Johnson Canyon Inkpots Hike - Banff
Caveat on hiking this trail in summer. This is probably the most popular trail in Banff National Park. July and August will be packed with people on the Lower and Upper falls portion of the trail. The trail to the Inkpots sees a big reduction in hikers as compared to the trail to the Upper falls. A weekday outside of July and August would be a better choice for less traffic but no guarantees. There are two large parking lots but in July and August you may have to wait for a spot to open up.
Map 1 - Trail to lower and upper falls in green - side trail to Inkpots in blue
Seems a little grandiose for the trail! Lol!
Map 2 - half hour to lower falls - one hour to upper falls
Distances to lower and upper falls and the Inkpots
Typical lower falls trail
Creek flowing in August
Lower Falls
Trail to upper falls
Upper falls
Upper falls
Side trail to connect to the Inkpots trail
Typical Inkpots trail
Typical Inkpots trail
Inkpots trail descending down to the Inkpots
Inkpots sign information
Inkpots
Inkpots
Back up to the high point on the Inkpots trail - about 105 m or 350 ft elevation gain to the high point
Johnson Canyon Inkpots Hike
- Easy Hike: Class 1 – Nice trail up a canyon with two waterfalls. One can add on the trail to the Inkpots as well.
- Elevation Gain: ~50 m (166 ft) to the lower falls, ~130 m (430 ft) to the upper falls, ~330 m (1,080 ft) to the high point on the Inkpots trail, descend down to the Inkpots for ~105 m (350 ft).
- Ascent Time: easy hiking pace about 30 minutes to the lower falls, 60 minutes to the upper falls and one more hour to the Inkpots. Total about 2 hours to the Inkpots
- Best Season to Hike: May to late October - might need microspikes late October to April due to snow and ice. Check the Park Canada trail report status below for conditions.
Banff National Park Trail Conditions
Highlights
This scenic hike is a nice break from the harder hikes or larger scrambles you can do in the Canadian Rockies. More for families or someone just getting into hiking but might not want to take on bigger efforts just yet.
Getting There
From the Banff townsite by vehicle head west on highway 1 for a few kilometers and take the highway 1A turnoff. From Banff to Johnson Canyon it's about 25 km. If the highway 1A turnoff is closed you can keep heading west on highway 1 for about 32 km and take the Castle Junction turnoff and double back on highway 1A for about 6 km to Johnson Canyon. Roam Bus # 9 will take you from Banff to Johnson Canyon. There is a large free 9 hour parking lot near the railway tracks in Banff. Check the Roam website below for their schedule for high season and off season.