Johnston Canyon
Johnstons Canyon is a big tourist hike located along the Bow Valley Parkway in Banff National Park. The canyon is filled with perfect 20 - 100 foot waterfalls which makes it a perfect location for kayaking. We put in just below the first 100 foot falls, just above a manky 40 foot slide with a 25 foot drop to finish. I lapped this unnamed waterfall about 6 times before we got a good shot. This was the most I have ever lapped a class 5 drop. The next waterfall was about a 200 meter paddle, and it had a perfect 20 foot drop with a clear run in, and a perfect pool at the bottom; this is what kayakers call a “Perfect stout”. We lapped this a couple times before moving on. Our next waterfall involved a smaller 10 foot drop with a fun slide going into it. This drop was harder to access for filming because it was off the beaten path, so we quickly ran it once and continued to the double drop. Double drop, or “Gandalf”, starts with a 5 foot drop and quickly goes to a 30 foot drop plunging deep into the canyon. This is the last runnable waterfall in the canyon and it was a great way to end the run.
