Eiffel Lake sits at roughly 2,250 m in the Valley of the Ten Peaks, offering a different limnological profile than its famous neighbour, Moraine Lake. Both occupy the U-shaped valley carved by the Wenkchemna Glacier, but Eiffel Lake is clearer and more intimate.

Geography and water. Unlike the milky turquoise of Moraine Lake, Eiffel Lake is notably clearer, often deep sapphire or translucent aquamarine. Moraine Lake acts as the primary settling basin for the Wenkchemna Glacier; rock flour remains suspended and scatters light. Eiffel Lake, perched on a subalpine bench, is fed mainly by seasonal snowmelt and smaller ice pockets rather than a heavy silt-laden glacial stream, so it has lower suspended particulates and greater transparency. The lake occupies a cirque-like depression on the northern flank; the surrounding terrain is Cambrian sedimentary rock and vast quartzite boulder fields that filter runoff before it reaches the basin.

History and naming. Eiffel Lake takes its name from Eiffel Peak (3,084 m), which rises directly above it. Walter Wilcox named the peak in 1901; its sheer, narrow profile and soaring height reminded him of the Eiffel Tower, completed a decade earlier. In the 1890s, Samuel Allen applied Stoney Nakoda numerals 1 through 10 to the summits, creating the Wenkchemna system (Wenkchemna means “ten” in Stoney). Mount Babel was excluded from the Ten Peaks count; geologically an outlier (a remnant of the Cathedral Formation separated from the main ridge), its position outside the main cirque led Allen to omit it.

Trail. The Eiffel Lake trail shares the initial 2.4 km with the Larch Valley route: ten switchbacks through Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir. At the Larch Valley junction, Eiffel Lake hikers turn left; the trail levels and traverses high above the valley floor along a rocky bench. The terrain opens into a barren, rocky environment dominated by boulder fields. Continuing past the lake, the trail leads toward Wenkchemna Pass (the border between Banff National Park and Kootenay National Park), offering a dual-valley view back at the Ten Peaks and forward into Tokumm Creek Valley. Distance: roughly 5.7 km one way; 11.2 km round trip. Elevation gain: roughly 560 m. Parks Canada often enforces a mandatory group-of-four restriction; bear spray mandatory.

Ecology. The bench is defined by harsh, high-elevation climate. Subalpine larch (Larix lyallii) turns gold in late September. Grouseberry (Vaccinium scoparium), a low shrub with tiny red berries, carpets the ground. Mid-summer wildflowers include heart-leaved arnica, valerian, and Indian paintbrush. The area is critical grizzly bear habitat; grouseberries and glacier lily bulbs make it a vital foraging ground. Bears are often seen rooting in the meadows during late-summer hyperphagia.

Surrounding peaks. Mount Fay (Peak 1) anchors the eastern end; the Fay Glacier drapes over its northern face. Deltaform Mountain (Peak 7, 3,424 m) is often cited as the highest and most imposing of the Ten Peaks; a dark pyramid that dominates the skyline. Samuel Allen designated it Sagowa. Deltaform is notoriously difficult to climb due to crumbly rock and sheer relief.

See Lake Louise and Moraine Lake Trail Systems for shuttle access and the full trail network.