Mt Cascade#

Photo: H. Maurer, 2007

Cascade mountain is one of the icons of Banff: it is seen here from the bridge that leads from the famous Fairmont Banff Springs hotel into the town proper. Cascade is climbed, not surprisingly, over the shoulder shown left of the peak, since the other sides are quite rocky and in spring full of small waterfalls, hence the name.

Banff 51.176934,-115.5683895 as such is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, some 130 km west of Calgary and 60 km east of Lake Louise. At an elevation of 1,400 m to 1,630 m Banff is the community with the second highest elevation in Alberta after Lake Louise.

The Town of Banff was the first municipality to incorporate within a Canadian national park. Banff is a resort town and one of Canada's most popular tourist destinations, known for its mountainous surroundings and hot springs. It is a destination for many outdoor sports. Sunshine Village (still much higher) , Ski Norquay (quite close to the city) and Lake Louise Mountain Resort (about 60 km westward) are the three nearby ski resorts located within the national park.