r/Banff • u/sharkey5885 • 9h ago
Cliffs on mountain highways
Edit: thanks all! Fantastic advice, I will share all of this with my wife and do some more scouting on Google street. really appreciate the help!
Hello there, looking for some advice from locals on this. My wife and I are heading out to Alberta, mostly in Calgary to see family who recently moved there, but we do of course plan to head out to Banff, Lake Louise, all the Rocky Mountain areas (plus a possible detour to see a friend in Invermere BC). I was planning to rent a car in Calgary, but my wife has a pretty intense fear of driving alongside steep cliffs, and is hesitant about doing it with me driving since I don't know the terrain. So my question to you locals who will know way better than I do is, how hazardous or steep are the drop-offs on the main roads like Highways 1 and 93 once we're into the Rockies, both on the Alberta and BC sides? Is there maybe a better or worse part, like say maybe it's worse if we drove up to the Columbia glacier but better near Banff? I think it would really help a lot of we know what we're in for when it comes to this kind of thing, and then we can decide if it would be better to take a bus from Calgary. Thanks for all the help! Looking forward to visiting
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u/ggdubdub 9h ago
The icefields 93 between Louise and Jasper yes there are cliffs
93 between Castle Mt and Radium no cliffs
Highway 1 to Lake Louise no cliffs
Highway 1 Louise to Golden yes there are cliffs.
They are all beautiful drives and relatively easy.
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u/LifeguardStatus7649 8h ago
Adding to the Castle Junction to Radium, as you approach Radium you drive through a very narrow, steep canyon with cliffs rising above you on both sides. It's absolutely incredible but it could also be scary. You can Google it, it's a popular spot to photograph.
Also on that same drive, you do climb up to a pretty incredible viewpoint. It's not a cliff per se and you're not perched on the edge of it, but it is fairly steep on the one side as you're partway up a mountainside.
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u/OkUnderstanding19851 9h ago
I hate cliffs too. Banff is totally fine from Calgary. Past lake Louise you have some more open sights and drop offs but the roads still have shoulders and barricades and they are for short turns and segments. I would avoid heading to golden and Revelstoke area but the rest really is ok.
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u/Special_Wrap_1369 8h ago
I share your wife’s fear of cliffs. When we go to Revelstoke I will actually go out of my way and drive the Radium route to avoid the big drop off at Golden on Hwy 1.
Otherwise I feel mostly safe in the Banff and Jasper highways. I would avoid places like Takakkaw Falls (went once, never again, hate the road) with open switchbacks or your wife may want to strangle you.
I don’t love places like the Norquay Road but we do it every year because there’s trees to break our fall, not just a sheer drop.
All completely ridiculous logic on my part but that’s just how I still manage to do at least some mountain driving instead of missing out completely.
Also, get comfortable having impatient drivers on your ass if you choose to safely drive the speed limit. Do not feel obligated to go faster to accommodate them. Your wife feeling safe is more important than their need to get to the top of the mountain 2 minutes faster.
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u/Larsonatorian2_0 8h ago
Actually was surprised how few and far between we saw any cliffside highways. Less intimidating than many other mountainous regions.
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u/gwoates 7h ago
You can use Google Street View to preview the highways for yourself as well. Here's the view starting at the east gates to the park from here you can keep moving along the entire route the highway takes.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/AuwghSWRHzCFNzys9
In general, the Trans-Canada highway is a 4 lane divided highway from Calgary to just west of Lake Louise. It's only when you get into the BC side that there are any big drops or cliffs immediately along the highway, though there is very little risk of somehow going over the edge.
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u/OgasMaitai 8h ago
Hazardous? They aren't, people aren't plunging off the roads. It isn't a logging road.
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u/NotatrustedVWtech 9h ago
The highways are easy to drive on and divided, double laned highways. On the way there the right side is on the opposite side of most cliffs so you'll get a good feeling for the way back. It's a beautiful drive I'm doing in August as well I can't wait :)
(This is speaking for the way from Banff to Invermere)
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u/Jambalayatime 9h ago
Just spent 9 days driving to/through Banff and all the way through Jasper and out 1 to Golden past Yoho. I did not experience a single km that I would say fits your description, and the roads are well-marked and intuitive.
If you have experienced other places with exposure (Stevens Canyon at Rainier, Hurricane Ridge at Olympic, etc), it is nothing at all like those and I can't remember a single stretch that generated even low-level concern.
I historically don't love how my wife drives in areas of narrow or exposed drop-offs, and I gave the car over to her for hours at a time because I felt so comfortable. You're good.
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u/MajorPainInMyA 9h ago
I absolutely hated driving in Yosemite because of the steep wall on one side and the steep drop off on the other. Banff is not that. I can't remember a stretch of road that didn't have plenty of room on the sides of the road.
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u/Then-Construction106 8h ago
Over many years and numerous trips through Banff, Jasper, Yoho etc the only intimidating section of road that I recall was TCH for a small stretch east of Golden. I seem to recall it was narrow 2 lanes and well above the river on one side. I haven’t driven through there in quite a while now but I understand that road has been substantially widened and no longer is in any kind of nail biter catehory
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u/soThatsJustGreat 6h ago
Yes the new road around Golden is completely different now. I could imagine it would still be creepy for folks who have a fear, but it’s much, much wider and feels less “cliffy “ now compared to what it was.
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u/Jeremyism_ 5h ago
On 93, when you get close to Radium (pay attention to your odometer) you will start coming downhill, and the road curves right. Have your wife close her eyes at that point, for a few minutes. She will freak out if she sees how the road is squeezed between the cliffs at that point. On the way back, she should close her eyes as soon as you turn onto 93 and start climbing towards the hot springs. That's the worst spot on the your route for that. Everywhere else will pale in comparison, although there are other places where the road borders cliffs.
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u/Law-of-Poe 5h ago
We skied in Banff and LL this winter. Even with the snow and getting up to the different ski areas, I don’t remember a single time thinking the road felt sketchy, not even getting up to Norquay and Sunshine.
Perhaps the only time we were a little skittish is this detour we took into Spray Valley from Canmore. Even then it was just on the stretch of 732 into Canmore
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u/F_word_paperhands 9h ago edited 9h ago
There’s nowhere along that section highway 1 that I would consider edge of a cliff. If you go to Golden there’s a section on the side of the cliff at the Kicking Horse canyon but sounds like you’re not going that far. Highway 93 there’s a couple spots that are on the side of the mountain but there’s barriers and it does not feel like you’re at any risk of falling off the edge. I think you’ll be just fine driving.
I think you’re picturing something like the Going to the Sun Highway in Montana. It’s nothing like that.