It isn't guaranteed. To have a skating season, we need the right combination of cold temperatures and no snow. We've only been able to skate on the full body of Lake Louise in about five or six of the 20 years we've lived here. And sometimes only for one day!
Skating on a frozen mountain lake is an amazing experience. If you are lucky the ice will be very smooth, and almost always there are gorgeous star-like crystals sticking up. Patterns in the ice catch your eye - waves, bubbles, cracks.
Joel will skate on ice that is only three inches thick, but Nadine prefers something closer to six inches! This Banff National Park video will give you a flavour for the speed, the sounds and the crisp, cold air.
