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September 3, 2022 In Outdoor Edventures

Galatea Lakes Hike

Where:

  • Galatea Lakes

 

When:

  • September 3, 2022

 

Who:

  • Ed, Rod, Jeff, Nicole, Peggy, Oak, Lisa, Peter

 

Trailhead:

  • a little over an hour drive from Calgary and a 45-minute drive from Canmore
  • heading south on Highway 40 for 33 km, the parking lot is on the right-hand side of the road

 

 

Degree of difficulty:

  • 945 meters elevation
  • 17 km round trip to Lower Galatea Lake
  • the hike took us just over five hours
  • the first 6 km is a moderate climb until Lillian Lake, where the steep ascent starts for the next km
  • at the Lower Lake, we took the trial counterclockwise around the lake to get to the Upper Lake
  • on the return, we continued counterclockwise and ended up coming down a different and steeper trail to Lillian Lake
  • this is a moderate hike for most of the way other than the final grunt from Lillian Lake to Lower Galatea Lake
  • at the end of the trail, there is a short hill back up to the parking lot that is a grind, given you’ve already hiked 17 km

 

 

Interesting notes:

  • the initial forested part of the trail crosses several bridges along Galatea Creek, where you witness the massive destruction from the 2013 flood
  • there are some nice waterfalls and pools of water along the creek
  • the first lake you come to is Lillian Lake which is quite picturesque and where I went for a dip on this day (the water was relatively warm)
  • just above Lower GalateaLlake, we saw the biggest marmot we’ve ever seen (about three times the size of a normal one)
  • the trail offers views of Limestone Mountain, Mount Kidd, The Tower, Mount Galatea, and Fortress Ridge
  • this trail can also be used to access Lost Lake (no trail marking, so I didn’t see where it cuts off into this trail) and Guinn Pass/Ribbon Lake (the turnoff was moved from near Lillian Lake to just before Lower Galatea Lake)
  • there is a campground at Lillian Lake with 17 campsites
  • keep an eye out for the unique letter P-shaped tree on your descent near the end of the hike
  • Galatea is named after the Royal Navy cruiser HMS Galatea

 

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