August 15th ~ Junction of Banff and Jasper National Parks
Glacier Skywalk
The Icefields Parkway extends 144 miles from Lake Louise to Jasper. With over 100 glaciers, numerous waterfalls, towering mountains and the Continental Divide, stunning wilderness hiking opportunities, and of course the chance to spot animals in their natural habitat make this UNESCO site worth the trip. Condé Nast Traveller has labeled it one of the top drives in the world.
We have already covered it from one end to the other over the past several days. The only places still on the list to see and explore are the Columbia Icefields, Athabasca Glacier and the Glacier Skywalk.
View of glaciers from Glacier Discovery Centre
Our campsite (Wilcox Creek) was only a few short miles from the Glacier Discovery Centre. The day before, we had stopped in and pre-booked our 9:00 am combination excursion that included both the trip to the Icefields and the Glacier Skywalk.
Athabasca Glacier
Advised to check in at least 10 minutes before departure, their system operated smoothly and we were soon on board a comfortable bus that would take us the short distance from the center to where we would load onto the hefty Brewster Ice Explorer.
This thing is a beast!
I know most of you have seen the steep hill warnings when crossing mountains that range from 6 degrees to 12 degrees where trucks are advised to pull over and check their brakes and use a lower gear. There are even run-a-way ramps if their brakes fail.
Well, let me tell you folks – that is NOTHING compared to what the Ice Explorer bus had to navigate to get us up onto the glacier. We found out that this beast of a mover was certified to handle the icy roads up to a chillingly steep 38 degrees. We came to within 4 degrees of maxing it out! Now THAT is STEEP!!!
Athabasca Glacier was our destination where we walked on ice up to 1,180 ft thick.
“The glacier currently recedes at a rate of about 5 metres (16 ft) per year and has receded more than 1.5 km (0.93 mi) and lost over half of its volume in the past 125 years.” ~ Wikipedia
They had grated the ice near where we disembarked from the beast onto the glacier which made the walking a little easier. Even with sturdy boots, I was still doing a fair amount of slipping and sliding and hung tightly onto Tim’s arm. Others who were more steadfast on their feet scampered off and explored further onto the ice fields.
Before we knew it, our time was up and we climbed back aboard the Ice Explorer. Maneuvering our way back UP that 34 degree, very steep hill was a bit of a thrill. Then it was time to transfer back to a regular bus for our five-minute journey to the second half of our tour, the Glacier Skywalk.
Glacier Skywalk
The glass-floored observation platform is suspended 919 feet (280 m) over the Sunwapta Valley.
We had originally planned on doing a similar skywalk when visiting the Grand Canyon earlier in our trip, but I had mistakenly thought it was at the North Rim instead of the West Rim. So, since we missed that one, this was a kind of “make-up” experience.
Tim is not fond of heights, and was relieved when we missed the Grand Canyon Skywalk, but was a great sport here.
Tim looking straight down 🙂
What we saw when looking straight down
Tim out on the walkway
Joanne and Gus
In case you missed them, here are the posts of some of our other stops along the Icefields Parkway. You can click on any title to read that article.
City of Banff and Lake Louise
Banff National Park ~ Johnston Canyon Hike, Peyto Lake, Bridal Veil Falls
Holy Cow! Finally, Finally, Finally!!! ~ Jasper National Park
Yoho National Park ~ Natural Bridge, Emerald and Moraine Lakes
GRATITUDE MOMENT – Today I am grateful that Tim overcame his fear of heights and was able to share this experience with me. He confessed that it did not bother him at all. Now that is HUGE progress. Yay!
A Note From Abroad 
Wonderful, man this makes it hard to wit a year for my trip.
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I see that we once again crossed paths. You were at Big Bear when we were at Arrowbear Lake 🙂
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I was just up for the day on Monday. Beautiful weather up there.
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Still is today. One of my favorite places on the planet.
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My internet connection is going wacky after a storm here, so I can’t get all of your pictures to load. But, the ones I do see are great! I can’t imagine going up that steep hill! Yikes! I’m not sure I would have done well on that sky walk. Glad Tim was able to enjoy it too.
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That hill was crazy steep. I think it was more frightening going down it than up. I may be dense, but the skywalk did not bother me at all. I think Tim secretly enjoyed it, lol.
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Two years ago my husband and I visited Banff and the Athabasca Glacier. We decided to hike with a group up the glacier instead of taking the bus. Have really loved looking at all your pictures! 🙂
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We did see some people hiking up on their own, but I think the tour was a nice way to see more of it. Easier anyway…
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Was the tour worth the money? We stopped there last year with our grandson but when we saw how much it was going to cost, the wait time, and the short duration of the visit to the ice fields we passed.
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I have to agree that it was pretty spendy for what it was. But it is not every day that you have the opportunity to walk on a glacier. I’m glad we did it, but it may not be a WOW for others. The Skywalk part of the package was similar. Impressive, but doing it once is enough.
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Thanks Joanne, that is what I thought. I think we will wait until our grandson is older to take him. We took our children on the tour when they were a few years older than him and they still talk about it!
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I don’t think I’d like that glass walkway either! Lol.
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We did see several people walk to the entrance and then sit on benches waiting for others in their family/group to make the loop on the platform without them. It is not for everyone.
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And that would be me, sitting on the bench. I might inch out a bit, but I don’t know. 😳
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You might surprise yourself someday!
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Goodness! I got nauseous just looking at that. How did he manage? I remember my ex with my daughter on his shoulders looking down into the grand canyon and I’m screaming at him while trying to look over while lying on my tummy.
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I’m not sure either how he was able to overcome his fear of heights, but I’m so glad he was able to experience and enjoy it.
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Very cool. What’s funny is I rock climb and as long as I’m tied to a rope, I’m okay. Go figure.
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Now you’ve got me there. THAT scares me!
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Breathtaking pictures and thanks for the awesome share. Lovely post.
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Thank you very much.
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Welcome.
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As ever, great photography and one to note – Tim overcoming his fear of heights! From my typists chair it sounds quite hairy and that CLIMB AND STEEP ROAD! UGH…All credit to you two for braving the hard bits….Take care. x
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Thank you Joy. For me the steep 34 degree hill was more frightening than the skywalk 🙂
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Stunning photographs–but I’m with the fear-of-heights commenters. Still, these lines from the Lobster Quadrille sprang to mind:
“There is another shore, you know, upon the other side.
The farther off from England the nearer is to France – Then turn not pale, beloved snail, but come and join the dance. Will you, won’t you, will you, won’t you, will you join the dance?…”
How lovely that you both have joined the dance.
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Susan, what an awesome saying! You made me smile and reflect that we seldom sit on the sidelines when an adventure is in front of us ready to be experienced. Thank you for sharing these fabulous words!
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Fabulous! We did the Ice Explorer last time so didn’t stop this year, even though the skywalk was tempting. I don’t think it was there 10 years ago. Your lovely pictures make up for what I missed!
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How lucky you are to have been to this area more than once.
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Sweet pictures! My boyfriend and I are looking into visiting these locations. Great post 🙂 Cheers!
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I highly recommend going to as many of the National Parks as you can. They are well worth the time, money and effort to see.
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Wow. Just wow. This might be on next journey now….
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The strip between Banff and Jasper has so much to offer, but the natural beauty is outstanding.
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I watched the sun rise at Athabasca Glacier one day in July, 1979. It is a beautiful memory. Thanks for the post.
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Seeing the sun rise over Athabaca must have been very special. The fact that you remember it so fondly all these years later speaks volumes. ❤️
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Love your blog. You sure do a lot of traveling. Enjoy your upcoming travels. I look forward to reading about them. By the way, I nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award. You can find out more here: https://theadventuresofadayhiker.wordpress.com/2017/09/11/versatile-blogger-award/
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Thank you very much Matthew.
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I’m way behind as usual, but had to say “WOW” about this post! We have to schedule this area into our plans, it is so spectacular!
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We enjoyed our time on the glacier, even though it was brief. The Glacier Skywalk was an added bonus for our visit.
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