On the West Coast Trail you climb more than a hundred wooden ladders, some taller than a house, and cross rivers in hand-pulled cable cars. That mix of wild terrain and old infrastructure is typical of Canadian hiking: many of the great routes began as lifesaving paths, gold-rush trails or railway-era alpine club tracks, and most still lead somewhere with no road.
The Rockies hold the densest network, from the teahouse hikes above Lake Louise to the hut-to-hut country of Lake O’Hara, Mount Assiniboine and Berg Lake below Mount Robson. The coasts add rainforest and sea cliffs on Vancouver Island and around St. John’s, and the north has the Chilkoot Trail and the Arctic passes of Auyuittuq.
The season is short. High trails are often snowbound until early July and see snow again by late September, so the popular backcountry sites are booked months ahead. Bears live along almost every trail in this guide, and bear spray is standard kit.
At a Glance#
- Classic coastal trek: the West Coast Trail in Pacific Rim, 75 km of beach, ladders and rainforest in five to seven days.
- Rockies day hikes: the Lake Agnes and Plain of Six Glaciers teahouses above Lake Louise, and Larch Valley from Moraine Lake.
- Rockies backpacking: Berg Lake in Mount Robson Park, the Skyline Trail in Jasper and the Rockwall in Kootenay.
- Hut and lodge country: Lake O’Hara in Yoho and Mount Assiniboine, where lodges and huts sit in the alpine.
- Atlantic Canada: Gros Morne, the East Coast Trail from St. John’s and the Skyline Trail in Cape Breton Highlands.
- The north: the gold-rush Chilkoot Trail, Kluane and Akshayuk Pass in Auyuittuq.
- When to go: July to mid-September in the mountains; June to October on the Atlantic coast.
The Pacific coast#
The West Coast Trail runs 75 km between Port Renfrew and Bamfield on the west side of Vancouver Island, following a route cut for shipwreck survivors on the coast once called the Graveyard of the Pacific. Expect mud, slick boardwalk, ladders, suspension bridges and beach stretches that are only passable at low tide, so you carry a tide table. It is open from May 1 to September 30. Reservations are mandatory and open in winter (February for 2026), and the Parks Canada backcountry permit costs about 184.75 dollars (about 130 USD) a person, plus two ferry crossings paid locally. Most people take five to seven days.
Without a permit, the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail to the south covers similar ground over about 47 km with campsites booked through BC Parks. Near Vancouver, Garibaldi Provincial Park has the turquoise Garibaldi Lake, about 9 km and 900 m up from the trailhead, and Joffre Lakes has three glacier lakes on a short, steep trail. Both need a free BC Parks day-use pass in summer, and Joffre Lakes closes for periods each year at the request of the local First Nations.
Banff and Lake Louise#
The easiest big-mountain hiking in Canada starts at Lake Louise in Banff National Park. The trail to Lake Agnes climbs about 400 m in 3.5 km to a hanging lake where a teahouse has served hikers since 1905; continue over the Big Beehive or across to the Plain of Six Glaciers, where a second teahouse looks up at the Victoria Glacier. From Moraine Lake, Larch Valley and Sentinel Pass (2,611 m) turn gold in mid to late September, and Parks Canada often requires hikers to stay in tight groups of four there when grizzlies are feeding.
The road to Moraine Lake is closed to private cars, so take the Parks Canada shuttle (12.75 dollars an adult plus a booking fee) or Roam transit. Closer to Banff town, Johnston Canyon is a catwalk walk to waterfalls and the Ink Pots, and Kananaskis Country around Canmore has quieter ridge scrambles with no park fee.
Yoho, Kootenay and Mount Assiniboine#
Lake O’Hara in Yoho has perhaps the best day-hiking network in the Rockies: short, well-built trails to alpine lakes and the Opabin and Wiwaxy routes along ledges above them. Access is limited by a Parks Canada bus on a reservation system with a spring draw; otherwise you walk the 11 km road. Lake O’Hara Lodge, the Alpine Club’s Elizabeth Parker Hut and a campground are the overnight options.
The Rockwall Trail in Kootenay runs about 55 km under a limestone wall over four or five days with three passes. Mount Assiniboine, the “Matterhorn of the Rockies”, sits in its own provincial park reached on foot from the Mount Shark trailhead in Kananaskis (about 27 km) or by helicopter from Canmore, with a historic lodge, huts and a campground at Lake Magog.
Jasper and Mount Robson#
Next door in British Columbia, the Berg Lake Trail in Mount Robson Park climbs past the Valley of a Thousand Falls to Berg Lake under the north face of Mount Robson (3,954 m), the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. It is about 21 km each way. Floods in 2021 closed most of it, and the full trail reopened in 2025; campsites are reserved through BC Parks and go quickly.
Atlantic Canada#
Gros Morne on Newfoundland has two classics. Gros Morne Mountain (806 m) is a steep, rocky summit loop of about 17 km, and the Tablelands trail crosses bare orange rock from the Earth’s mantle. The Long Range Traverse is about 35 km of unmarked tundra and needs a Parks Canada navigation check before you get a permit.
On the Avalon Peninsula, the East Coast Trail runs more than 300 km of cliff path in day-length sections from St. John’s, past Cape Spear, with whales and icebergs offshore in early summer. In Nova Scotia, the Skyline Trail in Cape Breton Highlands is an easy loop of about 7 km to a headland boardwalk above the Cabot Trail, with moose common. Fundy National Park has the start of the tough Fundy Footpath along the coast.
Ontario and Quebec#
The Bruce Trail runs about 900 km along the Niagara Escarpment from Niagara to Tobermory, the oldest and longest marked footpath in Canada; its finest stretch is in Bruce Peninsula National Park at the Grotto. Killarney Provincial Park has the La Cloche Silhouette Trail, a loop of about 80 km over white quartzite ridges that takes about a week, and Lake Superior Provincial Park and Pukaskwa have rugged lakeshore routes. In Quebec, the Parc national de la Gaspésie has the high Chic-Chocs, with woodland caribou on Mont Jacques-Cartier and Sépaq huts for multi-day walking.
The north#
The Chilkoot Trail follows the 1898 gold-rush route 53 km from Dyea in Alaska over the pass to Bennett in British Columbia, in three to five days. Numbers over the summit are capped at 50 a day, permits are shared by Parks Canada and the US Park Service (47 dollars an adult on the Canadian side), and the season runs from June to early September. You need a passport.
In the Yukon, Kluane has day hikes like King’s Throne near Haines Junction, and Tombstone Territorial Park on the Dempster Highway north of Dawson City has tundra hikes to Grizzly Lake. Akshayuk Pass in Auyuittuq on Baffin Island is about 97 km of glacier valley and river crossings, with a mandatory orientation and polar bear risk.
When to go#
In the Rockies, July to mid-September is the hiking season; snow lingers on passes into July, and the larches turn in the second half of September. The coastal trails in British Columbia are best from June to September. Newfoundland and Cape Breton are good from June to early October, and the far north from July to August.
Permits, huts and safety#
- Park fees: Banff and the other mountain national parks charge 12.25 dollars an adult per day, or 83.50 dollars for an annual Discovery Pass.
- Backcountry camping: in Banff a wilderness pass costs 15 dollars a person per night plus a reservation fee; book on the Parks Canada reservation site when the season opens in winter.
- Huts and lodges: Alpine Club of Canada huts, Skoki and Assiniboine lodges, and Sépaq refuges in Quebec. Book months ahead.
- Bears: carry bear spray where you can reach it, make noise, hike in groups and store food properly.
- Rescue: there is often no mobile signal; carry a satellite messenger and call 911 where you can.
Parks Canada releases backcountry dates on fixed winter mornings. Have your route, dates and backups ready, and be logged in when the system opens.
For the parks themselves, see our national parks in Canada guide. For more trails across the continent, see Hiking & Trekking in North America and The World’s Great Walks.
Best places to hike in Canada#
.jpg){kind=link}
More Things to Do#
Canada hiking FAQs#
What is the most famous hike in Canada?
The West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island is the best-known multi-day trek, and the Lake Agnes Teahouse hike at Lake Louise is the most famous day hike. Berg Lake and the Skyline Trail are the classic Rockies backpacking routes.
Do you need a permit to hike in Canada?
Day hikes in national parks need only the park entry fee. Overnight trips need a backcountry permit and a reserved campsite, and the West Coast Trail, Chilkoot Trail and Berg Lake Trail have quotas. Some BC provincial parks need a free day-use pass in summer.
When is the best time to hike in the Canadian Rockies?
Mid-July to mid-September, when the high trails are clear of snow. Late September brings golden larches and fewer people, but early snow is possible.
Do I need bear spray to hike in Canada?
In the Rockies, on the Pacific coast and in the north, yes. Carry it on your belt, learn how to use it, and hike in a group. You can buy it in Banff, Jasper, Canmore and outdoor shops in every western city, but not on planes.
How hard is the West Coast Trail?
It is demanding rather than technical: 75 km of mud, ladders, roots and beach in five to seven days, often in rain. You need good fitness and backpacking experience, and the trail sees evacuations every year for injuries.