The Fryatt Valley in Jasper National Park: A Hiking Guide
By Kieran Dunch
An early view on the Fryatt Valley hike, located along where there used to be a cable car from the trail to the highway on the other side!
The Fryatt Valley is a lesser known area of Jasper National Park, and is a great place to get away from the crowds. The trail is a 44 km out and back trail that takes you through the valley and up to the Fryatt Hut. This Rocky Moountain trail is not too popular, but it stocked with some of the best views I’ve ever experienced! This guide will provide all the background information to plan your own trip, and will also include my own experiences on the trail.
The Fryatt Valley is not only a popular route for backpackers headed to the campsite, or alpine hikers headed to the mountain hut, but it is a popular route for mountain bikers too! You may encounter a few of them on the trail, so be prepared to share the trail with them.
Rarely mentioned in the guidebooks, this overlook is one of the best views of the hike! It's not mentioned often because believe it or not, there are even better views further along the trail!
Getting There
The trailhead is well marked and easy to find, but the road getting there is a little different! After making it to Jasper, make your way to Highway 93A. Once you get to the entry gate to Geraldine Road just off of Highway 93A, you will need to be escorted through the road by staff members (between 7am-7pm), as you’ll be driving through an active logging site! The road is a bit bumpy, but the trailhead and parking area is clearly marked. The road is also seasonally restricted, so make sure that you double check the closures before you plan a trip!
The Trail
Day 1
The trail begins flat and forested, for the first 13 kilometers or so. The trail makes its way towards one side of the Athabasca River, with the highway following along on the other side. There’s a nice place to stop for a quick dip and a drinnk of water! After that, the trail opens out to a breathtaking view of the massive Athabasca Valley (seen above). This is when we started to realize we were in for a remarkable hike. If this spectacular view was barely mentioned in the other trail diaries we had seen, there must be better views coming up!
At around kilometer 12-13 you will encounter the first campground, Lower Fryatt. This is the campsite we stopped at, although the next campground, Brussels is only another 6 km up the trail.
Day 2
The next day, we continued up the trail 6 km to Brussels Campground. The day was pretty easy for us, but this is where the trail starts to turn up and into the Fryatt Valley instead of along the edge of Athabasca Valley. The uphill climb is not too steep or difficult at this point, but it is consistent. There is a section of trail once you move into the valley proper that got us a bit lost. Try to look for the stone cairns made by other hikers, and you may need to cross the stream a couple of times. Either way, If you follow along the stream, you’ll eventually make it to the Brussels Campground.
Note: Since the campgrounds along the Fryatt Valley Trail are not evenly distributed, you will usually have to hike at least one long day. Some hikers choose to hike all the way to the Fryatt Hut and back down to Lower Fryatt in one day, some hikers will hike from Lower Fryatt to the hut and back too! We decided to hike up to Fryatt hut and back to Brussels Campground in one day, and then hike 17.6 km back to our car the final day.
This is me and Jasmine, sweating our butts off midway through the 800m headwall!
Day 3
Day 3 is the famous headwall- the hardest part of the hike. This is the steepest incline of the trail. You will pass through the now defunct Headwall campground (right under a precarious rock shelf) and start your climb up the headwall. The headwall is only about 800 meters long, but it gains about 200 meters in elevation in that time, so do not underestimate it! Once you get to the top of the headwall, the climb is worth it. The views of the valley are unbelieveable, and the best is yet to come! With the Fryatt Hut only a short distance away, the trail continues through the woods of the upper valley and opens out to our favourite part of the hike- Belanger Glacier Lake.
Belanger Glacier Lake, the most beautiful part of the hike!
Look at how clear that water is!
After those amazing views, we had a nap and hiked back to brussels to begin the long hike home. We planned to hike from Brussels all the way back to our car in one day like many other hikers, and it was punishing. The flat forested section at the beginning of the trail had us thinking ‘just around the corner’ for hours! By the end, we were exhausted, but the experience of Fryatt Valley was priceless!
Camping
Here is an overview of the camping areas that are available to book along the trail.
Lower Fryatt Campground
The Lower Fryatt Campground is a great place to stop for the night, and is a great place to set up a base camp for the next day’s hike to Brussels or the Fryatt Hut. The campsite is well maintained and has a bear cache, so you can leave your food and cooking supplies there without worry. There is also a creek nearby, so you can fill up your water bottles before heading out the next day. You can book this campsite through the Parks Canada Reservation Service .
Brussels Campground
The Brussels Campground is really beautiful. Nestled in along the side of Fryatt Valley, the campsite is surrounded by trees and has a great view of the mountains. There are porcupines scattered throughout this area of the valley, with a few around the campsite. be sure to store your hiking poles in your tent, they love chewing on anything with salt on it! The campsite has a nice picnic area, as well as some fire pits that you can use when there isn’t a fire ban in place. Brussels is also near a creekside, and has a good supply of fresh water. You can book this campsite through the Parks Canada Reservation Service .
Fryatt Hut
The Fryatt Hut is bookable through the Alpine Club of Canada Website , and it is the final destination for a good portion of the hikers you’ll meet on the trail. The hut is very well maintained, with a fully stocked kitchen as well, and it is located in an amazing spot. The trek to get there is tough, but many hikers will not pack a tent and hike all the way to the hut in one day! The hut is a great place to stay if you want to spend a few days exploring the area, and it is a great place to meet other hikers and share stories.
Wildlife
The Fryatt Valley is home to a bunch of wildlife, but there are a few in particular you should look out for!
Bears
During our hike, there was a couple who were blocked on their way up the headwall by a large grizzly bear, who sat directly on the trail! Make sure you know your bear safety before you go on this hike, and make sure you pack some bear spray too!
Porcupines
We encountered a few porcupines on the trail, and while they are cute, you should avoid them. They aren’t usually agressive, but they make their home along the trail, and in Brussels Campground. They love foreign and human smells, so be sure to use the deisgnated pit toilets and store anything you don’t want chewed up inside of your tent!
Conclusion
The Fryatt Valley is a really special place, and I hope you have a chance to visit it someday! This trail is one of my new favourites, and it is easier to book a trip on than the more famous Skyline Trail. I hope you enjoy the views as much as I did!
