#6 of 14 sights in Peter Lougheed
Sight · Peter Lougheed Provincial Park
A short, steep climb opens onto an emerald alpine lake.
Overview
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Peter Lougheed Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Peter Lougheed Provincial Park. 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 Peter Lougheed audio tourRecorded for this place
Elbow Lake: A Short, Steep Lake Hike“You're nearing Elbow Pass Day Use Area, the starting point for a short, steep hike to Elbow Lake.”
Plays as you drive up to Elbow Lake in the Parkwolf Peter Lougheed 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
Elbow Lake is an emerald alpine lake in a forested basin beneath rocky mountain slopes. From Elbow Pass Day Use Area, the old road climbs to the shore for about 1.4 km one way and 120 m of elevation gain. It’s a short outing, but the slope is steep enough to notice; this is a walk in, not a roadside pullout. Highway 40 has a seasonal winter closure, so trailhead access by car isn’t year-round.
Follow the shore for changing views across the water and toward the mountain backdrop. For photos, walk beyond the arrival point so the angle changes with the shoreline. From the lake, the route continues toward Big Elbow Trail, and you can extend farther toward Rae Glacier if you want a longer hike.
About 15 tent pads sit among trees along the lake. This is a backcountry campground, not a drive-up picnic area; its listed facilities include pit or vault toilets and secure food storage.
Elbow Lake is spring-fed and contributes water to the Elbow River. Nearby Rae Glacier is part of the story, but it isn’t the river’s main source: the main headwater flow comes from a snowfield-fed spring in a neighboring basin.
Wildlife
132 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
17 sightingsCanada LynxMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
30 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
69 sightingsMooseMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
176 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
19 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Peter Lougheed. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyElbow Lake Trail2.8 km · 1.5 hr · 1.2 km awayA steep old road climbs to an alpine lake.
ChallengingPiper Pass Trail20.6 km · 8 hr · 1.2 km awayA long climb from Elbow Lake to an exposed alpine pass.
ChallengingRae Glacier Trail9.1 km · 4 hr · 1.2 km awayA rugged, unsigned climb to Rae Glacier’s rocky basin.
ModerateEdworthy Falls via Elbow Lake Trail9.7 km · 3.5 hr · 1.2 km awayElbow Lake first, then a gentler valley walk to Edworthy Falls.
ModerateRae Lake Trail17.2 km · 6 hr · 1.2 km awayA long, unsigned branch to a lake beneath Mount Rae.
ChallengingHighwood Ridge Trail12.5 km · 4.5 hr · 5.2 km awayA steep scramble across two peaks above Highwood Pass.
EasyHighwood Meadows Trail1.2 km · 30 min · 5.2 km awayA barrier-free boardwalk through a fragile alpine meadow at 2,200 m.
ModerateGrizzly Col Trail9 km · 4 hr · 5.2 km awayA rugged climb through Pocaterra Cirque to the saddle below Grizzly Ridge
Campground · 0.3 km awayElbow Lake Backcountry CampgroundA short uphill carry opens onto a lakeside backcountry camp.
Sight · 2.3 km awayLittle Highwood Pass Day Use AreaA roadside pause for Highwood Pass scenery and Pocaterra Ridge access.
Sight · 2.9 km awayRock Glacier Day Use AreaA short stop for a rockslide, alpine views, and pikas.Sight · 5.2 km awayHighwood Pass Day UseAlpine meadow and jagged peaks, reached on a 1.2 km boardwalk.
Campground · 6.6 km awayBoulton Creek CampgroundA wooded base camp with walk-in tents and full RV hookups.
Store · 7.1 km awayBoulton Creek Trading PostGroceries, campground basics, rentals and ice cream in one stop.
Picnic area · 7.1 km awayBoulton Bridge Day Use AreaA creekside picnic stop with an almost 5 km trail nearby
Campground · 7.7 km awayLower Lake Group CampgroundA shared shelter and room for up to 15 camping units.Parkwolf’s Peter Lougheed ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
