Narrow channel
White water.
Adam Jones, Ph.D. — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Giorgio Galeotti — CC BY-SA 4.0 · simpf — CC BY-SA 2.0 · User:VashiDonsk — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Giorgio Galeotti — CC BY 4.0
Mistaya Canyon is a narrow rock gorge on the Mistaya River in Banff National Park, Alberta, on the Icefields Parkway about 68 km northwest of Lake Louise in a straight line, near where the Mistaya meets the North Saskatchewan River. The Mistaya River rises in the famous blue Peyto Lake and runs about 38 km to join the North Saskatchewan. Its name means grizzly bear in the Cree language. The river cut this gorge after the glaciers melted, carving it into limestone and dolostone, which gives it steep walls and a deep, narrow channel. White water rushes through a winding channel only a few metres wide in places, between smooth grey rock polished by the river. Round potholes scoured by swirling water mark the walls, and pine forest and mountain peaks surround the gorge. A short trail from a roadside car park leads down through the forest to a small bridge over the canyon, with views of the channel and the rushing water. The rock near the edge is slippery and unfenced in places, so stay well back from the drop. It makes a good short stop on the drive between Banff and Jasper.
White water.
Scoured by eddies.
Over the gorge.
Icefields Parkway, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
A short trail from the car park.
Keep back from the edge; the rock is slippery.