Four Hikers Required on Lake Minnewanka Trails During Bear Season

Every summer, one of Banff National Park's most popular backcountry hiking areas quietly switches to a different set of rules.

Beginning July 10 and continuing through Sept. 15, anyone hiking beyond Stewart Canyon Bridge on the Lake Minnewanka Trail must travel in a group of at least four people, carry bear spray and remain close together. The same restriction applies to the Aylmer Pass and Aylmer Lookout trails, where Parks Canada says the measures are designed to reduce the risk of dangerous encounters with female grizzly bears and their cubs during one of the most important feeding periods of the year.

The restrictions only apply once hikers cross Stewart Canyon Bridge. Visitors can still walk along the Lake Minnewanka shoreline and enjoy the day-use area without the minimum group requirement. But anyone continuing onto the official Lake Minnewanka Trail or heading toward Aylmer Lookout or Aylmer Pass must follow the seasonal rules.

The regulations are mandatory, not recommendations.

Hiking parties must consist of at least four people, with no more than three metres separating any two members of the group. Everyone must carry bear spray. Cyclists and dogs are prohibited beyond Stewart Canyon Bridge during the restriction period.

For overnight users, campers staying at the LM9, LM11, LM20 and LM22 backcountry campgrounds must also travel in groups of four or more. The nearby LM8 campground remains closed throughout the restriction period.

Anyone who fails to comply can be charged under the National Parks Regulations and faces fines of up to $25,000.

A Landscape Shared With Female Grizzlies

The annual restrictions are driven by one simple reality: this is some of the most important grizzly bear habitat in Banff National Park.

Lake Minnewanka sits along the edge of one of the park's designated grizzly bear core areas, where female bears frequently raise cubs. Between mid-July and September, hillsides along the trail become covered in ripening buffaloberries, an essential food source that allows bears to build the fat reserves needed to survive hibernation.

Parks Canada says a single grizzly can consume up to 250,000 buffaloberries in a day, roughly the equivalent of a person eating about 60 hamburgers.

That feeding behaviour also creates ideal conditions for surprise encounters.

As bears focus on feeding among dense berry bushes, hikers and trail runners can unintentionally approach within close range before either side is aware of the other.

Lessons Learned From Past Attacks

The restrictions were introduced following a series of serious bear attacks in Banff National Park.

Between 1998 and 2005, five grizzly attacks occurred near Aylmer Pass and Allenby Pass. According to Parks Canada, every incident involved hikers travelling alone or in small groups who unexpectedly encountered female grizzly bears with cubs during berry season.

Cyclists have also experienced surprise bear encounters along the Lake Minnewanka Trail.

Rather than permanently closing the area, Parks Canada adopted seasonal restrictions intended to lower the chances of those encounters while still allowing people to access the backcountry.

Research has consistently shown that larger hiking groups are significantly less likely to experience aggressive bear encounters because they are noisier and easier for bears to detect from a distance.

Backcountry Access Returns After June Closure

The seasonal restrictions come only weeks after Parks Canada temporarily closed (since reopened) much of the Lake Minnewanka backcountry following an unrelated wildlife closure.

As Bow Valley Insider previously reported, much of the trail system and six backcountry campgrounds were closed in mid-June after black bears began displaying food-seeking behaviour, including an incident in which a camper returned from a day hike to find their tent ripped apart.

That emergency closure has since been lifted, allowing visitors to once again access the trail system under the annual seasonal restrictions.

For Parks Canada, the goal remains balancing public access with the long-term survival of one of the park's most important wildlife populations.