You’ve likely heard of the Fenlands Trail, a gentle, 2 km trail that leaves from the Banff townsite and meanders through the marshlands. If you know the way, you can cross the bridge and connect to Vermilion Lakes Road where a short walk will take you to that iconic view of Mount Rundle reflected in the lake. But did you know you can get an interpretative guide to explore this area? And it’s free!

At the entrance to the trail, scan the QR code for a guided tour from Parks Canada. Curious to see what it was, I thought I'd give it a go. It leads to the Parks Canada app, which you can download on your phone. Do we really need another app? Probably not, but this one has guided tours and interpretation from Parks Canada staff about the area, and there is a guided tour for this particular trail.

How bad can it be?

Turns out, it’s actually pretty good. The phone tracks your progress around the trail and certain milestones trigger the voice to come in and supply interpretation. Sometimes it’s a bit about the wildlife in the area, sometimes the ecology of the place (fends are a great place for all kinds of critters, big and small), and sometimes it just reminds you to take a look around and appreciate the utter beauty of this place. The app was easy to access, easy to use, and once we started the tour, it automatically did the rest. As we walked along, the app would chime in at certain moments, giving us something to look for, and something to look forward to.

So if you’re looking for a short walk with a interpretative twist and you don’t want to pay for a guide, download the Parks Canada app and take the free walking tour around the Fenlands Loop. It’s worth it.

Kate Barker