Despite being the second-largest country in the world, Canada has a relatively small population for its enormous size. Most Canadians live within a few hours of the United States border, leaving huge areas of mountains, forests, lakes, and wilderness farther north.
I’ve visited several very different parts of Canada over the years, from major cities to mountain towns and some of the country’s incredible wilderness. The destinations below cover some of my favorite experiences so far.
Explore Banff
Banff is one of the most beautiful places I’ve visited in Canada. My winter trip focused heavily on ice climbing, but even the hikes between climbing areas took me through frozen rivers, dramatic canyons, wildlife, and some of the most impressive frozen waterfalls I’ve ever seen.
Explore Calgary
Calgary gave me a completely different side of western Canada. Its downtown is packed with skyscrapers, elevated walkways, restaurants, and nightlife, while the frozen Bow River and Peace Bridge gave the city plenty of scenery of its own.
Explore the Mt. Garibaldi Climb
My attempt to climb Mt. Garibaldi gave me some of my first real experience traveling across a glacier as part of a rope team. Bad weather eventually forced us to turn around below the summit, but the climb still included exposed ridges, crevasses, glacier travel, and plenty of mountain scenery.
Explore Vancouver
Vancouver combines a major modern city with mountains, forests, parks, and the Pacific Ocean almost immediately outside downtown. From the seawall and marinas to nearby Whistler, Fraser Canyon, and the Coast Mountains, the surrounding area was one of the highlights of my travels through western Canada.
