Lake Agnes Tea House - Hiking for Crumpets
Summer is short in Canada. It generally doesn't start in the mountains until mid-July. So when we (my sister, her boyfriend and colleagues) decided to take on the short hike to the Lake Agnes Tea House on June 1, we knew it would be a slushy affair.
Arriving at Lake Louise auxiliary parking alongside the TransCanada Highway, I waited in the extensive line to pay for a shuttle ticket up to the lake. Hopping on the cheese wagon, I was dropped off in the lake parking lot and wound my way through the thousands of people along the shore to meet the rest of the hikers.
At this time of year, the turquoise lake is still full of ice. I watched as visitors attempted to scoop out chunks of ice. And I laughed as three people fell into the glacier last water when they tried.
The trail head for Lake Agnes is along the shoreline at the far end of the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. It's a 7.6 km round trip up to the tea house and back to the Chateau. It's moderately steep on the way up with switchbacks and an elevation gain of 433 m.
The first scenic stop on the trail is Mirror Lake. It's nestled below Big Beehive with Small Beehive over the west side of the lake. Lake Agnes can be reached by taking trails on either side of Mirror Lake, but the south route was closed due to avalanche risk and the trail being covered in deep snow.
Next along the path is the Lake Agnes waterfall. When you reach the waterfall, you're almost done the path. It's just a sprint up the stairs and you're at Lake Agnes and the tea house.
Unsurprisingly, Lake Agnes was mostly frozen still.
The tea house was built in 1901 as a refuge for hikers and travellers. It's open seasonally from mid-to late June through September. Due to a stretch of good weather, the tea house happened to be open when we arrived on June 1.
The tea house takes Canadian cash only and they have outhouses nearby. They have a fairly extensive menu of teas, snacks and entrees. However, the quality isn't great, so enjoy it as more of a novelty than a delicacy.
The trails up to the Big and Little Beehives were both closed due to snow, so I'll have to save that adventure for another day.
Both the trail and the tea house can get incredibly busy. Have patience and plan ample return time as the last shuttle back to the auxiliary parking lot leaves sometime around 5 pm. It's a loooooooooong walk or cab ride back to your car if you miss it.
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