Larch Valley and Sentinel Pass, Banff National Park

The hike to Larch valley and Sentinel Pass is one of my favorite hikes. A moderately strenuous hike, with great views along the way, and ending in a superb spot high in the mountains - that’s what I like in a hike. This is a 7.2 mile roundtrip hike with about 2400 feet of elevation gain. It took us about 5-6 hours to complete the hike.

The trail starts from the Moraine lake and quickly climbs into the forest above the lake. As always, Moraine lake was picture perfect.

Beautiful Moraine Lake

The initial stretch through the forest is pleasant with views of the Ten peaks and the lake visible through the trees. It is an uphill climb and after about 1.5 miles, we came to a fork in the trail. You can catch a few breaths at the bench there. The left fork goes to Eiffel lake – we had done this hike on our first trip here. We took the right fork towards Larch valley. After some more uphill walking through the forest, the trail levels out into the valley. Out in the open, the views of the Ten peaks kept getting better and better.

Views of the Ten peaks from Larch Valley
 

In Larch Valley

Every now and then, we talked loudly just to make sure that we didn’t run into any bears. I have read so many articles about what to do if you run into a bear, but honestly, I have no idea what I would do if a bear jumped out of the bushes. It’s like meeting a shark while swimming in the sea. Just hope that you get out in one piece J

We followed the trail up the valley through the meadows. At the bottom of the pass, the Minnestimma lakes still had some ice in them. Other hikers were relaxing and enjoying the scenery. We wandered off to a quiet spot to have our lunch.

On the trail above Larch valley looking back at the Ten peaks

It was a great hike so far, but it was going to get better. Looking up, the pass looked really far away, but once we started up the trail, we didn’t notice the distance. The switchbacks went away really fast, and in less than an hour we were at the pass. The pass stands between Pinnacle Mountain and the awesome Mt. temple. (Someday I’ll do Mt. Temple – it just seems to call to me). The views from the pass are breathtaking. The valley of the Ten peaks looks better than ever and on the other side you can get a glimpse of Paradise valley. Down that way, the sentinel stands guard over Paradise valley.

The Ten peaks and Minnestimma Lakes from Sentinel pass

Paradise valley from Sentinel pass

It is a beautiful spot and one of those places to just sit down for a while and think about life and how insignificant we are. This is a great hike – one that I would do again and again.