18 Lake Louise Facts: A Place You Must Visit Near A Glacier!

Oluwatosin Michael
Oct 06, 2023 By Oluwatosin Michael
Originally Published on Feb 08, 2022
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Lake Louise host numerous tourists every year.

Lake Louise village is in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies.

It is famous for its blue glacier-fed lake surrounded by high peaks and overlooking a magnificent château that is not the only luxury hotel. It is Canada's first and North America's third national park, and it has a long history as one of the world's most awe-inspiring Rocky Mountains locations.

About 100 million years ago, the North American continent collided with a microcontinent, forming Banff National Park. The town of Banff is 37.9 mi (61 km) from Lake Louise. The TransCanada Highway takes roughly 45 minutes or an hour if you take the picturesque Bow Valley Parkway.

Banff National Park is known for its bizarrely colored lakes, breathtaking Rocky Mountains, and endless outdoor activities. It is made accessible because it is situated at the meeting point of the safe passage of the Trans-Canada Highway and the Icefields Parkway.

Locals from Lake Louise village may tell you about an urban tale about a waiter at the chateau, who informed naïve visitors that the lake was emptied and painted every spring and nudged them to return the next week to witness the sight after hearing one too many questions about the lake's color.

According to legend, the clients returned as directed, and the server was soon fired. The color is determined by the rock flour that is carried in the glacial melt that flows down the lake.

The sun refracts blue and green wavelengths of light as it bounces off these particles.

So, how was Lake Louise created? The Lake Louise area was formed when glacial meltwater was backed up by a dam of glacial debris, resulting in one of the stunning turquoise lakes we know and absolutely love today.

Charlie Locke, his wife Louise, and their two children, Robin and Kimberley, own and operate the Lake Louise Ski Resort, while Oxford Properties owns the Chateau Lake Louise resort hotel.

Tourism At Lake Louise

Lake Louise is a popular site for travelers attracted by its turquoise waters, wild animals, sleigh rides, and stellar views. Its hiking trails, ski areas, horse riding, and rock-climbing provisions have drawn people from across the globe.

Banff and Lake Louise are often considered winter vacations, with their majestic snow-capped peaks and Holy Grail ski resorts. Locals disagree about this and are divided on the issue. In the summer, tourists flock to Lake Louise for wildlife encounters, beautiful views, and once-in-a-lifetime alpine experiences.

Summers are defined by cold mornings and cool, crisp days. Snowfall can occur at any time of year. It's also known as a subalpine climate because lower elevations on that latitude have humid continental climates instead. The frost-free period is only 14 days on average because of the considerable diurnal temperature difference and high altitude.

Calgary International Airport is the closest airport to Fairmont Chateau, Lake Louise (YYC). Fairmont Chateau is about 125 mi (200 km) east of Calgary International Airport (YYC). To go from Calgary to the beautiful emerald Lake Louise, you can use public transport; the bus fare will cost you around $50 to $59.

The nearby Lake Louise Ski Area, previously known as Lake Louise Mountain Resort, provides alpine and cross-country skiing and heli-skiing and snowboarding, among other activities, and is best when visited between early November and late May.

In the winter season, ice skating and ice fishing are available on the lake, while the surrounding terrain provides snowmobiling, dog sledding, snowshoeing, and ice-climbing opportunities.

You can also go on hiking trails to Saddleback Pass, Mirror Lake, Fairview Mountain, Little Beehive, Mount Niblock, Devils Thumb, Lake Agnes, Big Beehive, and Mount Whyte.

Lake Louise is the second-largest ski resort in Canada and one of the largest ski resorts in North America.

The riverside cabins of the Post Hotel offer desirable accommodation in the tourist destination of Lake Louise.

Would the sight of a black bear terrify you? The alpine town of Lake Louise provides visitors with a once-in-a-lifetime chance to view grizzly bears in the wild. A ski-resort gondola is lovingly known as the Grizzly Gondola during the summer.

How will global warming affect Lake Louise?

Global warming and its resultant climatic change has impacted the entire world. But how has it been impacting Lake Louise in particular? Let's find out.

Changes in the temperature conditions could significantly impact many elements of Banff tourism. Warmer temperatures, for example, will change vegetation patterns (such as bud break) and forest-fire patterns.

According to a recent study, by 2100, Canada's glaciers could have shrunk by up to 95%.

Every year, three to four million tourists visit Banff National Park, and many of them come to admire the park's stunning emerald lakes, such as Lake Louise, Lake Agnes, and Moraine Lake. These lakes, however, will look radically different by the end of the century as the glaciers recede.

Lake Louise is a glacial lake near Banff National Park.

Aqua Factors: Lake Louise

The color of the water of the stunning Lake Louise is mesmerizing, isn't it? Here are some cool facts about the water.

As a tourist, if you're wondering if you can drink the Lake Louise water, you must know that it's recommended to boil the water first before drinking it. Parks Canada officials recommend doing this until they are confident that the water is safe to drink on its own.

Even if a local tries to persuade you that the lakes are emptied, and the bottoms painted every year, or that color is added to the water, none of these facts are true.

Glaciers feed the lakes in the highlands, resulting in vibrant blue and green colors. When a glacier's meltwater begins to flow in the spring, it carries glacier silt with it.

The silt is formed when the glacier's movement grinds the rocks beneath the surface of the ice, resulting in rock flour that is very light and floats for a long time in the lake water.

When the glacier lakes initially thaw in late spring, they don't have much color. However, as additional sediment from glacier meltwater enters the lakes, they begin to take on the renowned turquoise blue or green color that draws visitors worldwide.

The months of July and August are when the meltwater levels are at their maximum and, as a result, the lakes are the most vibrantly colored.

As the summer draws to a close, the meltwater flow begins to dwindle. There is still some color in September and early October, but when the glacial silt settles in the water, the intensity of the color fades.

A lake's color can change from one day to the next or even from one hour to the next, depending on the lighting circumstances, the color intensity or brilliance varies. Even the most colorful lake will not look as magnificent on a very dismal or foggy day.

The angle of the sun hitting the water and the angle of sight influence the color.

When seeing a lake from above, you'll often remark how much more vibrant it appears. One of the reasons Peyto Lake seems so weird from the observation platform high above it is because of this.

Business Plans For Lake Louise

The business plan involves encouraging tourism around Lake Louise.

Banff and Lake Louise Tourism (BLLT) aims to increase year-round tourism. To do this, they intend to:

Collaborate with Parks Canada, and the Banff and Lake Louise communities.

Elect a board of directors.

Join forces with Travel Alberta, Destination Canada, and other like-minded organizations.

Did You Know...

The Valley of the Ten Peaks is a valley in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada, including 10 noteworthy peaks and Moraine Lake. Do you want more interesting facts? Keep reading!

The Stoney Nakota First Nations people named this lake 'ho-run-num-nay' (Lake of the Little Fishes).

Lake Louise is also proximate to Moraine Lake and Lake Agnes. 'Emerald Lake' was the original name for Lake Louise but, in 1884, the name was changed to Lake Louise after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, Queen Victoria's daughter.

Victoria Glacier feeds the lake on Mount Victoria, which rises above the western end of the lake at the height of 5,680 ft (1,731 m).

The settlement of Louise Lake, which is 5,052 ft (1,540 m) above sea level, and the chateau Louise Lake, which is 5,680 ft (1,731 m) above sea level, are the highest towns in Canada. People have established settlements around it so that you may breathe fresh air.

However, the oxygen level is quite low because of its height, so don't be shocked if you have difficulty breathing.

Lake Louise was named after Princess Louise Alberta, the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and the wife of the Marquess of Lorne, Canada's Governor-General, from 1878-1883.

Cutthroat trout, mountain whitefish, and bull trout are among the small fish that live in the lake all year.

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Written by Oluwatosin Michael

Bachelor of Science specializing in Microbiology

Oluwatosin Michael picture

Oluwatosin MichaelBachelor of Science specializing in Microbiology

With a Bachelor's in Microbiology from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Oluwatosin has honed his skills as an SEO content writer, editor, and growth manager. He has written articles, conducted extensive research, and optimized content for search engines. His expertise extends to leading link-building efforts and revising onboarding strategies. 

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