Maligne Canyon, Jasper National Park
Jasper National Park is one of our favourite year-round getaway destinations. Maligne Canyon is a popular destination in the park and in the winter it is possible to access the impressive frozen canyon floor. The the steep narrow canyon walls rise up 50m and are coated with massive icefalls where the water flows and seeps into the canyon in the warmer months.
While you can access and walk the canyon without a guide, understand that this adventure is not without risk from slips, falls and from falling ice or rock. The tour outfitter will ensure that you have the proper footwear, ice cleats and helmet for your adventure. We took a guided tour with Sundog Tours the first time we visited the canyon in the winter and have returned three times over the following years to walk and explore the frozen canyon floor on our own.
The canyon floor is typically accessible from December through to the end of March, but conditions can vary depending on the weather and temperature. We have visited in February and March with very different experiences each time.
It is a popular destination, so we plan for early morning starts and normally plan our trips for a weekday. The tour operators will typically start upstream by the First Bridge and work their way downstream to the canyon access point. After the canyon walk, they continue walking downstream to the Fifth Bridge to meet their bus. If you are doing it on your own, you can access the canyon trail from the Fifth Bridge parking lot and walk upstream to the canyon access.
Good quality micro spikes or ice cleats are a must. Water proof foot wear is strongly recommended. Some may want the use of a hiking pole, particularly once things warm up and parts of the river surface start getting slushy. Of course it is Canada so dress in layers for the conditions.
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