Hike to the Athabasca Glacier Viewpoint

Turn onto Glacier Rd. from the Icefields Parkway, and at the end of the road you will hit a parking lot and see where the trail goes straight up the hill. The parking lot has a bathroom, and some picnic tables to eat on, also across the street is the Icefields Centre where you can get food. When you are ready to hike, make sure you bring a sweater, it is very chilly at the top with a breeze blowing off the glacier. 

The hike up is steep but only takes about 10 minutes to reach the top, the glacier and the trail are separated by a river and little dirt pile and you shouldn't try to go on the glacier due to the risk of falling into crevasses. When you get to the top the trail flattens out and you walk down a tiny bit to get closer to the glacier. Along the top of the trail and glacier, there a posts with facts about the glacier and old pictures. 

The glacier is great for educating your children or yourself about global warming and the affects people have on the earth. The glacier has receded almost 1 mile over the past 125 years, which is huge, and is the most visited glacier in North America. 

This is a super easy, family friendly hike if you don't want to pay $85 to go onto the actual glacier. It can be a short stop on your way to or from Banff or Jasper.