For the best (& shortest) first-time backpacking trip near Calgary, head to Elbow Lake Backcountry Campground in Peter Lougheed Provincial Park. It’s only 1.3 km to a beautiful lakeside campground which makes a great base camp for day hikes and fishing!
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Elbow Lake Trail at a Glance
Elbow Lake Trail climbs rapidly and steadily to Elbow Lake. While the trail is pretty steep, it only took us 40 minutes to reach the lake at a leisurely pace with our kids. We loved seeing all the wildflowers along the way!
- Trailhead/Parking: Elbow Pass (Google Maps pin). Note that the highway is closed from Dec 1-June 14 each year.
- Distance: 1.3 km
- Elevation gain: 125 m
- Chariot friendly? Yes, but it is VERY steep, so I wouldn’t recommend it.
- Washrooms? Pit toilets at the trailhead and Elbow Lake Backcountry Campground
- When to go: July to November 30
The Campground
Once you reach the lake, Elbow Lake Backcountry Campground is to your right. Sites 12 & 13 are closest to the water, but all the campsites were really nice with level tent pads. Tent pad dimensions are approximately 2.7 x 2.7 metres.
Campground amenities include: bearproof food lockers, outhouses, communal cooking areas with fire pits and picnic tables, and outhouses.
As at any backcountry campground, cooking is done away from your tent. Be sure to pick up food scraps and garbage before you leave the communal cooking area. My friends have seen a grizzly on the slopes of Elpoca Mountain (NW side of the lake) more than once and it would be nice to keep the bear uninterested in the campground! Store food and attractants – including dishes, toothpaste, lip gloss and insect repellent – in the bear locker when you sleep or are not using them. Coolers should not be brought in as they are too big to fit in the bear locker and are not bearproof.
Water for drinking and washing must be brought in or drawn from the lake. Filter, boil, or treat water before drinking it! And remember to Leave No Trace and dispose of grey water in the outhouses.
Firewood is free with your backcountry permit and an axe is available near the woodpile for your convenience.
- Please keep fires to a moderate size and put them out properly before you leave the area or go to sleep. Soak it, stir it, and soak it again!
- Do not collect forest deadfall – not only is it illegal, this fragile mountain environment needs any natural compost it can get.
Activities in the Area
HIKING
The best family-friendly hikes from Elbow Lake are Elbow Lake lakeshore (less than 2 km round trip, flat) and the picturesque Edworthy Falls (6.4 km return, 50 m elevation gain). You can also hike to Rae Glacier (5 km return, 500 m elevation gain), but the glacier has retreated so far up the mountain, there isn’t really much to see/do there now.
There are several longer hikes in the area too like Piper Pass. I recommend picking up the Kananaskis Lakes Gemtrek Map and Gillean Daffern’s Kananaskis Trail Guide for more information.
FISHING
Fishing folk will enjoy sight fishing for little brook trout at Elbow Lake. The fish are plentiful, but stunted due to the harsh environment. Most of the fish we caught were 6-8″ (with a couple 10″).
- Conservation Officers come by frequently, so be sure to have your Driver’s License, WIN Card and fishing license on you. Children under 16 fish for free!
For information on getting started with backpacking, see my 8 Tips for Fun Family Backpacking. Did you know that children shouldn’t carry more than 10-15% of their body weight?
Related Posts
- Peter Lougheed Provincial Park Camping and Activity Guide
- Backpacking to The Point, Peter Lougheed Provincial Park
- Backcountry Camping at Lillian Lake, Kananaskis
- Beyond Car Camping With Kids: Walk-In Campgrounds Near Calgary
9 comments
Great read, thank you!
My wife and I were looking for a nice campground to bikepack to from Calgary(ish) area and Elbow Lake looks fantastic.
We know what we're getting into with the long distance cycling and climbing part of Highwood Pass, what we're wondering about is if it would even be possible to get our bikes into this campground (even walking) with a trailer behind my bike.
You say that the trail is VERY steep, but I think this campground would be worth it even if it's a bit of a struggle to get back there.
I'm also wondering about packing our stuff in a backpack (which we tow in our trailer on the road), which then could be worn on my back while we hike our bikes in (leaving them at the parking lot overnight isn't an option).
Would love your input!
Sorry for the late reply! Did you make it to the lake? It really depends on you… I don't think I could haul a trailer up there on my bike but my husband has. If you allow time to walk in if biking is too hard (I think it would be for most people if they are towing a trailer), it is a very nice campground and one of very few backcountry campgrounds in Kananaskis that allow fires.
OK so we just booked Elbow, and as I'm scanning around I come across this blog and have a good read. When I look at the picture of M I'm like Jake! Jake! We know these people! Looks fun and we are totally bringing our fishing rods with such a short hike. Thanks Karen 🙂
Hi Margo, yeah my poor kids have to be in so many stories. Lol. Glad you found the blog and hope you have a wonderful trip to Elbow Lake! We went 4 times last year (Summer camping, November camping, and summer fishing/picnic) and loved it each time. I was fishing with a fly and bubble as the water near shore is quite shallow. If you walk around the left side, you can fish at the dropoff and hopefully snag less lures on the bottom. Let me know how it goes!
Hi Chris, thanks for your question! Yes, there are group cooking areas (fire rings and picnic tables) and no fire pits near the tent pads. When backcountry camping, you should prepare food about 100 m from your tent.
Can you please confirm that the several communal fire pits are the only fire pits, ie one cannot have fires by their tent?
Thanks!
thanks Karen!
Thanks Arthur! I'm glad you had a great time! We were supposed to be at the Point and Forks a few weeks ago, but couldn't go as the Upper Kan Lakes Trail was closed due to bear activity. Upper Kananaskis Lake has bull trout (0 limit), cutthroats and rainbows, but most people catch and release bull trout there. I caught a 2 pound bull trout on a Mepp's Black Fury – fishing from shore! I've heard others have had good luck fishing with pink and green streamers or gold Crocodiles spoons, but when we tried those we had no bites. Panther Martins are also great lures to try there. Watch your lure in the water to ensure you are reeling in fast enough to make it spin but are not too fast for the fish. When I was starting out, I had the speed totally wrong but once I got it right, I got lots of bites. Water temperature will affect fish activity too. When it's really cold or really warm, fish are generally less active. Also the best time is early morning and evening. I caught my bull trout after dinner near the campground!
Hi Karen. Great article. We just did our first back country camping trip with our kids (ages 5 & 7) to the Point campground. We actually canoed in and it was a smashing success! I think we will have to try this one next year.
I really enjoy fishing but am quite a novice. What were you using for lures? We had no luck on upper Kananaskis but had fun trying. . . well . . . right up until my daughter cast her rod into the lake (from the canoe)!
Thanks for the read!
Arthur
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