Best Trails in Kootenay National Park

Excellent trail, well marked. Hiked late October, almost reaching the very end. There’s a snow field near the end that we didn’t like the looks of. Spikes and poles are *really* helpful.

Did this on thanksgiving and gratitude was definitely the word of the day. Beautiful! trail was in great shape - just needed spikes for some icy bits.

we were there yesterday October 14th. the trails are wet at the start and by the middle part you will find snow which will make the hike a but longer. right at Floe Lake there is over 3 feet of snow. I would highly suggest having micro spikes as it can be slippery coming down. half way down we came face to face with a Grizly just less than 20ft apart from us. he was charging towards us luckily we stopped when we did and started yelling at him. He was a full grown big bear. If anyone thinking of going to Floe Lake the next few days be very careful.

easy, family friendly, gentle switchbacks and not pronounced hills at all. Lake is somewhat underwhelming, although it's always beautiful!. at kids pace we did 2 hours round trip with stops for whining, complaining and pictures, lol! we got a very light flurry, trail was considerably muddy.

Beautiful nature walk and easy trail to get to Marble Canyon from Paint Pots, however there are a lot of tree trunks in the way (last half of the trail) that you need to go over or under to get to Marble Canyon.

Three of us Hiked the Rockwall over thanksgiving weekend. We drove from Edmonton, dropped the car at Floe lake and then hitched to paint pots. Late start meant we stayed the first night in the Helmet/Ochre campsite, built a fire and enjoyed the river. Trail in good condition, covered in snow but otherwise dry. The night was cold enough that we slept with our faces tucked in our sleeping bags and missed the sunrise! The following day we hiked to Helmet falls, again doing a shorter day as a result of a late start. Trail was like a winter wonderland the whole way up- falls included; frozen around the edges and crashing water coming through the center. Day 3 was exhausting, none of us had done much hiking in the snow before, and while the incline was a challenge, we were pushed to our limits when we topped the treeline. The snow was thigh deep, and still dumping, and the visibility varied between 20-50 meters. The larch trees were beautiful while they lasted, but the depth of the snow and the lack of visibility was quite terrifying. While there were still some trail markers visible, it would be upwards of half an hour between each one, and with no distinguishable trail through the snow, the GPS signal on Alltrails was the only guide we had. Unfortunately, we saw none of the views due to the visibility and we're all planning to do the hike again as a result! When we hit wolverine pass, it was 5.20 pm, and we were afraid that we'd be hiking in the dark as there is no campsite here- contrary to the yellow marker on this app- but luckily the descent down to tumbling creek was beneath the cloud and easy to follow, we arrived at the tumbling creek campsite right as it got dark to dig out a campsite. It snowed so much overnight that we decided to follow Terry's route, and take the tumbling creek access back to paint pots. All round a beautiful hike, but definitely too late in the year to be above the treeline without snowshoes as the snow just slows you down far too much to manage 25km days with limited daylight! Trails were easy to follow when they weren't buried and alltrails navigated us perfectly the whole way around. Wicked time altogether! Loved camping in snow, and a great route to take in the event that it takes longer than expected due to the well maintained access routes (Though Numa is currently closed!)

Walked this trail just now with about 4 inches of snow. Highly advise knowing your way, we had to go off track for a second because of the snow covering the trail and being unable to see it as everything was covered in snow. Also the waterfall is no where near the path. You can hear and see it but without being spectacular. Also no other water on this hike other than a stream you cross twice. Fun and a little longer which is what we were looking for. I would suggest it if you want to do a bit of a longer hike and like paving your own path!

Really a badass hike this morning! It was -10 Celsius it 10° F, so a nice brisket hike. There was a controlled fire here probably last year, so a huge section is baby pine trees that you weave in and out. Didn’t make it around the glacier head, but still a nice 7 mile hike.

Nice hike! Wouldn’t rate it as hard. More like moderate. Only the last 2km gets steep but it’s a gradual steepness rather than straight incline. Worth it!

Trail is a great way to understand the regeneration after a forest fire. The extra vertical within the bowl is a great bonus. Today was a Ptolemy snow and slippery up at the extended elevation. Overall this is a very good hike.

To start go up the paved road from the Hot Springs parking lot. We were a little unsure where the trail started. The trail starts up with lots of switch back and goat poop. We saw a couple of mountain goats near the crest of the trail. Make sure you see the falls at the bottom. Trail ends back on the highway where you can turn back or better yet carefully cross the road to the Redstreak trail across the highway which is a wetter environment not muddy but mossy. It starts with a steep climb but not any worse than Juniper trail. It will return you to the hot springs where you pay to relax in the commercialized hot springs if you bring your bathing suit.

Trail is very muddy. Sneakers not recommended. Slippery coming back down because very orange mud clings to treads. Totally worth muddy boots. I've never seen earth that color.

45 min in 30 min out 15 min at the lake. nice Sunday morning walk.

Departed Paint Pots Sept 24th in wet conditions, late, so stopped overnight at the Helmet/Ochre campsite (one of the few campsites where fires are allowed). Trail in excellent condition with numerous wet spots. Cool and rainy throughout the next day to Helmet Falls. Trail wet but in great condition otherwise. Saw a grizzly sow with one cub rummaging in one of the slide meadows. No issues with them. Helmet campsite very nice with good water accesses. Hiked up to the base of Helmet Falls (about 2.5kms round trip). A must do side trip especially in the late fall when the larch trees are yellow. The views here above the tree line are stunning. Temperatures dropped throughout the night with intermittent rain and ice pellets. Climb out of Helmet to Tumbling Creek challenging but in very good condition. The reward at the summit is beyond words. Open alpine meadows in fall colours, bordered by larch, balsam and fir. Lots of little creek crossings. Pass became snow covered with icy sections. Had to look for trail markers (white with yellow reflective stripes) to keep on trail. Trail markers only about 20 cm tall as most, if not all, have been snapped off short. Was not that big a deal but if snow was deeper, it could get interesting. The descent past Wolverine Pass into Tumbling Creek campsite through open alpine meadows was the highlight of the hike by far! Meadows, creeks, rock slides (minor scrambling), glacial lakes, hanging glaciers with ice caves, moraine ridges add to the spectacular view of the Rockwall...it has it all! Great campground at Tumbling Creek, but temperatures in the -2 range and dropping to -5 or less by morning. Heavy wet snow throughout the night which had to be punched off every few hours made for a long cold damp night. About 10cm. The weather forecast was calling for a major snow event for Friday, and since we planned to stop at Numa Creek Thursday, and Floe Lake Friday, and our equipment and boots were thoroughly wet already, we sadly made the decision to cut our hike short and bail out of the high country via the Tumbling Creek trail back to Paint Pots trailhead. This is the most underrated trail in the Rockwall complex in my opinion. It is superbly maintained through numerous avalanche slide zones and closely follows along the steep banks of the Tumbling Creek, with its numerous waterfalls, ledges, and rapids. It would be a challenging steady climb in the opposite direction without a doubt. Lots of wildlife tracks present. Cougar, bear, elk or moose (large hoof), mostly found once the trail turned from snow/ice covered to muddy sections. Remainder of the hike to Paint Pots uneventful. Met a young lady from Spain just starting a solo Rockwall loop, so hoping she’s prepared for her first blast of Canadian winter weather

Great hike with amazing views all around.

This hike was definitely one of the most beautiful and scenic hikes I’ve done. The trail was really easy follow and was on the narrow side. Elevation gain was nice a steady for the first 7-8km and then it got steeper with a bit of switch backs in the next 1-2km. Really cool to see the aftermath of the 2003 forest fires.

3-6hrs round trip.. Perfect challenge for beginner hikers. Almost always busy. Make sure to check out the fossils on the giant boulder near the waterfalls. Even though you will want to stop there, keep going to the end, it's worth the last push to the cave. Be bear aware, but also bring water and snacks. Dog friendly on leash.

2-4hrs round trip.. Great little hike through the forest. Fairly busy due to how easy the hike is. Beautiful lake as the reward ending. Perfect hike to enjoy a lunch by the lake, or just stretch your legs. Bring water. Dog friendly on leash.

good

Very nice trail. I highly recommend to keep walking further up towards the glacier after the trail ends. So worth the extra effort.

Amazing and beautiful trail.

Great views from the top of the loop. Quiet early but by noon 30+ at trail end sign.

Excellent hike! It's a good trail all the way up to the sign indicating the end of the maintained trail. if you want to continue to the glacier it's steeper than previous sections while traversing a debris field. We started out toward the glacier but stopped because it was getting late and the weather was making it slightly dangerous to walk on the rocks. We did see another hiker slip and fall. Having said that, if we had had more time I'm sure we could have continued to the top.

great hike and exploration! due to 1968 fire, view of valley opens up after climbing first set of switchbacks. trail flatens and goes through woods until just before no maint sign. decided to hike up to waterfall past large glacial boulder. faint trail goes up and is steep. at top trail follows along face of escarpment to caves, then continues and joins AT map near top of valley. AT trail after sign clearly visible after sign. we continued to a large white boulder for lunch and view of Stanley Glacier. for return, decided to stay right on trail shown AT. without poles would not suggest this as trail is very steep, rocky (small/large mixed) and slippery back to trail sign. as a result suggest lower trail to go up and come back

Easy hike but lake view is not that good. Nice spot for fishing though