In mid-July we booked a campsite at Beaver Mines Lake, a campground I had never been to before. It is tucked away in Castle Provincial Park around 20 minutes from both Pincher Creek and Crowsnest Pass. The drive from Calgary takes about two and a half hours. Since we had lots of time before check-in (4 pm), we took a detour through Okotoks to visit the erratic and check another site off our Southern Alberta tourist bingo.
Okotoks Erratic
The Okotoks Erratic is the largest glacial erratic in North America. It was carried from Jasper National Park all the way to the Southern Albertan prairies around 10-30,000 years ago. In fact, this site is so significant to the landscape that the name “Okotoks” is derived from the Blackfoot word for the rock.
Beaver Mines Lake Campground
We arrived at the campground and found our campsite to be very nicely sheltered from its neighbours about the road. The surrounding vegetation gave us lots of privacy and the campsites were not too crowded together.
Overall, it was one of the nicest sites I have been to. However, there are few amenities, meaning campers need to bring their own potable water and firewood as neither are provided. There are pit toilets at the campground, but no bathrooms with running water or electricity. Campsites can be reserved at Alberta Parks from mid-May to September.
It was quite smoky in the area on our first night, but the smoke started to burn off by midday the next day. We went for a walk around the lake and down one of the interpretive trails in the morning, and then drove to Crowsnest Pass in the afternoon for a hike around the Frank Slide area.
Frank Slide and Crowsnest Pass
The weather was very hot, and the first hike we took around the interpretive trail for Frank Slide offered little to no shade. The hike was only 1.5 km but there is a little elevation climbing down then back up the trail. It is a wide, well-maintained trail.
Our next trail was towards Bellevue, a 3 km link to the next town. Crowsnest Pass is the result of the amalgamation 5 municipalities in the area (including Bellevue and Frank among others). We did not take the link all the way to Bellevue as we were worried the hot weather was getting to our pup, but there was a large group of runners on the trail, so it is definitely in use!
After spending a few hours in the Frank Slide area, we headed back to camp. On route, we decided to stop for ice cream at Miner’s Mercantile & Bakery & Fuel Station in Beaver Mines town. This is also a great spot to purchase more firewood if you’re running low but want to stay close. Then, we drove back to the campsite where we let our dog wade in the lake. This would be a great area for boating if you have kayaks or canoes, and is popular amongst fisherman.
Beaver Mines Lake
Sunday was spent in and around the campground, hiking through the area before it was time to pack up and drive home. We stopped for lunch in Pincher Creek and continued on our way back into the city.
Beaver Mines Lake was a great reprieve from the city and a very lovely campground. I would highly recommend the area as it seems to be less popular than site in Kananaskis or Banff, though the campground was still pretty full. There are also cabins available to rent if that’s more your style.
