In summer, Banff National Park’s alpine offers fantastic climbing opportunities for experienced climbers but also for beginners. In this post, you’ll find everything you need to know about rock climbing in Banff.
Rock climbers flock to Banff each year to experience the wild nature of the park in the most exciting way. Which is not surprising as the park has some of the best rock climbing in North America. There are seemingly endless options for beginners, experienced climbers and all levels in between.
If you’re an aspiring rock climber, a rock climber who has never been to Banff National Park or you want to know where you can go to hone your skills, this post is for you.
Things to Know Before You Go Climbing in Banff National Park
Rock climbing in Banff is predominantly a summer activity. The season lasts from May until October. Please be aware that you can find snow on the gullies until June.
The park has four main climbing areas: Banff, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake and the Icefields Parkway. Lake Louise and Moraine Lake also offer beginner climbing.
Climbing in Banff National Park doesn’t require a permit. Though if you’re going rock climbing with a tour organizer, you’ll need to sign a liability waiver. Furthermore, a Banff park pass is mandatory. You can purchase one at the park’s gates or the Banff and Lake Louise Visitor Centres.
If you want to read more about Banff park passes, click the link.
A good source for more information on the routes is the Sport Climbs in the Canadian Rockies guidebook by John Martin and Jon Jones.
Climbing Difficulty Rated: Yosemite Decimal System
Canada uses the Yosemite Decimal System (however, not being decimal anymore) to rate a climb’s difficulty. The system is divided into five categories, each signifying the technical difficulty of the most challenging section. All vertical climbs that require ropes to guarantee safety are allocated to class 5. Grades go up to 5.15. A letter subdivision is used to further distinguish difficulty levels, ranging from a to d.
Beginner Level Climbs
If you are a beginner, you probably want to try the routes graded from 5.4 to 5.8. These are the easiest. In the overview at the bottom of this article, several fall within this range.
Where to Book a Rock Climbing Tour in Banff?
If you’re looking for a guided tour, there are two tour organizers for Banff National Park.
- Alpine Air Adventures
- Yamnuska Mountain Adventures
They work solely with guides certified by the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides (ACMG). All necessary climbing equipment will be provided. Though check their websites for information on how to dress and what to take with you.
Both organizers also offer beginning and more advanced rock climbers courses. Private courses for groups are also possible.
Alpine Air Adventures
Address: 202 Banff Ave #204, Banff
Phone: +1 403 – 522 2700
Website: Alpine Air Adventures
E-mail: info@alpineairadventures.com
Yamnuska Mountain Adventures
Address: 200 – 50 Lincoln Pk # 200, Canmore, Alberta
Phone: +1 403 – 678 4164
Website: Yamnuska Mountain Adventures
E-mail: info@yamnuska.com
Rock Climbing Tour Costs
The cost of a rock climbing tour varies. There are several options in different price ranges. Check the tour organizers’ websites to check their tours and prices.
Alpine Air Adventures has the cheapest 1-on-1 option at CAD 375; Yamnuska has the most affordable group option at CAD 125 per person (half day, 4 – 6 people). A group’s maximum size is six.
Challenge Yourself: Most Difficult Climb in Banff
If you’re a highly experienced climber who’s up for a challenge, you might want to try to ascent the Raven Crag. This rock climbing route is considered to be the most difficult in Banff. In fact, it’s regarded as the most challenging route in entire Canada!
This overhang is about 20 meters (66 ft) high. The difficulty rating of this route is a scary 5.15b, meaning it’s getting close to the most difficult ones on the planet (Dura Dura in Spain, Change in Norway and Vasil Vasil in the Czech Republic) at 5.15c.
Indoor Rock Climbing in Banff
Banff has an indoor rock climbing facility in the Banff Centre’s Sally Borden Fitness and Recreation building. You can buy a day membership at CAD 20 or CAD 16 (60+ and youth, 4-15 years), excluding GST. A day membership comes with towels and locks. You can rent climbing shoes and harnesses if need be.
Sally Borden Fitness and Recreation
Address: 107 Tunnel Mountain Drive, Banff
Phone: +1 403 – 762 6450
Website: banffcentra.ca
E-mail: sbb_info@banffcentre.ca
Open hours: 12 pm – 8 pm (daily)
Banff Rock Climbing Routes
There are many good options for rock climbing in Banff. Below you’ll find a list of the park’s four main areas Banff, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake (Valley of the Ten Peaks) and the Icefields Parkway.
These options pertain to summer climbs. There are more climbs in the area, but they are done in winter for ice climbing.
Banff
NAME | SUBSECTION | DIFFICULTY RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| Black Feather Canyon | Bottleneck | 5.9 – 5.10a |
| Rainbow Wall | 5.10d – 5.14b | |
| Yankee Wall | 5.8 – 5.11a | |
| Punk Wall | 5.9 – 5.13a | |
| Mind Games Wall | 5.10a – 5.12a | |
| Right Side of the Brain | 5.7 – 5.10a | |
| Carrot Creek | Muscle Beach | 5.11a – 5.12a |
| Entrance Wall | 5.10a – 5.12a | |
| Westside Butress | 5.10b – 5.11d | |
| Graffiti Wall | 5.10a – 5.12a | |
| Sun City | 5.11d – 5.12b | |
| Raven’s Nest Buttress | 5.10b – 5.13b | |
| Gully Wall | 5.10b – 5.11d | |
| Small Wall | 5.9 – 5.10c | |
| Wall of Jericho | 5.10c – 5.11c | |
| The Embankment | 5.11a – 5.12a | |
| Frying Pan | 5.10c – 5.12a | |
| Cave, the (Left) | 5.11d – 5.13b | |
| Cave, the (Right) | 5.12a – 5.14c | |
| Summer in Siam | 5.11b | |
| Up the Creek | 5.10b – 5.11b | |
| Cascade Mountain | – | 5.2 – 5.10c |
| Castle Mountain | Bass Buttress | 5.7 |
| Brewer Buttress | 5.6 | |
| Lookout Buttress | 5.10a | |
| Eisenhower Towers | 5.4 | |
| Ultra Brewers | 5.9 | |
| Coral Crag | Coral Crag Left | 5.8 – 5.11c |
| Coral Crag Far Left | 5.11b – 5.11d | |
| Coral Crag Right | 5.8 – 5.11c | |
| Coral Crag Upper Right | 5.10a – 5.10c | |
| Guides Rock | Main Area | 5.10b – 5.11b |
| Lower West | 5.8 | |
| Take It For Granite | 5.7 – 5.11c | |
| Mount Louis | – | 5.7 – 5.13c |
| Mount Bourgeau | – | 5.7 – 5.11c |
| Mount Cory, West Face | – | 5.7 – 5.8 |
| Mount Norquay | Lower Slabs | 5.9 – 5.10c |
| Upper Slabs | 5.7 – 5.8 | |
| Mount Rundle | Buttress 8 | 5.10d |
| Gulag, the | 5.6 – 5.14c | |
| Park Boundary | 5.9 – 5.10a | |
| Terminator Wall, the | 5.8 – 5.13a | |
| West End | 5.9 – 5.14a | |
| WEOR Slabs (Rundlehorn / West End of Rundlehorn Slabs) | 5.6 – 5.9 | |
| Raven Crag | Main Area (Steep Wall) | 5.11c – 5.15c |
| Crystal Cave | 5.11a – 5.13a | |
| Plutonial Shore Wall | 5.9 – 5.11a | |
| Solid Wall | 5.12a – 5.13c | |
| Wild Thing | 5.10a – 5.11c | |
| Silver City | Bite Me | 5.6 – 5.11a |
| Comatose | 5.10b – 5.10d | |
| Eastern Promises | 5.9 – 5.11c | |
| Finale Wall | 5.10b – 5.10d | |
| Hard Martin | 5.8 – 5.10c | |
| Heavy Metal | 5.10b – 5.11b | |
| Mesolithic | 5.6 – 5.11a | |
| Rock Pile | 5.6 – 5.12a | |
| Sillicious | 5.6 – 5.11a | |
| Zombie Dihedral | 5.8 – 5.12c | |
| Spray Slabs | – | 5.9 – 5.11c |
| Storm Mountain | Storm Creek Headwall | 5.7 – 5.10a |
| Sunshine Rock / Sunshine Slabs | Ledge, the | 5.6 – 5.10a |
| Paddock Wall Left | 5.6 – 5.11a | |
| Paddock Wall Right | 5.5 – 5.11a | |
| Rathaus | 5.4 – 5.11c5.6 | |
| Roadside Central | 5.7 – 5.11a | |
| Roadside Left | 5.6 – 5.10c | |
| Roadside Right | 5.6 – 5.11c | |
| Sunshine Slabs Left | 5.7 – 5.10c | |
| Sunshine Slabs Right | 5.8 – 5.10c | |
| Tunnel Mountain | Black Band | 5.8 – 5.11c |
| Funky Town | 5.9 – 5.11c | |
| Gonda Roof | 5.6 – 5.11c | |
| Industrial Playground | 5.9 – 5.11c | |
| Personal Pleasure Waves | 5.8 – 5.11c | |
| Scoop Area | 5.9 – 5.11a | |
| Steep Scoop Wall / Steep Wall | 5.10c – 5.13c | |
| Wash Area | 5.10c – 5.14c | |
| 007 Crag | Bighorn | 5.10a – 5.11c |
| Gold | 5.10a |
Lake Louise
| NAME | SUBSECTION | DIFFICULTY RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| Air Voyage Wall | – | 5.8 – 5.13a |
| Amphitheatre, the | – | 5.5 – 5.11c |
| Blob Rock | – | 5.4 – 5.13a |
| Duckland | – | 5.8 – 5.12c |
| Fraggle Rock | – | 5.8 – 5.10a |
| Goblin Wall | – | 5.9 – 5.11c |
| Hanging Gardens | – | 5.9 – 5.12a |
| Hillside Walls | – | 5.8 – 5.10c |
| Hydrotherapy Wall | – | 5.10c – 5.11a |
| Outside Area / Wicked Gravity Wall | – | 5.3 – 5.14a |
| Kaleidoscope Pinnacle | – | 5.8 – 5.10a |
| Liquid Sky Wall | – | 5.6 – 5.12c |
| Louise Falls | – | 5.3 – 5.13a |
| Mount Victoria | – | 5.2 – 5.4 |
| Paradise Wall | – | 5.10b – 5.11b |
| Pond Area | – | 5.3 – 5.12a |
| Rockfall Wall | – | 5.10b – 5.11d |
| Saddle Mountain | – | 5.9 – 5.11a |
| Scorched Earth Wall | – | 5.10a – 5.12c |
| Trailside | – | 5.10b – 5.11b |
Moraine Lake / Valley of the Ten Peaks
| NAME | SUBSECTION | DIFFICULTY RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| Deltaform Mountain | – | 5.6 – 5.8 |
| Grand Sentinal, the | – | 5.9 – 5.10c |
| Mount Fay / Heejee | – | 5.3 – 5.7 |
| Neptuak Mountain | – | 5.6 – 5.11c |
Icefields Parkway
| NAME | SUBSECTION | DIFFICULTY RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| Mount Andromache | – | 5.8 |
| Mount Hector | – | 5.9 |
Another enjoyable mountain activity is via ferrata. In Banff you can do so on Mount Norquay. Want to know more about it? Reading the guide to via ferrata in Banff.
Sources:
- thecrags.com
- Canadian Rock: Select Climbs of the West by Kevin McLane
- Wikipedia: Grade Climbing
- Vdiffclimbing.com
Other articles you might be interested in:
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• Plan Your Banff Itinerary – Know the Distances
• How Much Does a Banff Vacation Cost in 2023? (Crazy Numbers)