Parking
Parking is on the left when driving toward the Canada–US border. The trailhead is across the highway, about 250 metres along Chief Mountain Highway.
Overview
About Wishbone Trail
Why go
- lakeshore destination
- open prairie sections
- shorter turnaround at Vimy Junction
Heads up
- very long full route
- seasonal stream ford
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Waterton Lakes map
Full mapElevation1,277–1,351 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
7 active Waterton Lakes alerts
- CautionWishbone Trail travel not recommendedMentions this trailParks Canada does not recommend travel on the Wishbone Trail between Vimy Junction and Wishbone/Crypt Landing because the trail is extremely overgrown and winter conditions are present.Official details
- ClosureBelly River Campground closedBelly River Campground is closed to all traffic and travel because a carcass is in the area. - Violators may be charged under the Canada National Parks Act, with a maximum penalty of $25,000.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Waterton Lakes Tour Guide
Your drive to Wishbone Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Waterton Lakes National 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 Waterton Lakes audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Wishbone Trailhead0:00 / 0:22
“Up ahead is the Wishbone trailhead, for a long walk through aspen woods and prairie to Crypt Landing. Allow about eight hours for roughly twenty-eight kilometres return; I’d keep this for a planned hiking day.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Waterton Lakes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Maskinonge Overlook
- Maskinonge Day Use Area
- Pelicans Fishing Together
- Knight’s Lake Day Use Area
- 51 audio storiesacross Waterton Lakes’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Bison, Black Bear, Elk, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 47 trails, 70 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Wishbone Trail
The full walkWishbone Trail is a long out-and-back from the roadside access on Chief Mountain Highway to…
Wishbone Trail is a long out-and-back from the roadside access on Chief Mountain Highway to Crypt Landing. The trail-specific distance listing gives 14 km one way; a broader route entry lists 26.2 km return. The connected mapped corridor is about 13.1 km one way, so plan for the longer figure: roughly 28 km (17.4 mi) return. Allow about eight hours. At Vimy Junction, stay right for Wishbone; the left fork climbs Vimy and continues toward Vimy Peak.
The trail to Vimy JunctionThe broad path passes through aspen and birch, crosses streams, then opens across prairie…
The broad path passes through aspen and birch, crosses streams, then opens across prairie before becoming steeper and more wooded near the junction. If the full distance is too much, Vimy Junction is a documented 13.4 km return option; turn around there rather than taking the Vimy branch.
On to Crypt LandingThe full Wishbone route continues around Middle Waterton Lake to Crypt Landing, the boat…
The full Wishbone route continues around Middle Waterton Lake to Crypt Landing, the boat landing and trailhead for Crypt Lake. This is the distant shoreline end of the hike, not the summit route up Vimy Peak. The mapping follows the Wishbone corridor to the landing and returns along the same line.
Crossings and accessSeveral streams cross the route.
Several streams cross the route. Sofa Creek may require a ford depending on the season, so water levels can change how easy the crossing is. Parking is on the left when driving toward the Canada–US border; the trailhead is across the highway, about 250 metres along the road. Dogs are allowed on leash and under control.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Waterton Lakes
83 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
563 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
146 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
113 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
55 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
53 sightingsTrumpeter SwanMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Waterton Lakes. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
