Scenic pullout · Icefields Parkway (Highway 93)
A quick pullout at the continental divide with sweeping alpine views.
Overview
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Icefields Parkway Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Icefields Parkway (Highway 93). As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Icefields Parkway audio tourRecorded for this place
Sunwapta Pass: A Boundary in the Mountains“You're coming up on Sunwapta Pass Viewpoint, where a cairn marks the boundary between Banff and Jasper. It's a short stop for open mountain views, with no hike needed.”
Plays as you drive up to Sunwapta Pass Viewpoint in the Parkwolf Icefields Parkway Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Sunwapta Pass Viewpoint is a roadside pullout at 2,035 m, where the Icefields Parkway crosses from Banff National Park into Jasper. The cairn is right at the pullout, so you can stop for sweeping alpine views framed by rugged Rocky Mountain peaks without taking a trail. I’d make it a short leg-stretch and look around, not a destination that needs a long stop.
The pass marks the boundary between Banff and Jasper and sits on the continental watershed divide. Water drains into different basins on either side of that line. It’s a neat bit of geography to take in while you’re looking across the high mountain setting.
The viewpoint is 125 km from Lake Louise and 108 km from Jasper, making it a convenient pause along the Parkway. Services on this remote road are limited, and there’s no cell coverage, so download route information before you set out. A national park pass is required to travel the Icefields Parkway.
The cairn pullout is the viewing point. Look across the open alpine landscape to the rugged peaks; a wide photo from here captures the valley and the Parkway’s high mountain setting together.
Wildlife
12 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
127 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
16 sightingsMooseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
100 sightingsElkMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
34 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
53 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Icefields Parkway. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyBoundary Lake Trail2 km · 1 hr · At the trailheadA faint route leads to a turquoise lake beneath Mount Athabasca.
ModerateWilcox Pass6.8 km · 2.5 hr · 1.8 km awayA steep forest climb opens to wildflowers and icefield views.
ModerateWilcox Ridge Viewpoint Trail9.3 km · 4 hr · 1.8 km awayAlpine meadows and an icefield panorama beyond Wilcox Pass.
ModerateWilcox Pass Red Chairs Trail3.1 km · 1.3 hr · 1.8 km awayA steep climb ends at red chairs above three glaciers.
ModerateHilda Creek to Hilda Glacier5 km · 2.5 hr · 3.1 km awayAn unmarked creek climb to Hilda Glacier's moraine flats.
ModerateParker Ridge Trail5.6 km · 2.5 hr · 3.9 km awayA steady switchback climb ends with Saskatchewan Glacier in front of you.
ModerateForefield Trail2.5 km · 1.5 hr · 4.4 km awayA short, rocky walk over ground the glacier left behind.
ModerateToe of the Athabasca Glacier Trail1.8 km · 1 hr · 5 km awayA short rocky climb to a close view of the glacier's toe.
Campground · 1.2 km awayWilcox Creek CampgroundA wooded mountain camp beside the Wilcox Pass trailhead.
Lodging · 3.1 km awayHI Hilda Creek Wilderness HostelA six-bed off-grid hostel for a group on the Icefields Parkway.
Campground · 3.1 km awayIcefield Tent CampgroundA rustic tent camp with glacier views from many sites.
Visitor center · 4.4 km awayColumbia Icefield Discovery CentreA warm indoor stop facing the Athabasca Glacier.
Lodging · 4.4 km awayGlacier View LodgeA seasonal lodge with glacier views at the Columbia Icefield.
Campground · 4.8 km awayIcefields Centre RV CampgroundA 100-site dry camp with Athabasca Glacier in view.
Sight · 5.1 km awayAthabasca GlacierWalk the moraine for a close glacier view; stay behind barriers.
Sight · 7.8 km awayPanther FallsA 66-metre plunge tucked below Big Bend’s broad pullout.Parkwolf’s Icefields Parkway ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
