Bow Valley is a

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

along the upper

Bow River The headwaters of the Bow River in Alberta, Canada, start at the Bow Glacier and Bow Lake (Alberta), Bow Lake in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies, Canadian Rocky Mountains. The glacial stream that feeds Bow Lake (Alberta), Bow Lake ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, Canada. The name "Bow" refers to the reeds that grew along its banks and which were used by the local

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

people to make bows; the

Blackfoot language The Blackfoot language, also called Niitsi'powahsin () or Siksiká ( ; , ), is an Algonquian languages, Algonquian language spoken by the Blackfoot Confederacy, Blackfoot or people, who currently live in the northwestern plains of North Americ ...

name for the river is , meaning "river where bow weeds grow".Bow Riverkeeper article
about the river.

Community

There are several communities in the Bow Valley, including Banff, Canmore, Kananaskis, and the hamlets of Dead Man's Flats, Exshaw, Harvie Heights, Lac des Arcs, and Lake Louise. Local residents are culturally diverse, with growing immigration trends since the early 2000s.

Parks

Bow Valley Provincial Park (part of the

Kananaskis Country Kananaskis Country (abbreviated: K-Country) is a multi-use area west of Calgary, Alberta, Canada in the Rocky Mountain Foothills, foothills and front ranges of the Canadian Rockies. Its western edge borders Banff National Park and the Alberta-Br ...

park system) was established east of the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies () or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part of the Canadian Cordillera, w ...

in the arch of the valley, while the upper course of the Bow River flows through

Banff National Park Banff National Park is Canada, Canada's first National Parks of Canada, national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park. Located in Alberta's Rockies, Alberta's Rocky Mountains, west of Calgary, Banff encompasses of mountainous ter ...

. The

Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial Park Canmore Nordic Centre Provincial Park is a provincial park in Alberta, Canada, located immediately west of Canmore, west of Calgary. This provincial park is situated at the foot of Mount Rundle within the Canadian Rocky Mountains along Bow ...

is located between the Banff National Park and Canmore in the Bow River Valley. Numerous other recreation areas dot the valley. Provincial Recreation Areas are established at Three Sisters, Gap Lake, Grotto Mountain, Lac des Arcs, Heart Ridge, Heart Mountain,

Ghost Reservoir Ghost Lake is a reservoir in Western Alberta, Canada, formed along the Bow River. It is located approximately west of the city of Calgary, Alberta, Calgary and immediately west of Cochrane, Alberta, Cochrane. It has a water surface of and a dra ...

and other locations.

Lakes

Many lakes,

glacial A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

and artificial, are found in the Bow Valley: * Bow Lake * Hector Lake * Vermilion Lakes * Lake Louise *Gap Lake * Lac des Arcs * Ghost Lake

References

Valleys of Alberta {{AlbertaRockies-geo-stub