What to pack for banff hikes??

Alright here's the list of gear I'm dragging to Banff in a couple weeks.

5D mII
7D

Tokina 11-16
24-105
100mm 2.8
70-200 2.8 IS II
100-400
500mm f4
Maybe a prime as well who knows.

The real question is what to throw in my sling bag for hikes. I figured the 100-400 and 100 2.8 for sure. Probably bring the 24-105 as well. Now do I take the 5d or 7d?

I'm not really sure which way to go so I'm looking for suggestions. The 500 may come on some shorter hikes although my parents said they really didn't see much wildlife on the hikes. It was mostly scenic shots.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

You'll need the 5D + the 24-105, or the 7D + 11-16, and I'd opt for the 5. Add the 100-400 and you are covered. If you are particularly going for 'botanical' shots, take the 100, otherwise leave it behind.
The 70-200 is a great lens, but it's heavy and you probably won't need its speed.

Your parents have it right, for the most part. I spent some time at Lake Louise, the most beautiful place I've ever seen, and I live in New Zealand! Wide vistas, but the only animal I saw was a porcupine up a tree!

xarqi wrote in post #14659312
You'll need the 5D + the 24-105, or the 7D + 11-16, and I'd opt for the 5. Add the 100-400 and you are covered. If you are particularly going for 'botanical' shots, take the 100, otherwise leave it behind.
The 70-200 is a great lens, but it's heavy and you probably won't need its speed.

Your parents have it right, for the most part. I spent some time at Lake Louise, the most beautiful place I've ever seen, and I live in New Zealand! Wide vistas, but the only animal I saw was a porcupine up a tree!

Thanks. I am kind of into the macro stuff so the 100 will most likely make it into my bag. I'm leaning towards the 5d as well. If I still had the 17-55 it may be a different story.

We are going to Lake Louise which I'm pretty excited for!

If you have a tripod, take it along, especially it is a light-weight one (I mean, like carbon fiber, not flimsy). That will help with some of the landscapes if light isn't good, say in twilight. I took a great shot from the foot of the Victoria glacier looking back across the lake to the hotel at about 10 pm.

I did miss the macro facility when I was there. It was YEARS ago and I was making do with a Pentax Point'n'shoot film camera. There were some lovely wild flowers that deserved better treatment than I could give them, so yes, if you are macro-inclined, and the weight isn't an issue, take the 100 too.

Lake Louise is - well - I'm not poet enough to attempt to impart any sense of its beauty in words.

Paxonator wrote in post #14659264
Alright here's the list of gear I'm dragging to Banff in a couple weeks.

5D mII
7D

Tokina 11-16
24-105
100mm 2.8
70-200 2.8 IS II
100-400
500mm f4
Maybe a prime as well who knows.

The real question is what to throw in my sling bag for hikes. I figured the 100-400 and 100 2.8 for sure. Probably bring the 24-105 as well. Now do I take the 5d or 7d?

I'm not really sure which way to go so I'm looking for suggestions. The 500 may come on some shorter hikes although my parents said they really didn't see much wildlife on the hikes. It was mostly scenic shots.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

You can certainly spend days there and see not very much wildlife at all, especially if you stick to the touristy trails close to town but there is plenty there.

There are some well known trails not far from the highway west of Banff where bears are often sighted, depending on the time of year. I can't remember the exact areas but if you google bear sighting Banff, I'm sure you'll find something.

It is not unknown for moose to venture into town as well. In fact, there have been quite a few examples of males getting up to their antics during rutting season right in the middle of town.

I used to hike the Rockies every weekend for 2.5 years (though I was up in Jasper most of the time, with the odd trip down to the Icefields/Banff/Lake Louise/etc).

Here's what I have to tell you: if you're smart you'll take a bear bell. Or two (one for each member of your party, you don't want to surprise a bear). Unfortunately, the bell tends to scare away other wildlife as well...even without a bear bell, though, the foliage is so dense around there, that you'll rarely see any decent wildlife (unless you're a birder, those are plentiful)...otherwise​...on the trail I've bumped into one bear (a grizzly) all those times...

Also, I'm not sure about *MOOSE* wandering into town in Banff. If it does happen it's extremely rare. The entire time I lived up there, I never saw a single moose within 300 km of Jasper (and that was 300km to the north). You'll see caribou (I think...I used to know all this stuff, but it's getting hazy) wander into town at certain times of the year, though.

The only moose I ever managed to snap a picture of...this was while 4x4'ing in the middle of nowhere about 600 km north of Jasper:

LowriderS10 wrote in post #14659611
Also, I'm not sure about *MOOSE* wandering into town in Banff. If it does happen it's extremely rare. The entire time I lived up there, I never saw a single moose within 300 km of Jasper (and that was 300km to the north). You'll see caribou (I think...I used to know all this stuff, but it's getting hazy) wander into town at certain times of the year, though.

The only moose I ever managed to snap a picture of...this was while 4x4'ing in the middle of nowhere about 600 km north of Jasper:

I used to see them off the side of the highway in the marshes about every 6 months, but they'd be gone by the time I pulled over and grabbed the camera...again, this was always well north of Jasper.

last time i was there, we saw one in town. it was September 2010, iirc.

edit, it may have been around New Year's 2010/2011 actually.

I went this year. For hikes 7d, 11-16, 24-105.
Regarding moose, here is the one from this area.

Check out Moraine Lake while you are there. We preferred the views there over Lake Louise (which is quite beautiful, too).

For hikes why not take both the 5D2 with 24-105L mounted and 7D with 11-16 mounted? If it's an area with more wildlife, swap the Tokina for the 100-400L on the 7D.

I'm thinking that seeing wildlife while on a short hike is highly unlikely. I think you would be covered by taking the 5D and 24-105/70-200 or the 7D and 11-16/24-105. Either would be a good setup for landscape shots/ things you wold see along a hike. Toss in your 100 2.8 for the macro work and you will be set up. When traveling between destinations I would have your longer lens mounted and ready to shoot (caps off, ISO and shutter speed in a good spot) for the chance that you might see wildlife along your drives.

If you have time I'd suggest traveling up the icefields parkway. Very beautiful!

I would take your 5D, 24-105 and 100 for hikes. The wild flowers right now are amazing out there and the scenery will be your big focus as well. Wildlife is hit and miss to be honest, that park is beaten with tourists. If you want to see more wildlife then its worth the drive down to Waterton National Park.

We had good luck seeing wildlife (elk & grizzlies) along the Bow Valley Parkway that runs between Banff and Lake Louise, as well as seeing big horn sheep in the Lake Minnewanka area near Banff. Also, the lakes just outside of Banff to the west had quite a decent elk population. There is a road off Mt. Norquay road that runs parallel to Hwy 1 that will take you by those lakes.

I agree with Diesel Dog -- if you have the time, take the Ice Fields Parkway north towards Jasper. The scenery is spectacular.

Thanks for the suggestions everybody! I had thought about taking both bodies with the 24-105 being mounted on the 5d then the 100-400 on the 7d. I think I should really pack the bag now with some different combinations to make sure everything will fit right. I guess I'll probably figure out what I'll use after the first hike :P.

Scott M wrote in post #14661417
We had good luck seeing wildlife (elk & grizzlies) along the Bow Valley Parkway that runs between Banff and Lake Louise, as well as seeing big horn sheep in the Lake Minnewanka area near Banff. Also, the lakes just outside of Banff to the west had quite a decent elk population. There is a road off Mt. Norquay road that runs parallel to Hwy 1 that will take you by those lakes.

I agree with Diesel Dog -- if you have the time, take the Ice Fields Parkway north towards Jasper. The scenery is spectacular.

that's exactly where i was thinking of.