Excellent hike. Very crowded but amazing views of the canyon below plus 2 waterfalls. It is a mile and 1/2 to the second fall and there are elevation gains so, make sure you are prepared for this. There are restrooms near the entrance and benches to rest on if you need them.

Absolutely stunning! An easy walk along a boardwalk in the canyon. Great photos ops. Definitely a must see when in Banff. Make sure you bring your own beverages because they charge almost $4 for a can of pop. Don’t be one of those crazy tourists that hops the fence on the edge of the canyon (this happened when we were There!) the fence is there for a reason!

We arrived early so that we would nit have any difficulty with parking at the main parking area for the hike. This is a very popular hike and there are lots of tour busses with visitors walking only the first half mile to mile of the hike. The first 1.5 miles of the trail is paved. There are lots of fantastic viewpoints, platforms and bridges along the trail to the lower and upper falls. Do not turn around at the upper falls. Hike the final 1.5 miles of trail to the ink pots to be rewarded with a beautiful alpine meadow.

Visited on a weekday late morning, walked to the upper falls and were in awe the entire way. The simple beauty of the snow covered tall pines, waterfalls, rock walls and icicles is must see. The size of the canyon itself is very impressive which we were not expecting since everything usually looks smaller in photos. A very peaceful hike through an enchanted forest. No crowds, most time we were the only ones on the trail.

We had hoped to catch the Roam bus number 9 to Johnston canyon to do a self guided ice walk since less expensive than a tour. However, the bus only runs at the weekends between October and May, which didn’t suit. We therefore booked a small group tour (10 people) with Banff Adventures. I’m not usually a fan of guided tours but this was excellent! The tour guide made sure we all introduced ourselves to each other, which was a good start. It was great to meet and chat to others in the group along the way! The ice cleats provided were not the best but were sufficient, and the guide ensured everyone was safe as we walked along. I thought Johnston canyon was more impressive in the winter than summer - definitely worth going!

My husband and I did this Hike with Mike from Lake Louise Chateau. Mike was extremely full of information, from the roads and how they do the fencing with the animal crossings to making sure we all had ice pick shoe coverings for the walk. The walk did, in many areas, need to have the added shoe grip. I was grateful not to be one of those people holding the railings and sliding with no control. The hike was not difficult, but does have some inclines to the falls. It was SO beautiful!

This might just have been one of the best things we did on our two week roadtrip of Canada! I didn’t really know what to expect but loved our hike to both the lower and upper falls. Visiting in early May, we were lucky that the crowds were totally manageable and there was zero queue to view the falls from the hole in the rock. Though we were directed to the overflow parking, there was still ample space. Worked up a bit of a sweat trekking to the upper falls, but still very manageable and there were walkers of all levels enjoying the falls.

Johnstone Canyon is so worth a visit! We had a hire car, so were able to visit and walk the canyon on our own. We were there later in the afternoon, so only saw about 6 or so other people, which was great. I can imagine it could get VERY busy and this would diminish the experience significantly. I think being with a tour group would be the same. When we were there in March, spikes were definitely required.

In my view, the upper falls is not worth the hike since there isn’t a full view of the falls from the edge of the platform (ref. Picture uploaded). The hike to the lower falls is pleasant with the canyon’s flowing water’s soothing music. The trail is of moderate difficulty given the rising ground. At the up-close view of the lower falls, visitors could share the space with a minimum of four people maximum of six as the space is not narrow. Sharing would shorten the long wait. Two to three groups of two could take pictures without impinging on others’ space.

After spending first half of the day at Lake Louise, we visited Johnston Canyon. It was first half of May so it was still pretty chilly and icy. But advantage was crowd was much more thin and you could easily trek without bumping into people. The Johnston canyon trail runs along the canyon and river. It has an elevation of around 100 meters or so. The first level is around 2.5 kilometers and you reach the lower waterfalls. This is just lovely with awesome views. The entire hike is fairly easy and takes about an 45 minutes to reach. The next level goes to the upper level water fall which is an additional 2+ kilometers. We hiked to this spot and did not go further up towards ink-pots. The entire hike going, sightseeing and coming back took around 3 hours. It was a good healthy activity and recommended to be done. Ample parking is available and there is no other fee for this, than the park entry ticket.