Hi

We are planning on going to the Rocky Mountains in Canada. Is it possible for some info on what its like that time of year please? We went there last year in Nov / Dec. The snow made it a beautifully looking place. Our 1st question is the weather. I have read various books, websites etc but the temperatures Celsius, Fahrenheit makes no sense to me lol. Whats the wildlife like that time of year? Scenery etc etc

Sorry if my message seems slightly rushed (Tea is ready) lol..

Thanks for reading my message and speak soon

Neil

The skiing is poor!

More info required, where in the Rockies? Do you mean the Alberta side or the BC side, which isnt really the Rockies at all.

Im afraid we all use the same temperature scales, so you are still likely to get confused! Would you prefer Kelvin??? This might help

Scenery....Er...Mountains? same as the rest of the year.

Wildlife? The Bears are not hibernating yet.

Scenory as in leaves turning brown etc

Banff

There are very few deciduous trees in the rockies....they arent called the rockies for nothing! Below the tree line its evergreen mostly.

If you want fall colours you are better off thinking Ontario and points East.

My MIL came over in Oct last year and went into the Rockies on the 7th I think it was. We had told her to bring clothes as if she were embarking on an Autumn trip to the Lake District and throw in gloves, hat, scarf and good boots for good measure. Sure enough it was a bit on the nippy side and she needed it all. But then again, it could also be warm and sunny. Thats Canada for you !
Everything is starting to look a little bare in Oct. I think the leaves drop earlier here than in Blighty. A few things start to close down for the season then aswell. I know the Jasper Tramway was due to shut just after she went up it.

I think October in the Rockies is changeable. I've been to Rockies in October three times and sometimes it's been relatively mild up to low teens, other times we've had snow - sometimes all in the same day. I think you have to pack a few bits of winter gear just in case. If you pack "layers" you should be okay as then you can take them off when it's milder. Also bear in mind the altitude change along the road between Banff and Jasper. As you ascend towards the Crow foot glacier and Columbia Icefields bits it gets colder. We had clear roads in Banff, snowy roads in Lake Louise, lots of snow on the highway to just past the crow foot, then clear roads again to Jasper.

On an aside note, double check web sites of places you want to visit to check opening times/dates. October is the shoulder season when things start to close down before the ski season starts again in December. It's not such an issue in really touristy places like Banff which cater for all year round market but if you're thinking of going further afield to other mountain towns you should bear this in mind. We found things like horseback riding were petering out, gondolas were shut in Jasper and in Golden and in Invermere we were literally the only guests staying in our lodge and there was only one place to get food in the ski resort. That said, it's a great time to visit - nice autumn colours, nice weather, quiet, cheap prices, no biting insects etc.

Most of the trees in the Rockies are coniferous and evergreen. At the lower elevations in the mountains you do get poplar (aspen) trees, and they turn yellow. The timing of the colour varies from year to year, but mid-September typically is the peak.

In some parts of the forest there also is a coniferous tree that is unusual. It's the larch tree. Its leaves are needles, but they turn golden in autumn. There's actually a hike called Larch Valley near Moraine Lake which, as the name suggests, is a prime trail for viewing the larch trees. You also can see larch trees if you do the Plain of Six Glaciers hike or the Lake Agnes Teahouse hike from Lake Louise. There are some hikes in Yoho National Park that are good for viewing larch trees too. The prime time for the larches is around the end of September, but there still would be some colour in them at the beginning of October.

As other posters have suggested, several services and access routes in the mountains start shutting down around the beginning of October. For example, that's the time when the road to Moraine Lake, which is my favourite lake, closes for the winter.

As other posters also have mentioned, you can have surprisingly warm weather or you can have snow. As also has been mentioned, all this can happen on the same day, indeed the same hour. For that reason I agree with the layered approach to dressing.

The season won't have too much effect on your ability to see moose, elk and deer. That in any case is a hit and miss affair at any time of the year. You may see them, and you may not.

I've heard that bears are at their most grumpy when they wake up from their dormant period in the spring and when they're getting read to go back into their dormant phase in the autumn. In the spring they're hungry and are looking for food. In the autumn (so right when you're planning to come), the snows at higher elevations force them down into the valleys to forage for their final marathon of feasting on berries. (A bear has to eat an enormous amount in six months to lay down the stores of fat that will enable it to survive without food for the next six months.) When the bears come down to lower elevations, they're more likely to encounter people. Before you set out on hikes, it would be a good idea to check with the wardens at the visitor information centre in Banff or Lake Louise or Jasper (whichever is relevant). Get an update on current conditions on the trails, on which trails (if any) bears have been sighted, and so on.

Well, you've been to the area before, I think you know most of the basics, and other posters have given you good information, so I don't know what else to say.

Actually, the Rockies are also in BC. Mt. Robson is the tallest mountain in the Canadian Rockies and it is in BC. Mt. Robson is where the Fraser River originates.

In October, the wildlife is quite horny - so watch out for the bull elk.

If you are going to be pedantic about it, but you know I was refering to the mountains you see from Vancouver, and thefdact that there are three ranges there, two of which arent the rockies ansd are entirely in BC.