About Spray Valley
Spray Valley Provincial Park is a large provincial park located in Kananaskis Country. The park spans about 254 square kilometers through the heart of Kananaskis. Its location is bordered entirely by other parks: Banff National Park to the west, Bow Valley Provincial Park, Canmore Nordic Center Provincial Park & Bow Valley Wildlands to the north, Elbow-Sheep Wildland to the east, and Peter Lougheed Provincial Park to the south.
The Spray Lakes themselves are what the park was built around. This chain of lakes is actually a reservoir created by the damming of the Spray River in two locations. The first is the 28 meter high Canyon Dam on the southern end of the reservoir and the other one is the Three Sisters Dam on the northern end of the reservoir.
See All Alberta Provincial Parks
Summer at Spray Valley
Spray Valley Provincial Park is a large park with a wide range of popular activities. The most popular is probably the hundreds and front country, back country, and interpretive hikes through the park. In the summertime, mountain biking these trails is popular. There is geocaching in the park as well as wildlife viewing. The park has both front country and backcountry campgrounds available for campers. Fishing in the parks many lakes is also a good way to spend a summer afternoon.
On the water, power boating, wind surfing, and sailing are fun activities.
Winter at Spray Valley
Spray Valley Provincial Park is gorgeous in the wintertime and is one of the few parks in Alberta to offer winter camping opportunities. Ice fishing in the lakes is common and the park offers decent cross country skiing and horseshoeing opportunities. There is even a fully functional biathlon range available that be booked through the Canmore Nordic Center.
Camping at Spray Valley
Spray Valley Provincial Park has 6 designated campgrounds – both backcountry and front country. They also have a lodge available for comfort camping.
| Campground | Amenities | Type of Site | Amount Available | Cost/Night |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eau Claire Campground (June 3 – September 11) | Firepits, pay phone, outhouses, playground, secure food storage, water pumps. | Unserviced | 51 | $31.00 |
| Lillian Lake Backcountry Campground (June 22 – November 30) Latitude: 50.863738 Longitude: -115.252657 | Accessible from Galatea Day Use Area or Ribbon Creek Day Use Area. Outhouses and secure food storage is available. There is no campfires allowed here however. | Designated Backcountry | 17 | $12.00 |
| Ribbon Falls Backcountry Campground (June 22 – November 30) Latitude: 50.892203 Longitude: –115.229125 | Accessible from Ribbon Creek Day Use Area in the Evan Thomas PRA. Outhouses and secure food storage is available. There is no campfires allowed here however. | Designated Backcountry | 10 | $12.00 |
| Ribbon Lake Backcountry Campground (June 22 – November 30) Latitude: 50.886506 Longitude: –115.248081 | Accessible from Buller Mountain Day Use, Galatea Day Use, and Ribbon Creek Day Use Area in the Evan Thomas PRA. Outhouses and secure food storage is available. There is no campfires allowed here however. | Designated Backcountry | 20 | $12.00 |
| Spray Lakes West Campground (May 18 – September 18) | Firepits, hand launch, outhouses, secure food storage, and water pumps. | Designated Backcountry | 50 | $31.00 |
| Rummel Lake Winter Backcountry Campground (December 19 – April 1) Latitude: 50.83489 Longitude: -115.297565 | Accessible from the Mount Engadine Lodge. Outhouses and secure food storage is available. There is no campfires allowed here however. | Designated Backcountry | 10 | $12.00 |
| Lodges | ||||
| Mount Engadine Lodge | *See Alberta Parks Website | * | * | $0.00* |
Day Use at Spray Valley
There are 9 day use facilities in Spray Valley Provincial Park covering all kinds of different landscapes.
- Buller Mountain Day Use
- Open: May 13 – November 1
- Amenities: Firepits, Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking, Mountain Biking
- Driftwood Day Use
- Open: Year Round
- Amenities: Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking
- Galatea Day Use
- Open: Year Round
- Amenities: Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking
- Goat Creek Day Use
- Open: Year-Round
- Amenities: Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking, Mountain Biking, Cross Country Skiing, Skijoring, Snowshoeing
- Mt. Shark Day Use
- Open: Year-Round
- Amenities: Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking
- Opal Day Use
- Open: May 11 – November 1
- Amenities: Firepits, Outhouses, Picnic Shelters, Water Pump
- Activities: Front Country Hiking, Picnics
- Sparrowhawk Day Use
- Open: May 11 – September 3
- Amenities: Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking
- Spray Lake Day Use
- Open: May 11 – September 3
- Amenities: Outhouses
- Activities: Front Country Hiking
- Wedge Pond Day Use – Liquor is permitted here between 11am – 9pm
- Open: Year-Round
- Amenities: Firepits, Outhouses, Water Pump
- Activities: Front Country Hiking, Mountain Biking, Electric Bicycles
Additionally, the Canmore Nordic Center operates the Ruedi Setz Memorial Biathlon Range along the Mt. Shark Trails System. There are 21 firing lanes with mechanical targets and groomed ski trails lead to the firing line. A Canmore Nordic Center Range Safety Officer (RSO) needs to be present to use the range. The range can be booked by emailing: cnc.biathlon@gov.ab.ca
Distances to Alberta Cities
Distance to Calgary: 128km
Distance to Edmonton: 424km
Distance to Red Deer: 274km
Distance to Lethbridge: 343km
Distance to Grande Prairie: 789km
Coordinates: 50°52’01.0″N 115°20’59.7″W
