

What peace looks like. Luellen Lake is a short 1km hike from the Johnston Creek campground. Camping has given me a unique appreciation of light. I have a lamp, purchased for $8.90 at Decathlon because I am not sure whether I will like camping enough to do it again. It casts a comforting glow in a metre-wide radius around me, but it cannot wrestle with the strong-armed darkness of the Canadian Rockies. I use the lamp to find the zippers of my tent flap and sleeping bag, then surrender to the mountain’s message: When the sun sleeps, you should too. In the mountains, 1,940m above sea level, the sun is more important but less giving. Although it is the middle of summer, I wake up to a film of ice on the water that I purified the night before. I put on my hardshell and buff, but I know I will still be freezing after brushing my teeth. The thought crosses my mind that it is silly to have an irrepressible need to brush my teeth in the forest. After all, the last 24 hours have reduced my usual industriousness to actions of necessity only: one foot in front of the other up the mountain, build a shelter, purify water, eat.

Travel Notes
- The fastest way to get to Banff is to fly to Calgary International Airport, where you can rent a car. Johnston Canyon is a two-hour drive away;
- You have to book a campsite in advance (email [email protected]). The best ones are taken quickly in summer, so start your research now;
- Buy the best equipment you can afford. Light tents and warm sleeping bags will produce a better experience;
- Trails are marked with difficulty levels — beginner, moderate and difficult — but this grading system can be misleading. If you are attempting elevation of more than 300m or hiking more than 10km in a day, you should be reasonably fit; and
- Bring more carbs than proteins and opt for light, dry food: couscous, lentils, oats. Spam and baked beans may be typical camping foods on TV, but they are really for the glamping sort.