Categories: Travel

This gargantuan waterfall flows near the Alberta-B.C. border

Photo via Isaak Friessen Penner/Shutterstock

Nothing is more magical than a breathtaking waterfall, and this one is particularly dramatic at 30 metres high —the tallest single plunge waterfall in all of Alberta.

Kakwa Falls is located within Kakwa Wildland Park in the alpine and subalpine sub-regions of the Rocky Mountains. You can hike to see it, but it’s quite a distance from Calgary, and a bit of a daunting trip to get there. Some off-road skill and a proper Jeep-style vehicle or ATV are required, and the location is quite remote.

The start of the trail to the falls is located about two hours southwest of Grande Prairie. It’s an eight-hour drive from Calgary, so you’ll definitely need to be committed to say you saw Alberta’s tallest single plunge waterfall.

In summer, the trail is relatively easy to hike or run, at 22 km in length with 935 metres of elevation gain on a point-to-point path. If you’re brave and nimble enough, you can even access the area behind this impressive plunge, making for a truly dreamy experience.

What to expect

Hitting the trail to the falls in an ATV or quad in July or August is your best bet, as there is a creek crossing and some pretty serious off-roading involved. But once you get there, you’ll be rewarded with a breathtaking double-plunge waterfall nestled between rocks, in a remote location in the Alberta wilderness.

Kakwa’s diverse natural ecosystem is the roaming ground for many of Alberta’s iconic species, such as caribou, big horned sheep, and grizzly bears. It’s located along the Alberta-B.C. border, in the remote northwest Rockies.

Despite its remote location, it’s a popular outdoor area in the summer, and many enthusiasts from both provinces have Jeeped and RV’d their way there, just to see the spectacular falls.

That’s how you know these views are truly worth it — talk about breathtaking!