Maligne Lake is one of the largest lake in Jasper National Park. It is also the most popular lake for tourists to visit in Jasper National Park and attracts millions of visitors every year. Maligne Lake is very long and narrow. It is about 1.5 hours of drive from the town of Jasper. There are also several hiking trails such as Bald Hill trails around Maligne Lake. Since we are visiting Jasper National Park, it is a place that we cannot miss.
We left Jasper around 7AM in the morning and got to Maligne Lake around 9AM. It took us about 2 hours since we stopped at few view points to take some pictures. On the way to Maligne Lake, we could see some pine trees being damaged by the forest fire few years ago. It was sad to see. When we got to Maligne Lake, the parking lot is huge and there are 3 of them. So people don't have to worry about find a parking space.
The day was cloudy and a little bit rainy. We got ourselves a Spirit Island Cruise package from the Maligne Lake lodge. The boat will take us to the famous and sacred Spirit Island at the middle of Maligne Lake.
The boat is not very big and can probably hold only 50 people at once. After it left the dock, it took around 15 minutes to get to Spirit Island. During the ride, we walked out onto the deck at the back of the boat to enjoy the soft wind and the view. The guide on the boat also gives some background and history on Spirit Island.
When we got to the Spirit Island, it was actually connected to the lake shore. This is because the water runs dry during the summer. During the other seasons with higher water level, it will become an island. One thing to note is that people cannot set foot on the island due to it being very sacred to the local people. Also, the cruise boat cannot go further into the lake beyond where Spirit Island is. Spirit Island is right in front of the holy gate and the portion of the lake behind Spirit Island is also sacred.
When we got back to the lodge, it actually started drizzling. We were glad that we got back early. Maligne Lake is definitely a must visit place when visiting Jasper National Park and we highly recommend it.
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