“We’re only lucky enough to see the wonders of nature’s canyons because they’re gracious enough to show us the places they’ve been damaged.”
― Curtis Tyrone Jones
Grotto Canyon Trail is a wonderful out and back hike in Canmore, that is pretty rewarding despite its short distance. In it’s 4km, it offers ancient indian pictographs (though I just couldn’t find them), a waterfall, hoodoos, and a cave. This, combined with the fact that it is good for all skill levels, makes it perfect for a family hike, as long as proper footwear is worn. The walls of the canyon make for fun rock climbing practice, and in the winter, it is a popular ice walking and climbing spot.
Our vacation through Banff and Jasper was coming to a close, and after a night at a fancy suite in Canmore, we were heading to a Calgary airport hotel for an early flight. This was a perfect stop in between.
The hike itself starts off a little strange. It’s through the most industrial part of the area I had seen my whole trip. It passes through a Baymag plant, and you can hear the machinery running for the start of the hike. Don’t let this discourage you, it truly is a beautiful canyon. You really gain a sense of scale once you are down inside of it. It’s unbelievable to imagine how strong the water currents must have been in order to have carved into 50 feet of rock like that.
Access the trailhead at the Grotto Lake parking lot. The trail then parallels the highway behind the plant for a kilometre to the creek bed (keep a sharp eye out, one of the markers leading to the creek bed had fallen down and we ended up on a path above the canyon for a bit, before we realized our mistake and had to double-back). Follow this path along the creek bed for another kilometre to the falls. Supposedly, on the left just before the falls, are the pictographs, but I guess I missed them, I’ll try again next time and update as needed. From the falls, you can continue your hike, it will eventually open up to a valley where I encourage you to add your cairn to the collection. You’ll notice come hoodoos and a cave. We were there in spring when the bears are all about, so we did not venture too close.
I’ve heard this trail can get quite busy, but we were there early on a Saturday, at the end of spring, and saw few hikers and a couple climbers, until the very end of our hike. As always, remain cautious while hiking, some spots can be slippery and the terrain is mostly unlevel loose rocks.
Happy trails!
