The story of Banff begins with hot water bubbling from deep within the earth. In 1883, three Canadian Pacific Railway workers stumbled upon a cave containing natural hot springs on the lower slopes of Sulphur Mountain. That discovery would lead to the creation of Canada's first national park, the birth of the tourism industry in the Canadian Rockies, and a saga of commerce, conservation, and contested history that continues to this day.
Ancient Origins
The hot springs at Banff are fed by rainwater and snowmelt that seeps deep underground — up to 3 kilometres — where geothermal energy heats it to temperatures between 30°C and 47°C. The water rises back to the surface through fractures in the ancient limestone, bringing dissolved minerals including sulphate, calcium, bicarbonate, and the characteristic rotten-egg smell of hydrogen sulphide. The entire cycle takes thousands of years.
Indigenous peoples — including the Stoney Nakoda, Blackfoot, Ktunaxa, and Tsuut'ina — knew of these springs for thousands of years before European contact. The springs were considered sacred places of healing and spiritual significance, and the hot water was used for medicinal purposes.
The 1883 Discovery
In November 1883, three CPR construction workers — Frank McCabe, Tom McCardell, and William McCardell — discovered the Cave and Basin hot springs while exploring the lower slopes of Sulphur Mountain. They found a natural cave with a pool of warm, mineral-rich water and immediately recognized its commercial potential. They attempted to stake a private claim to the springs.
Their claim triggered a bitter dispute among the workers, the CPR, and the federal government. Rather than allowing private ownership, the Canadian government stepped in and declared the hot springs a public reserve in 1885 — the Banff Hot Springs Reserve, a 26 square kilometre area that became the seed of what would grow into Banff National Park (established as Rocky Mountains Park in 1887).
The Cave and Basin
The Cave and Basin is the birthplace of Canada's national park system. The site has been developed and rebuilt several times over the decades. The original bathing pools operated from the 1880s until 1992, when they were closed to protect the Banff Springs snail — a tiny, endangered snail that lives only in the hot springs outflows at the Cave and Basin. Today, the Cave and Basin is a National Historic Site and museum — you can tour the cave, learn the history, and see the thermal springs, but you cannot bathe in them.
Upper Hot Springs
The Upper Hot Springs, located higher on Sulphur Mountain, remain open for public bathing. The outdoor pool is heated to 37–40°C by natural hot spring water, with views of Mount Rundle and the Bow Valley. It's the only remaining public bathing facility fed by Banff's original hot springs. The current facility was renovated in the 1990s and accommodates hundreds of bathers daily.
The CPR and Tourism
The Canadian Pacific Railway was instrumental in developing Banff as a tourist destination. CPR General Manager William Cornelius Van Horne famously declared: "If we can't export the scenery, we'll import the tourists." The CPR built the original Banff Springs Hotel in 1888 — a grand chateau-style resort designed to attract wealthy tourists from around the world. The hot springs were the primary draw, marketed as a "healing retreat" for the elite.
Visiting Today
- Cave and Basin National Historic Site: Open year-round for tours and exhibitions. Admission applies
- Banff Upper Hot Springs: Open year-round for bathing. Swimsuit rental available
- Banff Springs snail: Look for the tiny snails (5mm) in the warm outflows at the Cave and Basin — they exist nowhere else on Earth
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