Canmore and Banff Activities with a Monutain Guide:
(All Levels, also day and half day trips, rental gear included)

Ice Climbing
Rock Climbing
Snowshoeing
Winter Adventure Trips: Day and Half Day Excursions arund Banff and Canmore

Other Canmore Resource Pages:
General Resource pages with photos and information:
Canmorealberta.com
Tourismcanmore.com
InCanmore.com : Great resiource page for all outdoor activities around Banff & Canmore
Climbing Conditions.com all about conditions in Western Canada

More info:
Canmore Weather Forecast
Will Gadd's unofficial guide to Canmore
Banff Weather Forecast

Getting to Canmore from the Calgary Airport by Car:
From Calgary International Airport go south on Barlow Trail to the first large intersection with traffic lights, take a right on Mc Knight until you hit a large 8 lane Highway named Deerfoot Trail - go south towards the Calgary Skyline a few km past Highway 1 (You can also turn onto Highway 1 here, but the route via Memorial Drive is nicer and faster) and exit onto Memorial Drive. Follow Memorial Drive all the way along the Bow River and past downtown Calgary until it moves away from the river to the right and you will see a sign for Highway 1 (Transcanada Highway) west to Banff. From there, stay on Highway 1 all the way to Canmore for about 120 km. Total driving time usually 1 hr 30 min.

Shuttles Services to Airport and Ski Resorts:
Calgary International Airport
Banff Airporter:
Drop off and pick up at the Radisson Hotel downtown. CD$ 47 single, one way
Peak Connexxions:
Drop off and pick up at your hotel / B&B.
Plan in a fair bit of time beyond the usual 1.5 hrs driving time on your outbound trip.

Ski Resorts:
Currently, only Sunshine offers a Shuttle Bus service from Canmore.
It leaves once a day at 8.30 from the Radisson Hotel on Bow Valley trail and returns from Sunshine at 16.15. cost is CD$ 70 return ticket with day pass (2006). From Banff, there are more choices including shuttle buses to Lake Louise.

Taxi:
The way to go after dining / partying downtown. No fare higher than CD$ 6anywhere in town.

Lodging:
Lots of selection with the Christmas and New Years week as well as July 15 - September 7 being high season. Here are some of our favorites:

Club House Alpine Club of Canada,
403-678-3200, CD$19-23/night dormitory style, cooking facilities available, great place to
meet people, a bit out of town, good to have a vehicle. THE budget place for individual travelers.

Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge
1800-665-6111. Excellent value rooms, also with kitchenettes and two bedroom studios available. Great for early starts since you can make your own breakfast there. Like most lodging in Canmore it is located along the Bow Valley trail, which is a high traffic location. 10 min walking gets you downtown, however there are a number of restaurants in minutes' walking distance. Owned by legendary Swiss guide and longtime Canmoron H.P. Stettler.

Stella Alpina B&B
1-888 548 3788. Located very quietly close to the Bow River, only minutes by foot from Canmore main street (Restaurants, shops, librarie.....). Rooms and lounge are large, bright rooms and totally seperate from the main part of the building. Great mountain views from deck and yard, TV, desktop computer and wireless internet for your laptop. Hosts Anneke and Carmelo are super-friendly world travellers, who gladly assist you with your daily trip planning around Canmore. Almost forgot...the breakfast is legendary!

The Radisson
Reservations: (888) 201-1718
Situated on 3 acres of land the 224 room Radisson Hotel and Conference Center is a full service hotel with four distinctive buildings surrounded by the majestic Canadian Rocky Mountains. One of the more upscale hotels available in Canmore. Also located at Bow Valley Trail.

Canmore Owner Direct Vacation Rentals
Mainly Condos for rent - great deals for longer stays with families or groups.


Restaurants, Cafes and Hangouts:

Breakfast / Lunch / Coffee / Bagels / Sweets

The Summit Cafe: THE place for breakfasts & Coffees and probably the most popular breakfast place fort climbers! Home baked muffins, croissants and other sweets. Nice outside seating in spring / summer and very kid-friendly. Super-friendly staff with owners Jenn and Kara usually doing the baking or cooking. Right along Benchland trail on the sunny side of town.

Communitea: New addition to the Cafee / Restaurant scene which has gained well deserved popularity quickly, in spite of the interior being a bit sterile. Very popular for lunches (paninis, soups, salads, curries) in excellent quality at reasonable prices. While tea is their specialty, their coffeee is also REALLY good. They often feature cultural and artsy events of all sorts.

Rocky Mountain Bagels: Good coffee, good bagels (for Western Canadian Standards),friendly but sometimes slow service and lots of climbers and Hippy kids. West end on the sunny side of main street. Good place to sit outside and slurp coffee.

Beamers: Two locations, local's favorite for Cofee downtown - located off main street next to Marietta's and across the street from the post office or another outlet on the strip mall. Open already at 6 AM and therefore a good place for an early cup of coffee and a microwaved breakfast bagel for the road.

Mercado: Relatively new coffee / deli / italian food store. VERY good panini & soups, Illy coffee and a touch on the pricey side. A couple of outside tables but on the shady side of main street, in the middle of the last block towards the mountains.

Bella Crusta: A long time Canmore institution: Good Pizza and Focaccia bread, the latter being the main ingredient for their famous sandwiches. Try the heart stopper or the BBQ Beef. Only a small table for sitting down plus one more outside, but most people do take out. Right across the street from Stonewater's Sofa store.

The Railway Deli: Excellent value food and good place for a later breakfast (opens at 9 AM). It's a buffet style self service restaurant, perfect if you don't have much time. Owners Harry and Daniela Griesser also made sure there is always some good Austrian beer in the fridge. They also make good sandwiches, if you are looking for a good lunch to take on your hike. Located at the main intersection in town when comning off the highway, kiddy-corner from the Radisson Hotel.

Restaurants and Pub Food - Lower Priced!

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company: A very popular addition to the Canmore dining scene. Really good thin crust pizza from a true wood fire oven, good pasta and salads. Don't miss the curries on Wednesdays - almost feeds two for one meal at $ 16. Pizza regular size feeds one at $ 16, Grande feeds two at $ 20 - 24. All natural, organic etc. ingredients, friendly people and for some of us the most important feature: a play corner with play pizza oven and toys for the kids.

The Wood: A great location with good ambience! Log house building, best outdoor deck in town for beer and pub food after climbing in summer.

Santa Lucias: Long time Italian Restaurant, good value! Right on main street, next to CIBC.

The Drake: Probably the most popular pub in Canmore with a noisy, smoky side (Thu - Sat live music) and a quiet part with a fire place for us sedentary old farts. Solid pub food, lots of draft beers, happy hour deals etc. Location: Can't miss it!

Grizzly Paw: Canmore's own micro brewery. Some good beers with seasonal varieties! Good outside seating in summer (or whenever it's warm enough). Pub food is on the mediocre side. On the main street across the street from the historic RCMP barracks.

Restaurants - more upscale!

Zona's: A longtime locals favorite. Funky, very cozy, reasonably priced (CD$14 - 24 per entree) unique meals. Food is served in funky pottery dishes made by the owner. Right downtown behind the new civic center. Nice outside seating too!

The Trough: Used to be one of our favorites when it was run by ever friendly former town councillor Mike Western. since Mike sold it to some of his emplyees, it is still supposed to be good. Located next to Zona's, well hidden behind the town hall.

Murietta's: Relatively new places, more upscale, almost a bit of an urban dining experience with wait staff with ties etc. Yummy food, but a bit more pricey (entrees between CD$ 20 and 32, pasta dishes cheaper, good menu deals in the off-season). Right along the main street.

Chez Francois: One of the restaurants that have survived in Canmore the longest (since 1990). Reason being the very solid French cuisine with a varied menue and reasonable prices (entrees $ 18 - 30, 1/2 liter of wine from $22), especially for breakfast and brunch. Very friendly service. Located on Bow Valley trail (the strip mall) adjacent to the Green Gables Inn.

Crazy Weed: A local's favorite and now in a new location on the northern end of Railway Avenue. Excellent food, also popular for lunch. Sometimes it takes a while to get your food and the wait is worth-while. For dinner, reservations obligatory! Heather loves their "lime green chicken". At the northern end of Railway Avenue where it is about to cross the rails, now in their own slightly futuristic building

Tapas: Spanish and Portuguese dishes, Very ambiancy! Pricey, but worth your buck. Perfect for a tête-à-tête with your long lost cousin. Downtown next to the Paintbox Lodge, right behind the Stonewater's parking lot.

Comunitea: Modern restaurant right downtown at the Corner of 9th and Marra's Way. Gret curries and paninis for lunch, excellent tea and coffee. Only downside can be a bit of a wait line at the counter to order your food. Owned by long time local Marnie D., the Comunitea regularly hosts music sessions, book readings etc. with top notch authors and artisits.

Chef's Studio: Japanese restaurant with great sushi and terryaki - not too pricey for being Japanese food - very friendly service by young japanese staff! On main street at the backside of the Remax building.

Marra's Way Sushi right downtown across from the Comunitea. Another authetic and low key Sushi Place in Canmore. Good value. Especially the lunches are popular with a sushi buffet.


Skiing:
Canmore Nordic Center: The Calgary Olympics facility. Great trails for classic and skating, November - April. Summer excellent for mountain biking.

Mount Norquay: 15 minutes drive, offers by the hour skiing and cheap baby-sitting!
Lake Louise: The biggest. For some also the most scenic in North America, 45 min.
Sunshine: No artificial snow making, but as snowy of a microclimate as it gets in the Rockies, 30 min, some flat sections tend to grief the boarders! Shuttle service from Canmore!
Nakiska: Calgary Olympics ski hill in Kananaskis, good after uphill storms, 30min
Fortress: 10 minutes further than Nakiska, a bit of an underdog ski hill, old lifts, cheap!
Kicking Horse: The Golden Ski hill, great for out-of-bounds, 2 hrs drive, big vertical!
Panorama: The Invermere Ski hill, big vertical, bit of a dry spot, 2 hrs drive.

Where to get Gear / Guide Books / Maps:
Gear Up: Rental of all sorts of outdoor toys, incl. ice and ski mountaineering stuff. Located along Bow Valley Trail (the motel strip in town)

Vertical Addiction: THE gear store in Canmore for technical mountaineering equipment and the ONLY store for backcountry ski touring / boarding equipment. Excellent expert advice by store owner Benoit Gosselin and his staff. Located across the street from the fire hall and "Sports Experts". Easily accessible from the parking lot in front of Sobey's Supermarket.

Mountain Magic: Retail and rental store in Banff

Switching Gear: Sport equipment consignment store. Sometimes cheaper to buy a pair of used boots than rent a more worn out pair for a week. Downtown Canmore on 9th Street.

Valhalla Pure: Downtown right on the main street. Look out for the climbing cow in the window.

The Second Story Bookstore: A long time Canmore institution! Located centrally on the "shady" (south) side of main street two buildings west from the Bank of Montreal. Easy to miss, as it is downstairs with windows at pavement level! Great place to browse through used and new books. Best selection of guide books, mountaineering / skiing literature and maps in town. Everything also available through their online store!

Activities for sunny or rainy days
Canmore Nordic Center Gym: Right next to the trails, spacious, drop-in CD$ 5, good showers and sauna included. Good place to go after winter camping in your van for a week along the ice field parkway.......

The Vision: Bouldering Gym in the commercial area of Canmore on your way to the Alpine Club House. Great spirits! Motivated clientele and a super-nice owner!

Sally Borden Gym at the Banff Center in Banff: Full scale climbing wall - also for leading. Entrance ticket includes the other facilities, such as pool and weight room.

Dog sledding with Snowy Owl Tours

Paddling on the Bow or Kananaskis River in inflatable Kayaks with Blast Adventures
ph: 403-609-2009 , 1-888-80BLAST

Canmore Public Library: Cheap Internet Access. Downtown behind The Wood.