I grew up in Manitoba. I have had the chance to live in almost every corner of this country. But I keep coming back to Manitoba and have made this my home base for the last 18 years (or that is how long I have owned a house here) . It is a place that is often overlooked for hiking and outdoor adventures. The advantage of that is you can take your time on our trails and not have to worry about being run over by a mob of people when you stop to take a moment to enjoy the sheer beauty of the outdoors. Or have to worry about being a sweaty mess in the background of hundreds of random strangers selfies on social media.
We are flat… but just in certain parts. In the West, it is like a scene out of GOT. Where the gently rolling landscape, suddenly runs into a massive wall. This the the Manitoba escarpment and runs from the Pembina valley in the south, to Riding Mountain National Park, and carries on into the Duck Mountains and beyond into Northern Manitoba. There are hundreds of epic hikes in this region as you climb out of the prairies up along the Escarpment and gain breath taking vistas of the checker board of fields below and scoot past amorous moose in the fall during the rut. Sadly I haven’t had time to explore this area very much and keep looking at photos on friends social media and know I am not just having the sensation of FOMO, but I truly am missing out on something spectacular.
To the East, this is where I usually roam. We have the start of the Canadian Shield and challenging hikes like the aptly named Mantario trail that weaves it way through boreal forests, along granite outcroppings, surrounded by refreshing lakes and streams that dot the border of Manitoba and Ontario. This 3 to 4 day, 60 km hike is a classic that every outdoorsy Canadian should have on their wish list. Just don’t go when I’m planning on going. Thanks.
My all time favorite hike on the Mantario was when a buddy and I didn’t have time to hike the trail in 3 days. But we figured if we just kept walking, we could do it in 24 hours. We did it in 23 hours technically making it a “Day Hike”. I should also admit I couldn’t walk normally for 3 days. My friend broke all 3 of his flashlights. I gave him mine and had a surreal experience hiking the trail via moonlight. Also during a quick nap on the trail, my hiking partner mistook my snoring for an angry bear in the dark.
I know Manitoba hiking doesn’t seem as sexy as hiking in BC or Alberta. But I’m no longer in my twenties and sometimes it hurts to get off the couch. To me, hiking in Manitoba is just right.

No doubt the Rockies provide some sensational hikes, but I’m putting in a plug for the Freighter Trail that runs along the shore of Lesser Slave Lake. A wander through Alberta’s boreal forest provides sensational views of the lake and it’s ever-changing sand dunes, birdwatching, sightings of wildlife, and a possible stop at the Boreal Bird Observatory. Skiable in winter, the trail can be done in sections or all at once if you have the entire day.

We love the hike to Heart Lake Trail Loop in Ladysmith BC. Its 10 KM long, moderate, with lots of beautiful scenery. Ends at Heart Lake which is beautiful. the trailhead starts on the Holland Creek Trail right in the centre of Ladysmith so its easy to access and find your way. Just a perfect day hike!

The Three Sisters near Fernie, BC.

My most favorite day hike in Canada is Johnston’s Canyon in Banff. I love this hike be because anyone can do it & the canyon & the multiple waterfalls are stunning!

Last year I hiked goldilocks loop for the first time. I have already booked another visit to hike it again this year. Fantastic trail! Kudos! Fav!

M’y favorite Trail frime thé Rockies us Edith Cavell Meadows. What us a marvelous place! The mountains, the Lake, the flowers and the rocks!

Cirque Peak, even just to Helen Lake (same trail) on Ice Fields Parkway in Alberta. It’s got a nice steady incline, beautiful views, water falls, river crossings & lake views all within 3 hour round trip! You can do it before or after work on a long summer day.

The “Crack” at Killarney Provincial Park. It’s a challenging hike but you are rewarded with an amazing view of the park and all of it’s geologic features.

Carthrew-Alderson in Waterton Lakes National Park, the Iceline in Yoho National Park, Lake O’Hara Alpine Circuit and hike to McArthur Lake. Berg Lake in MT Robson..all great hikes!

Mt Cheam in chilliwack
Views of the Fraser valley you can see Vancouver in a clear day.
5 mins in and you come across the cutest glacier carved lake. Spoon Lake. Wild flowers galore

Cape Breton has dozens of amazing day hikes but my personal favourite has to be Franey Mountain in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park. It’s not a very difficult or long hike but the view of the highlands and the coast is extraordinary!

A great hike to do is in the Limberlost Forest, Huntsville, Ontario. There is a very nice trail around Solitaire lake, where you can walk high up on a rock shelf, to a scenic wooden walkway across the water. The trail hugs the lake, with a beautiful path. 5 other lakes in the park provide more trails if you wish. Please go to the check in cabin to find a map, and have a great day! Free of charge too.

The amazing, historic and out of this world beautiful Lower Stein Valley near Lytton. Just getting there is half the fun, but once you do…ancient pictographs, culturally modified trees, natural beauty, waterfalls, old growth forests, wildlife, abandoned cabins await as you follow along and over the pristine Stein River.

Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan has several great day hikes. It’s up north, and full of forest. Even the scenic route driving in to Waskesiu is worth it.

My favourite day hike is the Edgar Baird Trail in Gander, NL. It has everything, from the bottomless and often foggy lake, to a moss carpet covered enchanted forest with a twisting path among it. It has elevation, but is fairly accessible even for a beginner. It offers complete peace and quiet to find yourself in. It has healed me.

A shout out for the West Kootenay here.
A real favourite for families is the Idaho Peak trail out of Sandon. Because you drive into the sub alpine it is not strenuous, but the 360 degree views are only surpassed by the incredible display of flowers.
Want a longer hike (and there are so many to choose from)? Monica Meadows is the place to go. Up at the end of Glacier Creek road from Duncan Lake, you switchback up to huge meadows dotted with lovely alpine lakes with a backdrop of the McBeth Icefield. Oh, and Jumbo Pass hike is a few kilometres down the road!

Skerwink trail, Newfoundland .. simply breath taking rugged coastal trail
http://www.theskerwinktrail.com/

It is so hard to choose just one as there are so many beautiful hikes in the Alberta Rockies. I guess if I need to narrow it to one that would be the skoki loop in lake Louise. The mountain meadows in July are brilliant with wild flowers. So beautiful. Others to mention are
Crypt lake in waterton alberta
Tower of Babel moraine lake
The larches ( sentinal pass) in October lake Louise
I could go on forever.
One last one as it is near and dear to my heart.
My dad climbed this and he died before I really knew him. I followed his foot steps up. Kinda cool
That hike is yamnuska

East Sooke Park, Cabin Point Trail. It gives you ocean views, glimpses of history, elevation gain, and plenty of muddy patches. Everything to make a solid hike.

Heiko’s Trail in Fernie, that actually ends at Island Lake!

My fav day hike is Green Gardens in Gros Morne National Park. Mantle rock, meets sea stacks, meets sea caves, meets volcanic coastal meadows, all under the gaze of whales, sea birds and wandering flocks of curious sheep.

This is too hard! If I can only have one… I guess my absolute favorite has been a section of the Coastal Trail in Lake Superior Provincial park, from the Agawa Pictographs to the Visitor’s Centre at the south end of the park. Of course, the Orphan lake trail in Superior is pretty great. I loved hiking the Eiffel Lake trail in Banff. And Robertson cliffs just North of Sault Ste Marie is a lot of fun… ARGHHHHHH!!! You can’t make me pick one!

Oh…this is so hard! I worked in the Rockies for over 25 years and now live in the Yukon. I’d say my most favourite day hike is Bald Hills at Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park. It’s one of those great Alpine areas offering superb views of a gorgeous big lake and surrounding peaks. A close second is Healy Pass in Banff National Park in the early part of the summer because of the profusion of wildflowers.

One of my favourite day hikes is on Newfoundland’s East Coast Trail just a 15-20 minute drive from St. John’s. The trail is named Blackhead Trail and is located just West of Cape Spear National Historic Site which is also known as the most Easterly point in Canada.

This day hike is between Blackhead and Fort Amherst (another historic site). Some of the amazing views on the trail include breath taking coastal views, rugged cliffs, a beach rock break water with stepping stones, An old ship wreck at Fresh Water Bay, and a beautiful view of Signal Hill can be achieved after the steep ascent to the top of the Southside Hill’s.

To through hike this trail on average usually takes around 3 hrs. If you like to hike and are visiting Newfoundland I believe this is a must do! Enjoy.

My favourite day hike is the Green Gardens Trail in Gros Morne National Park on the west coast of Newfoundland! Fantastic coastal scenery including meadows and sea spires. If you’re lucky, you might even meet the resident sheep.

Bat Lake Trail, Algonquin Park, Ontario.
Great views, waterfalls, birds and moose!

My husband and I took our kids on a hike to The Grotto in Bruce Peninsula, Ontario. We were all amazed by how incredibly beautiful it was. The jewel tone colours of the water was like a scene from a Caribbean coastline! Climbing down the escarpment to explore the cave was awesome and unforgettable. We went back in the winter and were able to walk all the way around on the frozen lake to explore even more caves. A true gem in our own Canadian backyard!

Iceline trail in Yoho has great views and interesting geology!

My favourite day hike here in the Yukon is the “Sam McGee Trail”, also known as “Lower Mountain Hero” on the side of Montana Mountain. The trailhead is near the abandoned townsite of Conrad. This gorgeous trail takes you through aspens at the trailhead, following a historic trail & remnants of a tramway, along the creek and up into balsam trees. Easy switchbacks give you sneak previews of the views and finally out into the open alpine with even more beautiful views!
Nine or ten Kms return with about 620m of elevation gain.

So many great hikes throughout Canada but two standouts are the Fundy Trails, and Sulphur Ridge Skyline in Jasper which is my favourite. The views on this unspoiled and challenging but accessible hike are breath-taking. Hikers of all ages enjoy this spectacular trail from spring to fall and often encounter wildlife in their natural habitat, and colourful mountain meadows that are among the most beautiful in the world. An annual hike enjoyed by nature lovers from around the world and one I will enjoy once again this summer.

Crypt Lake in Waterton Lakes National Park in SW AB.

Sulphur Skyline is a favourite. Not only do you get to enjoy great views at the peak, but you return to Miette Hot Springs where you can soak your tired body after the hike.

Someone may have mentioned this already but the Crack hiking trail up north of Killarney Provincial Park in Ontario is a great hike that offers fantastic views after some scrambling at the top. The climb at the end is well worth the effort though.

Galatea lakes in kananiskis is a wonderful day hike. Located off highway 40. Easy access to the trail head and good reward as you can stop at the first lake or continue on to the 2nd lske. Great day hike to take family and friends on for canada day.
We are so lucky so many wonderful places to explore.

Heiko’s trail that goes over the Three Sisters to Island Lake Lodge. Have completed it in my 20’s, 30’s and for my 40th birthday.

Wulf Lake-West Kootenays- A Family Favorite for as long as I recall. The “Real Deal” mountain trail -with alder choked mining roads to get to trail head, muddy old log bridges from when BC Forests maintained the trail, steep rocky assent Rugged peaks, cold crisp mountain stream crossing and Cutthroat Trout that welcome a fly.

I’m going to say just getting out of your car in the Yukon and walking. I’ve done hikes in all the provinces but just getting off the beaten path, not on a trail and just walk- not a soul around, vast wilderness. Tombstone Territorial Park or drive up the Dempster and get off the “highway”. Just epic wilderness with zero crowds!

Castle Rock in Fernie or Old Growth Trail. Castle rock has a beautiful summit view of Fernie, but Old Growth Trail makes you feel like you are in another world.

My favourite day hike is Heiko’s trail. It starts at the bottom of the 3 Sisters, taking you up on cool ladders and steps, past bisaro cave, through beautiful meadows…then across over alpine land and down to island lake lodge. If timed properly, ending with a drink at the lodge tops off for an amazing day.

Ptarmigan Cirque! First there’s the beautiful drive from Calgary west to Peter Lougheed Park. Then a drive up to the Highwood Pass. From there it’s a hike through the evergreens to a beautiful meadow. At the top is a perfect spot for an afternoon picnic by the waterfall, plus some exploring and hunting for fossils. There’s something new to find every year!

My favorite day hike is the lake of the hanging glacier. This trail is a bit of a challenge but overall easy. You walk through a forest and along the way u will cross a alpine bridge. This leads to a bunch of switch backs that run along a river that come from the glacier. The plateau on top is amazing with tons of colorful flowers until u get to the lake. The lake is silky blue with a hanging glacier hanging on the others side. All this beauty is surrounded by beautiful mountain cover with snow and more glacier. It 4 hours one way.

Tunnel Mountain in Banff! Awesome hike

The best day hike is the Historic Fire Tower @ Eagle Pass, near Revelstoke. There are many pics posted on my page Shuswap Overland Adventures. Each foot step earns you a new view. To stand above the snow capped mountains and see as far as humanly possible in every direction, amd to have a beautifuly restored fire tower to enjoy.

Riding Mountain National Park, in Manitoba has at least a week’s worth of trails. From hiking with the kids, to adventuresome outback camping. I like the Arrowhead trail. It’s not too far from town & just strenuous enough to work up an appetite!