Johnston Canyon: The 13 October Closure and the Ice Walk

Johnston Canyon’s main trail closes on 13 October 2026. Parks Canada announced “temporary closures … to support essential rock slope remediation work”: the trail from the parking lot trailhead to the Lower and Upper Falls viewpoints, the P1 parking lot, the washrooms and the parking facilities. Roam and Bow Valley Insider specify that the closure runs to the Upper Falls lower viewpoint, which leaves the upper viewpoint open from the Moose Meadows Trail.

Parks Canada has published no reopening date. Roam has suspended its Route 9 bus from 13 October to about 30 November, and a second phase of work is planned for September to mid-November 2027, a timeline Bow Valley Insider says is subject to change.

The closure lands on the start of the ice-walk season. Gordon Stermann, an ice-walk operator who has guided in the canyon since 1994, told CBC: “It will most likely affect our early season ice walks. The ones that run in later November and December.” CBC reports that operators are considering Marble Canyon and Grotto Canyon instead.

The canyon when the trail is open

Parks Canada puts the Johnston Canyon day-use area 25 km northwest of Banff and 33 km southeast of Lake Louise, on the Bow Valley Parkway, and warns that parking fills quickly. Its summer trail table gives the Lower Falls as 1.1 km one way, with 85 m of climb and about an hour for the round trip, and the Upper Falls, which it calls 30 m high, as 2.4 km one way, with 215 m of climb and about two hours. The Ink Pots are 5.5 km one way, about four hours there and back. Parks Canada’s winter page gives slightly longer figures to the falls, 1.2 km and 2.5 km.

The tour listings describe the way as steel catwalks fixed to the canyon walls above the creek, with a short passage through the rock at the Lower Falls for a closer view.

One rule applies all season. From 15 May to 15 November 2026, off-trail use is strictly prohibited along the Johnston Canyon Trail, from the lower trail sign to the Ink Pots and Moose Meadows junction, to protect black swifts, an endangered bird listed under Canada’s Species at Risk Act. The maximum penalty is CA$25,000. Take your photos from the trail.

What you can still reach, and how

From 13 October the Upper Falls upper viewpoint and the Ink Pots stay open from the Moose Meadows Trail. With the P1 lot closed, the other trailhead Parks Canada lists for the Ink Pots is the Moose Meadows/Johnston Creek parking lot, 27 km northwest of Banff on the Bow Valley Parkway, where parking is limited. Check Parks Canada’s trail report before you set out.

Driving takes a little planning this autumn. The Bow Valley Parkway needs a park pass even if you never stop (CA$12.25 per adult a day in 2026), and the canyon area can always be reached by car via Castle Junction. The fall cycling period that kept cars off the parkway’s eastern 17 km ended on 6 October, and the overnight restriction on that section applies only from 1 March to 25 June.

Without a car, the choice narrows. Roam’s Route 9 (CA$5 per adult each way) is suspended until about 30 November, so for now the ways in are your own car or a tour. The ice walk on this page includes the pickup in Banff, and the day tours below collect in Calgary, Canmore or Banff.

Who the ice walk suits

The guided walk suits a winter visitor who wants the frozen falls without sorting out cleats, transport and the route alone, and who can manage 5.4 km on ice. Banff & Lake Louise Tourism lists guided ice walks in the canyon from November to April, and Parks Canada says the winter trail is “usually very icy”, with ice cleats “strongly recommended”.

It is not for children under 8, and it is a risky choice for a trip fixed on early December, given what one operator told CBC. If you are in Banff before 13 October, walk the canyon yourself: Parks Canada’s 2026 fee list has no charge for the trail or its parking beyond the park pass. After that, and until the trail reopens, the Banff page and the Banff in winter guide have other ideas.

How long to allow

On foot, Parks Canada allows about an hour for the Lower Falls, two hours for the Upper Falls and four for the Ink Pots. The ice walk takes about two hours on the trail and roughly 30 minutes’ drive each way from Banff, by its itinerary, so plan on a morning or an afternoon.

The ice walk, and the day tours that list the canyon

The walk on this page is Discover Banff Tours’ morning or afternoon ice walk, from US$77 as of October 2026 and rated 4.8 from 284 reviews. The first date on its calendar is 1 December 2026, and its route runs on the trail that closes on 13 October, so check the operator’s status before you travel. The price covers the pickup in Banff, a certified guide with no more than 12 guests, ice cleats, hiking poles, and hot chocolate with a maple cookie; tips are extra, and cancellation is free up to 24 hours before.

If you will be in Banff from December and want the frozen falls with the transport and the gear taken care of, this is the walk to book, once the operator confirms its route.

See ice walk dates from 1 December →

johnston-canyon-icewalk.com compares the winter ice-walk tours from Banff in more detail.

Five day tours on this page list Johnston Canyon among their stops, and their next dates fall either side of 13 October. Banff ToDo’s Calgary day tour (US$77, 4.8 from 199 reviews) names Marble Canyon as its winter alternative, and its Banff day (US$56, 4.8 from 47) says the visit is to Johnston or Marble Canyon depending on conditions; both listings suggest a $12 tip per person in cash.

Matrix Tours & Travel Ltd’s VIP tour (US$42, 4.7 from 201), Banff Madtours’ photo tour (US$49, 4.9 from 100, first date 15 October) and Banff Tour and Travels Limited’s premium tour (US$42, 4.6 from 209) name no substitute, so ask what replaces the canyon before you book a date from 13 October. Two of these five listings also give Moraine Lake dates past 12 October, but Parks Canada’s Moraine Lake shuttle and the published season for the road end on 12 October 2026; the Moraine Lake page explains the rules.