What to Pack for Banff, Alberta - Late Summer/Fall
Sunrise at Lake Louise
Hi Beauties!
I wanted to compile all of the tips I read prior to my travels and tips that I’ve learned from my trip. I visited Banff, Alberta at the end of August (26th-31st). I stayed at Mount Royal Hotel which is in the heart of Banff village and easily accessible to all the locations on my itinerary. My four-day itinerary included Banff Village, Lake Minnewanka, hiking at Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Emerald Lake, Banff Gondola, lunch on top of Sulphur Mountain, and Bow Lake which was along the Icefields Parkway. To see all the stops I made, read my IG guide.
The weather is unpredictable in the Canadian Rockies and no matter the time of year, you should be prepared for rapidly changing conditions. I was told that I can experience all four seasons in one hour in the mountains. Luckily for us, we didn’t have any rain or snow during our trip. We even got some sun for me to wear some cute dresses. For the most part, it was cold in the mornings, evenings and at higher elevations When I say cold, it was a brisk 5 degrees Celsius before sunrise and 10 degrees colder than the ground atop the mountains. If you’re planning to visit popular sites like Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, plan to arrive early to avoid the crowds and to get a parking spot. We arrived at Lake Louise at 6:30 am to watch the sunrise and it was breathtaking. I highly recommend bundling up and getting there early.
The key is to wear layers and have options to put on and take off even in the summer. For example, I wore a workout shirt, sweater with a warm jacket and hat and gloves and there were times where I needed to wear them all at once. Taking a toque and gloves was the best thing I could have done to protect my extremities from the cold dry air. We also got lucky with having no mosquitos along our hiking trails which I heard can be a nuisance in early spring and summer.
Here is the list I’ve compiled for late summer:
Trail runners or hiking boots (recommended for advanced trails)
comfortable shoes for sightseeing
Long sleeve shirts and pants for sun and mosquito protection
Warm pants depending on your activities. I wore tights and my knees were cold in the mornings but they warmed up as we started hiking.
A light waterproof/windproof jacket with a hood or a rain poncho
Warm light-weight jacket
Sweaters/hoodies
Hat, light gloves
Hiking socks
swimsuit - Hot Springs or hotel pool. The lakes weren’t warm enough to swim in.
sunglasses
Hiking List:
Bug repellent
Bear bell or spray - please note that you can’t travel in the plane with bear spray. You will have to buy it there and leave it behind.
Sunscreen
Backpack to carry extra clothing, snacks, camera, water etc.
Refillable water bottle - we bought a case of water and groceries in Calgary before heading to Banff.
Lip balm - the air is very dry in the mountains
Hiking stick if you’re planning on doing the advanced trails.
Extra socks in case yours get wet
Toilet paper/wipes in case there are no washrooms or the city-run toilets run out.
Overall, everyone in Banff dresses pretty casually, mountain casual I guess I should say. So it’s safe to say you can leave some of your dressier clothes at home. Unless you’re a blogger like myself and need to take some cute pics, haha.
Bow Lake
One other thing that I should mention, there are plenty of shops around to pick up anything that you may have forgotten. We decided to do some groceries (for our lunches) near the airport because we thought the prices were going to be triple the price in Banff but for the most part, the food was reasonably priced.
I hope you found this article helpful. I will do another post on all my outfit details.
If you’re planning a visit to Banff, have a great trip!
Samantha
xoxo
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