Mount Assiniboine Traverse emergency & health guide: hospitals, rescue, 911 and bears

Emergency numbers

There is no reliable mobile signal after Sunshine Village, so carry a satellite messenger or personal locator beacon and use the SOS only in a real emergency. In summer, Assiniboine Lodge (office 403-678-2883) and the BC Parks custodians at Lake Magog can radio for help. Rescues are by helicopter and cannot fly at night or in cloud: the lodge warns that an evacuation can take up to 48 hours in bad weather. Leave your plan with someone at home and check the Parks Canada trail conditions and the Assiniboine Lodge trail report before you start.

Rules to know

• Three permit systems: a Parks Canada backcountry permit for Howard Douglas Lake, Marvel Lake, McBride's Camp or Big Springs ($15 per person per night plus a reservation fee of $11.50 online), BC Parks reservations for Porcupine, Og Lake or Lake Magog, and a Kananaskis Conservation Pass ($15 a day) for a car left at Mount Shark. Permits cannot be bought on the trail.
• Banff National Park needs a park pass (2026: $12.25 per adult per day or a Discovery Pass). The free-admission offer of summer 2026 ended on 7 September 2026.
• Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park fees from 2026: $25 per adult and $5 per youth per night, plus a $20 non-resident fee per person per trip if you do not live in BC. Reservations open on a 3-month rolling window at 7 am Pacific time; there are no first-come sites from June to September, and BC Parks asks you not to enter the core area without a booking.
• Bears: black and grizzly bears live along the whole route. Carry bear spray where you can reach it, make noise, and keep all food, garbage and toiletries in the lockers or on the bear poles at each campground. Assiniboine Pass high trail and Allenby Pass are restricted from 1 August to 30 September for grizzly bears; the Wonder Pass exit is not affected.
• Fires are banned at Lake Magog, Og Lake and everywhere in the core area; in Banff they are allowed only in the metal fire rings where provided. Carry a stove and fuel.
• Dogs must be on a leash at all times and are not allowed on the Sunshine gondola, at Sunshine Village or in the Naiset Huts; BC Parks says the backcountry is not suitable for pets. Recreational drones are not allowed in Banff National Park.
• No bikes in Sunshine Meadows or west of Trail Centre on Bryant Creek. No fishing or swimming in the Sunshine Meadows lakes.
• Sunshine Village gondola: daily 8 am to 6 pm in the summer season (6 July to 20 September in 2026); buy a one-way ticket at Guest Services. A free shuttle runs from Banff to the gondola base.
• Helicopter: Assiniboine Lodge flies between the Mount Shark heliport and Lake Magog on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays in summer ($265 per person one way + 5% tax in 2027, or gear only at $7 per pound). You need a Lake Magog, Og Lake, hut or lodge booking to fly, and you cannot fly in and hike out the same day.
• Mount Shark: there is no public transport or shuttle from the trailhead, which is about an hour from Canmore on the gravel Highway 742. Arrange a car or private transfer, and leave nothing in your car: break-ins happen.

Nearest hospital for each stage

Hospitals

Pharmacies, cash and supplies

• Pharmacies:
• ATMs:
• Shops:
• Shuttles and helicopter:

There is no pharmacy, shop or clinic on the route, and Canada has no duty-pharmacy rota. Buy medicines, a blister kit, water treatment and bear spray in Banff or Canmore before you start. Assiniboine Lodge sells only afternoon tea, snacks, beer and wine. There is no power on the trail: carry a power bank.

Pharmacies, ATMs, shops and stops: © OpenStreetMap contributors. Hospitals and health centres checked online.