Day 0
We wanted an early start on the lake, so we stayed in Jasper our first night. Our canoe rental, Wild Current Canoes dropped our life coats, paddles and a dry bag off to our hotel when we arrived to town, so we didn’t need to stop in to grab the gear.
Day 1- 22km to Coronet Creek
We set out at 6am to drive to Maligne Lake, about an hour drive from the town. The rental company has canoes down at the lake, they give you a lock code so you can get on the water on your own time rather than meeting someone down there. You do have that option if you prefer.
Loading our canoe took about an hour. We had a lot of things, plus we blew up both our paddle boards to tow behind us.
It was a foggy morning with little visibility, so we stayed close to the shoreline to keep on track.
We did a 22km paddle day 1, all the way to the end of the lake and set up camp at Coronet Creek. It took us (1 intermediate and 1 beginner paddler) about 8 hours including a 1 hour lunch stop near Spirit Island to get to Coronet.
It would be a shame, in my opinion to just go the 14km to Fisherman’s Bay, because the nicest part of the paddle is between Fisherman’s and Coronet. You could stay there first to break things up if you have more time.
Day 2- 6km
to Spirit Island, 2km to Fisherman’s Bay
We had a sleep in and took our time leaving Coronet Creek in them am. We paddled around 6km to Spirit Island where we stopped in to take in the view of the famous island.
We continued around the corner about another 2km to Fisherman’s Bay where we set up camp at tent pad 2 for two nights. This site had a great view of the lake.
Day 3 - Rest Day
Today we spent relaxing on the dock and paddling around the cove. It would be a good option, and was our intention to paddle back to Spirit Island for sunset tonight, but we opted out to relax.
Day 4 - 13km back to start
We got up early again today because we had a drive to Banff ahead of us. It was a rainy start, but the 13km paddle was quick on the way back, the wind was with us. Took just under 4 hours.
General Campsite information
Both Coronet Creek and Fisherman’s Bay have 8 tent pads each
There is a third site called Hidden Cove, about 4km onto the lake. It has 4 tent pads, and is good for families/people who want to take a small overnight journey
There is a communal picnic area with food storage lockers, labeled 1-8 to match up with your tent pad number. We were able to fit a 45L cooler, as well as a 30L recreational barrel. No food or scented items can be left unattended or in your tent area. This includes things like toothpaste and sunscreen.
There is no firewood at the sites, you will have to bring your own (from inside the park) if you want to have a fire, or you can collect it along the lake as you paddle
It’s a good idea to have a tarp to hang over your picnic table. Sometimes you can get lucky and they will be left behind, but it not it’s a good idea to set one up, as rain is quite common
Check in and check out is 11am
There is a maximum stay of 6 nights on the lake, 2 at each site consecutively.
These backcountry sites are dog friendly! We had our Siberian husky and he loved it.
These sites go quickly, check out my other post on how to snag a spot!
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