Lake Louise - Banff National Park, Alberta - Places of Geologic Significance on Waymarking.com

Lake Louise is the famous lake located in Banff National Park, West of Banff Townsite, Alberta, Canada.

The lake was created when a natural dam of glacial debris (the site of the Chateau) caused the water to back up behind it, some 10 000 years ago. It is approximately 85 m. (280 ft) deep, and 2.4 km. (1.5 mi.) long.

Following inscription can be found on the board located on the given coordinates:

"Landscape Sculptors

Ice-age glaciers sculpted this famous Rocky Mountain landscape.

The glaciers began their work about two million years ago. They carved these mountains and gouged this valley into a deep basin. The Victoria Glacier once filled this valley.

About 10,000 years ago, the glaciers melted back and left behind a pile of rocky debris that dammed this lake. You are standing on the remains of that dam.

In recent years, a warmer climate has accelerated glacial melt and recession. If this trend continues, one day these glaciers will be gone.

Mounts Victoria and Lefroy form part of the Continental Divide - the backbone of North America. These glaciated mountains supply precious water to communities across the continent.

The upper Victoria Glacier is abount 7 km from here and 80 m thick - about twice the height of the Chateua Lake Louise. Ice breaks off in the front of the glacier and crashes to the valley below. Boom!!! The sound takes 20 seconds to reach here."

According to Wikipedia, Banff National park is located in Canadian Rockies. From the geological point of view, "the Canadian Rockies are composed of sedimentary rock, including shale, sandstone, limestone and quartzite, that originated as deposits on a continental shelf, similar to the relatively shallow shelf off-shore of the eastern US. The geologic formations in Banff range in age from Precambrian eon to the Jurassic period. Rocks as young as late Cretaceous, formed from the shedding of sediments towards the continental interior from rising mountain ranges farther west, were themselves caught up in the mountain-building as deformation progressed inland. However, most of these deposits—notably the Cretaceous sandstones exposed in the footwall of the McConnell thrust fault at Yamnuska mountain—are outside of the boundaries of Banff park proper.

Although the rocks in Banff Park were laid down as sediments between ~600 Ma to ~175 Ma, the main period of mountain building occurred between 80–120 million years ago, as a result of the shortening and deformation of the ancient continental shelf as exotic island terranes collided and were accreted onto the continent's margin. The shortening was accommodated by thrust faults and associated folds.

Erosion accompanied and outlasted the uplift of the Canadian Rockies, with a probable rejuvenation and acceleration of erosion rates since Pliocene time, as the Earth entered a period of extensive glaciation. Glacial landforms overwhelmingly dominate Banff's geomorphology, with examples of all classic glacial forms: cirques, arêtes, hanging valleys, moraines, U-shaped valleys et al. The pre-existing structure left over from mountain-building has strongly guided glacial erosion: mountains in Banff include complex, irregular, anticlinal, synclinal, castellate, dogtooth, and sawback mountains and many of the mountain ranges trend North-Northeast, with sedimentary layering dipping down to the West at 40 - 60 degrees. This leads to dip slope landforms, with generally steeper East and North faces, and trellis drainage, where rivers and old glacial valleys followed the weaker layers in the geological succession.
Banff National Park has numerous large glaciers and icefields, many of which are easily accessed from the Icefields Parkway.

Banff National Park is the most visited Alberta tourist destination and one of the most visited national parks in North America, with 3,927,557 visitors in 2004/2005. During summer, 51% of park visitors are from Canada (30% from Alberta), while 31% are from the United States and 14% from Europe. Tourism in Banff contributes an estimated C$6 billion annually to the economy".

Source: Wikipedia

Waymark is confirmed to be publicly accessible: yes Access fee (In local currency): .00 Requires a high clearance vehicle to visit.: no Requires 4x4 vehicle to visit.: no Public Transport available: yes Website reference: [Web Link] Parking Coordinates: Not Listed

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