Radventures

When it’s so beautiful, it just doesn’t even feel real ⛰️

📍Sunrise at Moraine Lake
🔗 Book a spot on our multi-award-winning tours before the season ends

Berry season = Bears (they should rename it Beary Season👀)

Most people look at a grizzly and see a predator. The reality is that their diet is actually 80-90% veggie.

Right now that means buffaloberries. Parks Canada calls them the most important food source for both grizzlies and black bears in these mountains, and a single grizzly can put away 100,000 of them in a day. Big males double it. The rest of the year it’s sweetvetch roots, horsetail, grasses, and dandelions along the highway in spring.

Those claws that look built for damage? They’re digging tools. Mostly for roots.

Buffaloberry season runs mid-July into September, and the shrubs grow exactly where we walk and drive. Roadsides, trail edges, campgrounds.

A feeding bear is head down and locked in, which means it’s less likely to notice you before you notice it.

Having bear spray on you, not in the pack, is essential when out and about on any trail.

Hike tight in a group of four or more and being noisy always helps.

Let’s talk about wildfire smoke:

Wildfire smoke has been on everyone’s minds. Watching what’s happening in Washington State and British Columbia is frightening, and if you’ve got a Rockies trip booked, you might be wondering if it’s safe.

So here’s where things actually stand. Banff currently has no wildfires affecting the park or the safety of visitors. The smoke reaching us is drifting in from hundreds of kilometres away.

Some days it’s been thick. Then the wind shifts and we get a day like today, blue sky start to finish. There’s no timing this. The wind changes direction and the smoke moves with it, in or out of the valley, sometimes between breakfast and dinner.

Smoke and danger are two different conversations.
This part matters, so we want to be clear about it.

There’s a real difference between accepting some haze on your holiday and being genuinely in danger. Those are separate things and they get blurred together constantly in the news and in people’s minds.

We’ll always be straight with you about safety. If that changes, you’ll hear it from us first.

We went into detail on all of this in this week’s blog. Comment BLOG and we’ll send you the link.

We just won our 4th Trip Advisor Travellers Choice Award 🥳 Four awards, Four years running!

Now, we don’t mean to brag and shout it from the rooftops, but back in 2020 when we were nothing more than one man and van, we never could have dreamed of being in the top 10% of experiences worldwide, 4 years running 🤯 So this one still feels a bit surreal.

Thank you to every guest who trusted us with a day in the Rockies, and who took the time to write about it afterwards. You’re the whole reason this exists and why Radventures is one of the highest rated experience providers in Western Canada.

And to our guides, our reservations team, our ops crew, our marketing team, our leadership crew, and everyone working behind the scenes: this one’s yours.

The early mornings, the weather pivots, the storytelling, the reading of the room. That’s what people are actually reviewing.

Cheers to you!

Moraine Lake, 7pm. Almost nobody on the Rockpile except our guests. One van left in the parking lot. Ours.

Thousands of people visit Moraine Lake every single day. The Rockpile is one of the most congested viewpoints in Banff National Park. And yet, we had it to ourselves.

The secret we’ve been gatekeeping: almost everyone is gone by 6pm, tour buses included.

That’s when we arrive. When the light goes soft, the only noise is the crunch of your own footsteps, and the crowds are virtually non-existent.

This is Moraine Lake the way it used to be.

Footage from July 24th, 2026, 7pm.

Comment SUNSET to get our tour details.

Some moments make you feel like a kid again. Spotting your first bear in Banff is one of them.

We can’t keep count of the amount of bears our guides and guests have been spotting all around Banff during our tours this week!

With the alpine still tucked under a heavy blanket of snow, bears and other wildlife are spending more time down in the valleys, searching for food and occasionally making a roadside appearance while they’re at it.

It’s one of those magical windows in the Rockies, elk in the meadows, bears in the distance, guides quietly scanning the treeline like wildlife detectives.

And while sightings are never guaranteed, this is exactly why exploring with local guides makes such a difference. We know where to look, when to safely slow down, and how to enjoy these wild moments safely and respectfully.

Want your best chance at spotting wildlife in Banff this summer?

Comment BEAR and we’ll send you our favourite wildlife-friendly adventures!

This big fella was spotted by our team strolling close to downtown Banff this week. Bear season is officially here 🐻