🇨🇦 Joffre Lake: So Tiring, Yet So Beautiful

As a hiking newbie, my first trip was dedicated to Joffre Lake—it was a day that “ruined” my knees 😅. In Canada🇨🇦, where everyone seems to hike, this was actually my first real hiking experience (the few easy little trails I’d done before don’t count at all). 🙉🙉 🕊️Physically, I felt okay, but my knees hurt like crazy! It hurt so much I wanted to cry. Going up the mountain was fine, but that stretch of rocky path on the way down was brutal on the knees. Though it might also be because I strained my knee a bit from working out recently and it hadn’t fully healed.👉👈 🌤️ Weather-wise, we went on July 15th, and it was super hot and sunny. About half the trail is exposed to direct sunlight. Short sleeves and shorts were more than enough—no need for a jacket, but definitely take sun protection and bug repellent.💢💢💢 🎒 Gear-wise, I basically had nothing prepared. I’d seen people say hiking poles were necessary and thought about buying them, but figured as a total newbie, I might struggle more with poles, so I skipped them. 🤥 Actually, I don’t think they’re that necessary 🤔. Just bring a hat, sun protection clothing, some water, and snacks. 🌈 There are no trash cans at all on the mountain, so you have to carry all your garbage down—stick to simple foods.🍛🍚🍣 Good thing I didn’t bring a self-heating hot pot up there 🤣. Bug spray is a must.🎋 The round trip took about 4 hours total, including time for photos. 🐛 🦀🦀We wasted a lot of time taking pictures, but it still went faster than expected 🤣. It took 3 hours to reach the third lake at the top, and only an hour to head back—we walked👣👣 really fast. My biggest regret was not daring to walk down the tree trunk at the second lake.💧 As soon as I stepped on it, I felt super dizzy from looking at the water. I was shaking so much I couldn’t move at all. 🛎️ Ticket Booking Tips: Tickets go on sale at 7 AM, two days before your planned trip (e.g., for a trip on the 15th, book on the 13th at 7 AM). 💗 The key is the date selection—usually, you can’t choose the date until 7 AM, but iPhone users can manually enter it in advance (iPhone only). At around 6:55 AM, go to the page and manually type in your desired date in advance.🕊️ Check photos 13/14 for reference (‼️ You need to tap the input box multiple times—it won’t work on the first try. Keep tapping until the input mode appears, then type in your date). ❤️ This way, you’ll be faster than others when placing the order, skipping the date selection step. Tickets sell out in seconds 😅. Four of us tried, and two of us got tickets using this method. We even gave four tickets to others. With more people trying this way, you’re almost guaranteed to get tickets!🎫 #Yellowknife #Aurora #Lighthouse #Nightview