Canadian Pacific Chateau Lake Louise Hotel

This is the extraordinary Lake Louise Hotel built by the Canadian Pacific Railway.

In the background the Victoria Glacier is visible which sits above the frozen Lake Louise named after Queen Victoria's fourth daughter and wife of the Duke of Argyll Governor General of Canada 1878-83.

The Canadian Pacific Railway opened through Kicking Horse Pass in the Selkirks in 1886.  Very soon afterwards the CPR understood the opportunity for nature tourism in the Rocky Mountains and opened a lodge on the Lake's edge in the heart of Banff National Park.  This burned down but was rebuilt as a hotel and has been expanded over the years.  

The earliest part of the current complex still standing is the Painter Wing of 1913.  The temperatures in Winter are down to -10 to -20 C in the day time.