• A Conservation pass is required to park at provincial parks and public use lands in the Kananaskis Country and Bow Valley region. There are two options for purchasing a pass; daily pass and yearly pass. Only one pass per vehicle is required regardless of the number of passengers. If you are entering on foot, horse, or bike there is no fee.
For more information on the pass, how to purchase and where to purchase it, please visit the Kananaskis Conservation Pass website:
https://www.alberta.ca/kananaskis-conservation-pass.aspx
The Grotto Canyon Trail is a great short hike with incredible views. It's a good challenge for kids and can be busy on weekends. From the start of the trail, hikers will enjoy how easy it is to follow the excellent trail markings. Hikers do start by walking along the power lines beside an industrial facility, which can be loud, but this is a good time to treat the first few hundred metres as a good time to warm up those legs, especially if arriving in the early morning.
As you reach the bench overlook and start up the canyon, there are plenty of excellent views of nearby peaks. The trail has nice elevation gain, and in winter, most of the snow becomes hard-packed, which is still very nice to follow. The canyon walls appear, and the rocks become smooth as hikers climb toward the waterfall.
About halfway through, there is a waterfall followed by a cave, which is the most popular attraction of this trail and makes a great moment to rest. Throughout the route, you should be looking for the rock painting, also called pictographs. Close to the bigger waterfall, you can enjoy the good opportunity as an excellent spot for some pictures.
Hikers can also continue the trailheads west through the canyon, which emerges into some open space with great views of the mountains and some inukshuks people have built. Trekking through the valley to the northwest, a cave is visible on the left, and it’s not a deep rock cave but rather a hollowed-out section of the massive dirt hill. Once past the main travelled areas of the route, it is worth wearing proper waterproof shoes in summer and good quality winter hiking boots or crampons in winter since this is where the ice can be.
