Johnston Canyon offers a wonderful hike up Johnston creek, a tributary to the Bow River. A 1.5 mile hike leads to the lower falls, and that alone is worth the trip, because the lower falls are best seen once you, the viewer, pass over a bridge and through a natural tunnel to be sprayed with water from the falls themselves as they spill into a crystal blue pool.

photo by Author

If a person has time, and enjoys a further hike, they may wish to continue an extra mile to the Upper Falls. Another 2 miles beyond that and the trail leads to the Ink Pots, a series of colorful pools formed by springs.

Myself, step daughter, and wife did the hike to the lower falls and back in about 1 hour. We, of course, were stopping to take pictures. In addition to the falls and walkways, which are built clinging to the walls of the canyons, our cameras were frequently on the Golden Mantled Ground Squirrels along the way. Note: These are not Chipmunks as you may think, their heads and shoulders are solid brown.

photo by Authors step-daughter, a Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel.

The parking lot is often over-crowded and people were parking on the highway itself. There are good washrooms and beyond lies a place to get a bite to eat, an ice cream, and Johnston Canyon rental cabins. The trail starts conveniently near the ice cream stand. If you buy ice cream you should note that you should not feed it, or the cones, to any of the local wild life.

Dogs are allowed on the trail if kept on leash, but bikes are not. Small children should be watched closely, as parts of the trail are slippery and they should not be allowed to climb on the railings.

We were impressed at how well the trail was maintained. The catwalks which clung to the side of the canyons felt safe and secure, in real life they are far more spectacular than in photos.

Photo by Author, part way through the walk to the lower falls.

Photo by Authors wife, showing the catwalks on the trail and the canyon as a whole.

There are actually seven falls in the series, with the Lower Falls, and then the Upper Falls, being the most grand. The lower falls are 33 feet high, and the upper falls are nearly 100 feet high.  The biggest thrill for us, was at the end of the short hike to the Lower Falls, here we crossed a bridge and then passed through a tunnel, leading out to a very small area where we could feel the spray of the water.  Unfortunately it was too crowded for us to take a decent photograph, but then again, this is something you must see for yourself, and feel. 

We did not venture to the Ink Pots, which are six colorful pools of water, and apparently you can actually see the spring water as it bubbles up into the ponds.
We totally recommend this hike as it was one of the highlights of our trip through Banff National Park!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dnorman/122613948/

The lower falls as seen through the tunnel in the winter.  Photo by Flickr user D’Arcy Norman

How to Get There

Banff is tourist city less than two hours west of Calgary, Alberta. You will require a park pass, which you can purchase when you enter Banff National Park. Take Highway 1 West of Banff to Highway 1A North. The Johnston Canyon will be about 30 minutes from Banff, on your right hand side. If you are coming from the North, when you are south of Lake Louise you will want to get onto Highway 1A and look for Johnston Canyon after you pass Moose Meadows.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26428082@N03/2478903247/ the Upper Falls, photo from Flickr user Wonkanerd

Tips

Bring a water bottle and camera.

Wear good shoes, the trail can be slippery after rain, and in the off-season.

Be prepared for rain, especially in the later afternoons, even on sunny days.

Trails will be less crowded in the mornings, Monday to Friday, and during the off-season. (We went on a Monday afternoon in July and there were a fair number of people)

The trail is not suitable for baby strollers or wheel chairs.

One More Note

When we came back from our hike we saw park interpreters had set up a display about bears. It was rather sad, they had a bear who had been shot only the year before. Bear 133 was the victim of human laziness. At six years of age he had learned that humans were messy, they tended to throw out yummy garbage.  If you visit this, or any Park, please do not feed the wildlife, or throw out any garbage. 

Photo by Author, showing Bear 133.  He was one of only 60 Black Bears in Banff National Park. 

Additional Links

Johnston Canyon Cabins

How some people destroy National Parks

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The area is famous for its dinosaur finds, and is currently home to the worlds largest Dinosaur, one you can actually go inside of to gain a better view of the city and surrounding area. However, todays trek will be on foot. At times you might think you are in “Bedrock” but no, you are in Drumheller.
Throughout downtown Drumheller there are several small, colorful, cement dinosaurs. The first one I encountered was a lovely little dinosaur painted bright blue, complete with a band aid on his back. Turns out the little fella was located in front of a Pharmacy. Nearby we spotted a spotted dinosaur. The pieces fell into place like prehistoric clues. The black and white spotted guy was outside a Fire Station, clearly he was a Dalmatian Dinosaur, the fire mascot for the Fire Station. I am sure he was housetrained.

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You get the idea. As you wander around you will see a theme, dinosaurs painted to match a storefront nearby, be it a biker shop, or garden. The brightly painted Stegosaurus is sure to delight not only you, but your children as well.
For safety reasons, and to keep the dinosaurs in good shape, it is not a good idea to allow your children to climb on them. All of these dinosaurs seem to have happy expressions on their vicious faces, let’s keep it that way.

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I want to stress these dinosaurs are whimsical, comedic, they are not representations of actual dinosaurs, they are not life sized, or anatomically correct. There are many places in Drumheller where you can learn actual facts about actual dinosaurs, including the nearby, and very popular Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology. There are plenty of fossil shops and educational experiences, but sometimes we need to just have fun and enjoy silly things.

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In truth we really don’t know what color dinosaurs were, maybe Tyrannosaurus did have racing stripes, and maybe Triceratops was covered in rainbows. I encourage you to park your car, put on your walking shoes and take a jaunt around the city of Drumheller to see how many of these “terrible lizards” with cheerful colors you can find. As always wear sunscreen and bring your camera.

Rosedale Suspension Bridge

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A short 5 minute drive east of Drumheller on Highway 10, is the town of Rosedale. Not much of a town, but there is a nice treed picnic area, and a Suspension Bridge, which is a free tourist attraction. The Bridge is suspended over the Red Deer River, but isn’t so high, or so wobbly to be intimidating to people of all ages. On the other side of the river is a very prehistoric looking area, but we must remember that although the land looks inhospitable, millions of years ago it was actually very lush. When the dinosaurs trod on this part of the earth, it did not resemble the desert it is today. Also, remember that it is a desert, do not stick your hands in holes, or places you cannot see. In this part of Canada, there are scorpions, black widow spiders, and rattle snakes.

The 11 Bridges of Wayne

You must drive off Highway 10 for a short distance south, to find this Guinness Record Book title holder, for “The Most Bridges in the Shortest Distance”. Again this area is surrounded by the alien landscape that the area is so well known for. In fact, even if it were not for these other attractions, the landscape alone is worth the trip.

The Hoodoos

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About 15 minutes east of Drumheller, again on Highway 10, just beyond Rosedale, is an interesting geological feature, referred to as “The Hoodoos”. These odd looking structures were formed when erosion removed softer bits of sandstone leaving some areas untouched due to the fact that they had harder stones protecting the sandstone beneath.

The whole area is fascinating, other worldly in appearance, and frequently used in movies about outer space. Unfortunately the Hoodoos have been somewhat destroyed by tourists who have carved their names into them, climbed on them, and basically tried to gain their 15 minutes of fame by destroying a feature that took thousands of years to form.

Other Information

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You may have noticed that I only referred to a few outdoor things, in reality there are plenty more things to see and do in the area, including the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, which is a wonderful museum for anyone interested in Dinosaurs. The city of Drumheller itself also has wonderful indoor, and outdoor points of interest, which I will talk about in other articles. This article was to feature a few of the sights and sites, outside the city, and basically outside. I hope you enjoy your trip to the Badlands region of Alberta, remember to bring your camera, sunscreen, and water bottle.

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When driving by Red Deer on Highway #2 you would not expect that it is cultured or has major public works of art. In fact you may think all Red Deer has to offer is fast food restaurants, gas stations, and RV sales lots. This is because Red Deer’s city planners, to avoid downtown congestion, created an area called Gasoline Alley. This strip effectively keeps Highway traffic out of its’ downtown area. However, if you take the time to venture into downtown Red Deer there is a thriving cultural community and the city has invested in public works of art.

What I refer to are the statues affectionately referred to as The Ghosts of Red Deer. These incredibly well detailed, life size, sculptures are scattered throughout down town Red Deer. All these ghosts are of real people, with a couple of exceptions, which are real animals. There are plaques explaining the stories behind the statues.

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The first Ghost I saw was an older gentleman sitting on a bench downtown, he had a briefcase and was remarkably well done, I admired the sculpture, but until I saw another, I had not realized that this was a special feature in the city. I soon discovered many more. I have not included a photo of this chap, you will have to discover him for yourself.

There are two sculptures that I was especially drawn to, one because of its magnificent size, attention to detail in an action pose, and the other because of the story behind it.

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The Ghost of a horse drawn fire wagon is truly impressive. The expression on the horses as well as the two human figures is very strong. No question about it, this is an intense moment caught in time. It is the largest Ghost Sculpture, complete with two frightened horses, one driver in the fire wagon, and a man who is trying to control the horses. A rein has broke and they are loosing control of the team, who typically are used to charging full speed to the fire.

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Francis the Pig is my other favorite. This little guy made an escape on route to the slaughter yard, he evaded capture for quite some time. During this time Francis made himself a town celebrity and earned this statue from his days on the run.

All in all, seeing these lovely works of art, in an unexpected location gave me quite an thrill. Red Deer is about one hour north of Calgary, and one and a half hours south of Edmonton, should you find yourself passing through Red Deer, I suggest you turn off the highway, and go into the downtown area and look for these ghosts yourself. Bring a camera.