Chasing Gold: A Kananaskis Larch Madness Adventure

📸 Photo Spot

📍 Quick Facts
• Location: Kananaskis Country, Alberta
• Featured Stop: Wedge Pond Loop
• Best Time to Visit: Late September to early October (during peak larch season)
• Hike Distance: Approximately 1 km easy loop around Wedge Pond
• Difficulty: Easy, flat walking trail with no significant hills
• Parking: Wedge Pond day-use area (Kananaskis Conservation Pass required)

It’s larch madness time in Alberta. We decided to head out of Calgary to catch a glimpse of ‘larch fest’ and do some serious leaf peeping.

If you’re new to Alberta, you might be wondering what the heck ‘leaf peeping’ is. It’s basically the art of heading out to admire the fall colours — and yes, we are absolutely down for it.

Alberta has plenty of trees that put on a spectacular fall show, especially the aspens, with their brilliant yellows and all the reds and oranges that show up in the undergrowth. But none of them are quite like the larch.

Larches are a little unusual. They’re coniferous trees, but unlike most evergreens, these trees lose their needles in the fall. Before they do, those needles turn the most spectacular shade of golden yellow.

The larches we are chasing grow in the mountains, which is why this particular fall show requires a little bit of a trek from Calgary. We left the city on Stoney Trail, headed west on the Trans-Canada, and then turned south onto Highway 40 into Kananaskis Country. The drive itself is part of the fun this time of year, with the landscape changing as you get farther into the mountains and the fall colours starting to take over.

And let me tell you, golden larches surrounded by the frikkin Rockies? You’re going to want to stop for some photos. It’s Mother Nature showing off in all her glory, before winter arrives.

For this particular drive, there may be park fees. If you’re going around the Highway 40 loop without stopping or parking your car, you do not need to pay any fees. If you step out of your car, hike, or stop at any day-use area, trailhead, or parking lot along Highway 40 (including Highwood Pass or Kananaskis Village), you must register your vehicle and pay.

You can purchase it ahead of time on the Alberta Parks Kananaskis Conservation Pass page. You can also buy a pass at visitor information centers if they are open, such as the Barrier Lake Visitor Information Centre or the Peter Lougheed Discovery & Information Centre

Calgary Uncovered Tip: Cell service is very weak or missing along much of Highway 40 and Highwood Pass. If you don’t want to stop at the VIC, buy your pass online before you leave home or lose cell range.

We made a quick stop at Kananaskis Village for a bite of lunch before continuing along Highway 40. The village was the site of the 2025 G7 Leaders’ Summit, and honestly, it’s pretty easy to see why they chose this spot. It is absolutely gorgeous. There was also something a little surreal about walking through spaces where Mark Carney and other world leaders had been only months before.

From there, we continued south to Wedge Pond, where we parked and made the short walk down to the water. This was exactly the kind of stop we were looking for: an easy, flat 1-kilometre loop with no hard hills, gorgeous mountain scenery and plenty of opportunities to stop, look around and take approximately a million photos.

The golden trees around the pond, with the Rockies rising behind them and reflecting across the pond itself, made for one heck of a fall backdrop.

How to Get the Shot

• Stand near the edge of Wedge Pond to capture the golden larches with the mountains reflected in the water.
• Visit early or later in the day for softer light and fewer crowds.

Leaving Wedge Pond, we continued around the loop toward Longview, and the landscape changed dramatically again. The towering Rocky Mountain peaks and dense mountain forests gradually gave way to wide-open foothills, rolling grasslands and big Alberta skies.

It’s a completely different kind of beautiful, and it made the drive home every bit as enjoyable as the drive out.

Eventually, we made our way back into Calgary, but not before spending a pretty spectacular fall day surrounded by all that golden goodness.

So, if you’ve been thinking about seeing the larches, this is your sign to get out there and become a leaf peeper. Larch trees only put on their golden show for a very short period of time. When those golden needles reach peak colour, they easily blow off the trees in the wind, creating what hikers call a golden snowstorm as those tiny needles fill the air. Once they’re gone, they’re gone until next year. Larch madness doesn’t last forever!

Good to know:
• Fees: $15 Kananskis Conservation Day Pass required (covers one vehicle)
• Setting: Outdoor setting, and weather-dependent
• Busyness level: Expect a bustling vibe on weekends
• Parking info: Ample parking on gravel lot

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