Beauty Creek/Stanley Falls

Taking in some Zen at Beauty Creek.  Thanks for the great pic Sarah! 

Beauty Creek/Stanley Falls - Jasper National Park 

LOCATION: The trail starts 85 km South of the town of Jasper, along the Icefields Parkway. The trailhead is a pullout east of the highway where two culverts cross under the road.

DIFFICULTY LEVEL: I would give it about a 2/5 for difficulty

DISTANCE/TIME: The trail is 6 km round trip and took us a couple of hours to complete (we stopped along the way quite a bit for photos). 

I've had a lot going on in my life lately, so when Sarah suggested this hike as our next adventure, I knew it needed to happen.  Often times when I'm stressed out or feeling overwhelmed, I take a quick drive to Brule, (the little hamlet where I grew up) and sit down by the creek reflecting.  More often than not, I come back feeling better, with a clearer perspective.  I find nature itself really healing, and good for the soul, but for me that feeling is magnified when I'm near flowing water.  

Before any hike I like to peruse the comment section of Trailpeak to get an idea of how accurate other people found the description of the hike. For this hike someone mentioned that they counted 19 waterfalls along the way - I was in!  This hike did not disappoint: 

 

There were also plenty of wildflowers which made for another beautiful element to this hike! I imagine they are only going to get better in the weeks to come! 

I think a lot to do with how fun the hike is is who your company is.  I couldn't ask for better hiking buddies!  Sarah, Allison, and Chris - you made this hike an absolute blast! I absolutely love the photo Sarah took of all of us at the end - be sure to head on over to her blog post to check it out! 

Sarah and Chris

 After taking in Stanley Falls, we ventured a little bit further only to discover that a small goat trail was our only path.  After a few minutes of this, we decided that it was simply too treacherous and we weren't properly equipped so we decided to head back!  We all agreed that we would be back soon to see where this trail leads (more waterfalls for sure!). 

Sarah navigating the goat trail

All in all it was a great day, and I would for sure do this hike again!  My shutterbug husband is already looking forward to coming along next time!

For more photo's from this hike, as well as another point of view, be sure to check out Sarah, and Allison's blog posts about this hike as well!