The crown jewel of Canada’s park system, Moraine Lake is a glacially fed alpine lake located in a natural cirque of mountains known as the Valley of the Ten Peaks in Banff National Park, Alberta.
The valley was sculpted by a receding glacier which left a moraine rock pile at one end of the lake. This naturally occurring dam allowed the lake to fill to its current size, thus giving the lake its name.
World famous for its mesmerizing turquoise color, the lake’s water color is due to a naturally occurring process of glacial erosion. The moving glacier exerts massive pressure on the rocks underneath, slowly grinding them down to small particles which are referred to as rock flour or glacial silt. This rock flour is carried by streams flowing from the glacier into the lake.
Unable to sink, these minute particles of rock become suspended in the water column and refract sunlight, giving the lake its renowned color. Depending on the time of year, current weather conditions and the angle of sun in the sky, the lake’s color can take on various hues of blue-green and can change hour by hour and day to day. It’s truly a breathtaking sight to behold.