Hinton is blessed with a beautiful backyard that encompasses neighbouring parts of Yellowhead County and the Alberta Northern Rockies. The Alberta Northern Rockies is a surrounding system of provincial parks and spectacular spaces that neighbour Hinton.
Highlighted by an endless supply of trails, alpine terrain, forest and waterways – the Alberta Northern Rockies area also boasts a vast swath of untapped pristine wilderness.
Nearby communities of Cadomin, Brule, Robb, and Obed all fall within the Yellowhead County boundaries. These communities are rich in history, blessed with natural beauty, and act as their own gateways to hiking, biking, camping, fishing, hunting, snowmobiling and quadding adventures that lay beyond.
The photos on this page, and many throughout our website, and on our social media were generously provided to us by Scott Sunderwald and Alberta Parks.
Places you can’t miss in the Alberta Northern Rockies:
Located just 15 minutes away from Hinton on Hwy 40 north, William A. Switzer Provincial Park is an uncrowded gem in the Canadian Foothills with a myriad of summer adventures to do like camping, fishing, swimming, hiking, biking, and kayaking. The park is also a winter wonderland for snowshoeing, ice fishing, and cross country skiing (at the world-class Hinton Nordic Centre).
Willmore Wilderness Park is located north of Hinton on Hwy 40 north. It’s the largest wilderness area in Alberta and offers a unique back country experience in some of the last undisturbed range of many wildlife species in Alberta. Visitors to Willmore should be experienced and well-equipped for a rugged back country trip. Willmore Wilderness Park has three major staging areas for both hikers and horseback riders, all reached off of Highway 40 north.
Pierre Grey’s Lakes Provincial Park is 120 km north of Hinton on Hwy 40 north near the scenic town of Grande Cache. The park is named after Pierre Gris (or Grey) who was a Métis that ran a trading post in the area during the 1880s and 1890s. You can still see the remains of his trading post nestled among this beautiful group of five small lakes. The lakes are excellent for fishing rainbow trout and brook trout and have four accompanying campgrounds.
Rock Lake Provincial Park and Rock Lake – Solomon Creek Wildland
Rock Lake Provincial Park is a small park northwest of Hinton and is a popular staging area for trips into the undeveloped wilderness of its neighbouring parks. The hillsides and valleys that surround the lake provide excellent views and the lake is known for its great fishing.
Rock Lake – Solomon Creek Wildland Park is a large, 347 square kilometre park northwest of Hinton and is a spectacular setting for hiking, horseback riding, fishing,
birdwatching, wildlife viewing, and camping.
Wildhorse & Kinky Lakes are located just 20 km west of Hinton. A popular area for camping, birdwatching and photography. The lakes also offer great Rainbow Trout and Brook trout fishing. The area is also near the Brule Sand Dunes where these trails can be used by all terrain vehicles (ATVs), hikers, and horseback riders.
Brule is a nearby community approximately 20 km southwest of Hinton. If you stop off at the Mt. Solomon Lookout you will see spectacular elevated views across Brule Lake with the awe-inspiring backdrop of the Northern Rockies peaks to frame the golden sunset views.
Brule is the access point to Ogre Canyon, a water-based canyon with numerous waterfall rappels. The area is also great for hiking and mountain biking.
Whitehorse Wildland Park is located south of Hinton on Hwy 40 south in the front ranges of the Rocky Mountain Natural Region. The majority of the park is above the tree-line where extensive alpine meadows and sub-alpine slopes host extremely fragile soils and plants where more than 277 species have been documented. The area is great for back-country hiking, camping, and wildlife viewing.
Sundance Provincial park is located 70 km north east of Hinton and is a hidden treasure in the Alberta Northern Rockies region. Some must-sees include the Wild Sculpture Trail which takes you through the hoodoos (a natural sandstone formation), and Emerson lakes which is a collection of five beautiful clear blue lakes.
Jasper National Park, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and has its park gates a mere 15 minutes west of Hinton (Jasper town site is an hour drive). There are a number of historical and interpretive sites, as well as expeditions that range from one hour to multiple days.
The Miette Hot Springs are less than an hour west of Hinton where visitors can enjoy a challenging hike up the Sulphur Skyline trail and take a breather after in the spectacular hot and cold pools.