230 km of glaciers, waterfalls and turquoise lakes — a road you can fairly call one of the most beautiful in the world.
The Icefields Parkway (officially Highway 93 North) is a mountain route about 230 km long, linking Lake Louise with Jasper through the very heart of the Rockies. It regularly lands on lists of the planet’s most beautiful roads, and National Geographic dubbed it a “Drive of a Lifetime.” It’s the reason we built the second day of our Winnipeg-to-Banff road trip around it: for me, a chance to compare it with Europe’s Transfăgărășan — and honestly, the Parkway doesn’t lose that contest.
The road was built in the 1930s to connect Banff and Jasper, and was deliberately routed past the most dramatic scenery — which is why it still feels less like a way to get from A to B than an adventure in its own right. Strung along it like beads are the most famous stops in the Rockies: Bow Lake, Peyto Lake, Mistaya Canyon, the Columbia Icefield with the Athabasca Glacier and the glass Skywalk, and further north, Athabasca Falls and Jasper itself. The highest point on the road is Bow Summit, about 2,070 metres.
A few tips to drive it with pleasure rather than stress. First, allow twice the time your sat-nav suggests: you’ll stop constantly, and that’s fine. Second — most important — there’s almost no cell signal along the Parkway, so download offline maps at home. Third, the road is free but you need a valid Parks Canada pass (in summer the Canada Strong Pass covers it). And fourth: even in summer it’s cool and the weather is fickle — a warm layer and a rain jacket won’t go amiss. In winter, sections close for avalanche control, so check conditions ahead.
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| What it is | Hwy 93N, ~230 km, Lake Louise ↔ Jasper |
| Highest point | Bow Summit (~2,070 m) |
| Key stops | Bow Lake, Peyto Lake, Mistaya Canyon, Columbia Icefield |
| Signal | Almost none along its length → offline maps |
| Entry | Parks Canada pass / Canada Strong Pass |
| Season | Summer; winter avalanche closures possible |
Read next: Peyto Lake, Bow Lake, the Columbia Icefield Skywalk and the whole Winnipeg-to-Banff road trip.
