extension up to the Big Beehive is definitely worthwhile. It’s also possible to make the scramble up to the summit of Mount St Piran on the north side of Lake Agnes, via the Little Beehive.

3. Sherbrooke Lake

The amazingly-tuquoise Sherbrooke Lake seen from the summit of Paget Peak

Though I haven’t been to the shore of Sherbrooke Lake, I have seen it from a distance when I hiked to the summit of Paget Peak. It had a beautiful turquoise colour to the water, and having read about it a little more, it is one of the hikes I shall try and complete this year.

4. Skoki Lakes – Myosotis and Zigadenus

Lake Zigadenus seen from Packer’s Pass

Lake Myosotis

Hiking to Skoki Lodge has to have been one of the most enjoyable things I did in 2014. I went with two friends and we spent the entire day hiking there and back. It was exhausting but definitely worth the time. Stopping off at Lakes Myosotis and Zigadenus on the way down from Packer’s Pass made an excellent snack break.

5. Floe Lake

Floe Lake at the base of the Rockwall

I did this hike solo back in October, and am so glad I did. I was a little nervous of doing such a long hike solo but the effort made it worth the time. I stopped at Floe Lake and sat on the deck of the Warden Cabin there to eat my lunch before heading on up to Numa Pass to take in some more views of Floe Lake.

The perfect lunch spot beside Floe Lake

6. Rockbound Lake

The incredibly beautiful Rockbound Lake

Another solo hike, the hike up to Rockbound Lake behind Castle Mountain in Banff National Park, is an extremely rewarding trip. The area is incredibly peaceful and there were few other people about, so I was very much able to fully appreciate the landscape. Cycling back from the trailhead to Banff was also a fun experience, it was a little slow as I was laden with my hiking gear, but it made the day all the more rewarding.

On the approach Rockbound Lake

This isn’t exactly a complete list of beautiful lakes. Pretty much any lake in the Canadian Rockies is beautiful, especially if you see it when the weather is sunny!

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